CHRISTCHURCH Day Hospital has officially opened with a prestigious award in excellent practice.

Health officials and the Mayor of Christchurch, Cllr Trish Jamieson, attended the unveiling of the new day hospital for older people with frailty and long term conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, stroke and dementia.

The new facility boasts dementia friendly treatment zones, a garden with different surfaces for patient rehabilitation as well as a fully equipped gym.

The range of new facilities will support the team’s multi-disciplinary approach, combining the expertise of medical, physiotherapy and occupational therapy staff.

Staff were presented with a Practice Development Accreditation plaque from Bournemouth University. To achieve the award, the team undertook an 18 month project involving patient groups and team analysis to reconfigure patient services, raising standards from good to outstanding.

Richard Renaut, Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust chief operating officer and lead for the Christchurch build, said: “We are very proud of the Christchurch Day Hospital team. Throughout the move they have gone above and beyond the call of duty to provide exemplary care for our patients, despite the considerable disruption of the building works.

“We hope patients will be as pleased with the new Day Hospital as we are, and look forward to the continuation of our plans to develop a leading health hub for the people of Dorset.”

The old day hospital department closed at the end of April this year when staff moved into a new purpose built building on the site.

The official opening marks a key milestone in the Trust’s ‘Health Village’ development. The Trust is working with experts and key partners to develop a hub providing coordinated care for patients across hospital, care home, sheltered living accommodation services from one site.