Local insurer’s special delivery to Maternity Unit to give thanks for care

A special delivery of a different kind was made to the Maternity Unit at Royal Cornwall Hospital; a donation of £6,509 from NFU Mutual’s national £1.92m ‘Agency Giving Fund’.

The donation came after Agent and Group Secretary for NFU Mutual Central Cornwall, Richard Young, nominated the charity following care received by his family.

The leading rural insurer launched this fund, now in its fifth year, to help local frontline charities across the country. The Agency Giving Fund forms part of NFU Mutual’s £3.25m funding pledge for both local and national charities in 2024, to assist with the ongoing recovery from the pandemic and to help tackle the impact of the rising cost of living.

Part of Royal Cornwall Hospitals Charity, the donation to the Maternity Fund will be shared between the Bereavement Midwife Service and the wider Maternity Unit to enhance the care given to patients.

The Bereavement Midwifery Service will use funds to provide additional furniture, a larger TV and non-clinical soft furnishings and bedding to add to the homely feel in the Daisy Suite, a dedicated room where parents experiencing a loss are able to take some time to recover in more comfortable and non-clinical surroundings. 

“The Bereavement Midwifery Service isn’t an area a lot of people will ever experience in the health service, but the work that is done here and at Wheal Unity is so important. I am delighted that I was able to put the Maternity Fund RCHT Charity forward as a recipient of a donation from the Agency Giving Fund,” said Richard.   

Bereavement Specialist Midwives Claire Moors and Karen Stoyles said: “The impact of having a homely space for our patients is simply immense. Sadly, when the Daisy Suite is in use the parents have been through an emotional time and space to recover away from the clinical environment is so important. This donation will do so much to help us improve the suite – we are so very grateful to Richard and NFU Mutual for this support.”

The other half of the donation will benefit the wider maternity unit to enhance the environment across the ward areas.  Additions such as mood lighting for the delivery unit to help to create a relaxing atmosphere for patients and birth partners as they first enter the ward, Bluetooth music stations to allow patients to choose music to suit their personal choice whilst on the unit, and lights for the birth centre.

Laura Cawsey, Interim Intrapartum Matron, said: “Enhancing the environment for mums and their birth partners is so important to help create a more homely, relaxing and calm atmosphere during labour. Support from the charitable fund, through donations such as this from NFU Mutual, allow us to make seemingly small changes, but we know they have a large impact for our patients.”