Hospital expressing room for Northampton mums with premature babies given £7,000 face lift

Northampton General Hospital's expressing room has been given a revamp to make new mums feel more comfortable.
Staff and fundraisers pictured who helped to oversee the project from start to finish.Staff and fundraisers pictured who helped to oversee the project from start to finish.
Staff and fundraisers pictured who helped to oversee the project from start to finish.

In September last year Gosset ward staff circulated a questionnaire to new mums at NGH to get their feedback on changes they wanted to see made to the expressing room.

Their responses said how the room was cramped, unwelcoming and how it lacked privacy.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Before the refurbishment, mums even had to walk through the door and step around a large fridge standing in their way.

Pictures of the expressing room before the revamp last year show how unpractical the room was for new mums.Pictures of the expressing room before the revamp last year show how unpractical the room was for new mums.
Pictures of the expressing room before the revamp last year show how unpractical the room was for new mums.

But after a £7,000 grant by Northamptonshire Health Charity the room has been completely renovated and now looks clean and tidy.

Money has paid for new art work on the walls and easy-to-pull curtains for mum's who have just had a c-section.

The small kitchen area has been developed but scaled back so there are not so many cupboards taking up space, and there is better facilities to make hot drinks.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Before the refurbishment the old room was very small and uninviting for mums," Jenna Leeder, ward team assistant for the Gosset ward said.

Now the room is bright and airy with comfortable chairs, new privacy curtains and a shiny new kitchen.Now the room is bright and airy with comfortable chairs, new privacy curtains and a shiny new kitchen.
Now the room is bright and airy with comfortable chairs, new privacy curtains and a shiny new kitchen.

"Taking into consideration the many comments we would hear from those using it, we decided to do something about it.

“We are so delighted that the charity awarded us funding to make these changes, which will help provide the kind of comfortable space mums should be able to experience at often such a worrying time for them.”

Gosset Ward specialises in neonatal intensive care, providing expert, round-the-clock care for newborn babies who are ill or born prematurely.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The normal length of pregnancy is 37-42 weeks gestation, so a baby born before 37 weeks is premature.

Pictures by Kirsty Edmonds.Pictures by Kirsty Edmonds.
Pictures by Kirsty Edmonds.

“We believe that charity funding has the potential to transform places and services,” said Robert Powell, community fundraiser for Northamptonshire Health Charity.

“This £7,000 award, thanks to the kind and thoughtful Gosset supporters, has done just this by completely transforming the expressing room into a space that makes mums feel comfortable and at ease.

"It has been great to hear the positive feedback about the room from Gosset parents, including how important and welcome the added touch of now being able to make and have a hot drink is.”