Patients visiting the Oncology Unit at Good Hope Hospital are benefiting from a new portable ECG machine, recently donated by the Cancer and Information Support Service.

Costing £4,500, the new machine will help patients who become unwell whilst having treatment. They can have an ECG as part of their care, eliminating the need to visit a different department, aiding quicker diagnosis and a more effective service. Cancer treatments can also, in rare cases, damage the heart, so having a portable ECG machine to monitor patients regularly will help ensure they are receiving the best care.

The Cancer Information and Support Service, which was first established at Good Hope Hospital in 2000, is a support and fundraising group set up to improve patient care. Volunteers, Mary Higgins and Dermot Dunn, have been helping out for several years.

As well as fundraising, the service stocks a range of reasonably priced hats and headwear for patients who may experience hair loss when undergoing treatment.  Mary, who worked as a healthcare assistant at the hospital before she retired 10 years ago, and Dermot, a retired local businessman, volunteer every week in the Oncology Unit.

Mary and Dermot recently presented the new machine to Helen Domanski, Oncology Unit ward manager, and charge nurse, Mark Chambers.

Helen Domanski said: “The fundraising efforts of Mary and Dermot make a huge difference to the experience of our patients. Our patients can spend weeks or months coming to the Oncology Unit for treatment and the portable ECG machine will allow staff to carry out regular checks on their hearts, to make sure their treatment isn’t affecting their cardiac function. Mary and Dermot come to the unit every week and we are really grateful for their friendly faces and the support they offer us.”

Photograph caption: (l-r) Helen Domanski, Mary Higgins, Dermot Dunne and Mark Chambers.