Ashford & St Peter's Hospitals' Charity: In Memory
The Charity’s aims to improve the experience of patients, their families and carers, and staff at both Ashford and St Peter's hospitals by enhancing the hospitals' environment and providing supplementary equipment or additional services that are above and beyond what the NHS can provide.
An example of this is the Eternal Garden which opened in May 2022. It provides a space for our end of life patients and their families to spend precious moments together, surrounded by nature. The garden provides indoor and outdoor space for our patients to spend time with loved ones recounting memories, and for colleagues to use the space to deliver difficult news and decompress following a challenging day. The Eternal Garden can also be used by parents who are under the care of our Maternity and Neonatal services whose babies have sadly died or are receiving palliative end of life care.
The patio garden is surrounded by trees, leafy plants, fragrant flowers and the sound of trickling water, as well as benches for loved ones to be together away from clinical settings. Located in the courtyard is a garden room which contains homely furnishings, heating and facilities to make drinks, with glass bi-fold doors allowing patients and their families to use the space all year round.