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On Friday 16th June 2006the Lord Mayor of Leeds, Councillor Mohammed Iqbal and the Lady Mayoress of the Occasion, Miss Sayeka Iqbal attended the official ribbon cutting ceremony of the Ronald McDonald Family Rooms, at the PICU - Paediatric Intensive Care Unit in Leeds General Infirmary. The rooms were made possible thanks to RMHC - Ronald McDonald House Charities, the leading charity provider of free accommodation for families with children in hospital. Leeds General Infirmary approached RMHC for assistance to provide more suitable facilities for their families whose children were being treated at the PICU. RMHC were able to refurbish two rooms adjacent to the unit into two ensuite Family Rooms at a cost of £42,000.
Children's Services and PICU Matron Alison Conchie from Leeds General Infirmary said: "Parents go through a very difficult time when their child is in PICU. It is important that we do everything we can to make their experience as comfortable and stress-free as possible. Thanks to RMHC we can now offer parents these dedicated family rooms - giving them the space they need to take invaluable respite away from the clinical environment whilst staying nearby to their child."
The Lord Mayor of Leeds met and spoke to staff from the unit as well as families who have benefited from the rooms said. "I was very happy to accept an invitation to officially declare open two Family Rooms at the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit. The service that RMHC provide is important and it was good to see the Family Rooms and meet with families from the local region who have benefited from the rooms and hearing first hand what this type of accommodation means to them".
Anne Roberts Head of Project Development of RMHC also added: " I am delighted that the Lord May
or of Leeds is able to attend the official opening ceremony of the Family Rooms in Leeds. These rooms will provide families from Leeds and the surrounding areas of West Yorkshire with a place to sleep, freshen up and more importantly try and get some crucial rest. Through our experience with the facilities we provide at other locations, we know how important it is to provide a home away from home accommodation for families so they can try and continue to live a normal life as possible while their child is receiving the best medical care nearby".
In the North of England RMHC also have Family Rooms in Sheffield, Grimsby, Salford and Newcastle. RMHC have helped build Ronald McDonald Houses in Alder Hey Hospital Liverpool and Yorkhill Hospital in Glasgow. RMHC currently have approved plans to provide a Ronald McDonald House at York, however, this development is at its very early stages but soon families being treated at York Hospital will be able to benefit from a RMHC accommodation.
Telephone 0844 840 0844 | Charity Reg. No. 802047 | © RMHC 2008
