Salisbury District Hospital has become the latest hospital in England to install a brand new Changing Places toilet.
This new facility is one of 16 new Changing Places toilets that are due to be installed in NHS hospitals across the country, after Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, alongside 9 other NHS Trusts, benefitted from a £2m government fund to increase Changing Place provision.
Over 250,000 people in the UK require access to a Changing Places facility, as standard accessible toilets are unable to meet their care needs.
People with profound and multiple learning disabilities or with physical disabilities such as spinal injuries, muscular dystrophy and multiple sclerosis often need extra equipment and space to allow them to use the toilets safely and comfortably.
Changing Place supplier, Innova Care Concepts, supplied and installed the new facility, including specialist healthcare equipment such as a height-adjustable wash basin and overhead hoist system, helping to eliminate the need to lift a person manually, reducing the strain on carers’ backs and the risk of injury to the person being transferred.
Open to patients, visitors and staff, the toilets also features bespoke wall and ceiling graphics to create a calming space and make the room less clinical.
In 2021, the Changing Places Consortium reported that out of 854 hospitals in England, less than one in ten hospitals had a registered Changing Places toilet.
Click here to find the Salisbury District Hospital Changing Place on the official Changing Places map.
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Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust
Katherine Gallagher, an Orthopaedic Practitioner at Salisbury District Hospital, who also works with Mencap, has been part of the team advocating for a Changing Place at the hospital.
“We’re a big unit here, this hospital, we’ve needed this.” She says the facility will provide dignity to users such as her daughter Katie, 41, who has a disability. She spoke of using toilets where she has had to lay her daughter on the floor to change her. “It’s degrading. No person should be degraded”, she said.
Derek Oliver, Changing Places Manager, Innova Care Concepts
“We understand the importance of having more Changing Places toilets in hospitals across the country. We’ve heard many stories from carers, families and those with a disability, about the importance of having somewhere where they can change and refresh safely, but also in a dignified way.
“When a hospital doesn’t have a Changing Places toilet, disabled people may struggle to attend important medical appointments or visit their family and friends. By including this new facility, Salisbury District Hospital are making a huge difference to people’s lives, enhancing accessibility for patients, visitors and staff.”
Changing Places
Innova Care Concepts have proudly worked with the Changing Places campaign for over 10 years, working alongside architects, local authorities and business owners to install over 100 Changing Places in public places across the UK.
As one of the leading Changing Place suppliers in the UK, they provide completely bespoke solutions to any building or site that needs a Changing Place.
Click here to read our Changing Places brochure or complete the contact form below to get in touch with our friendly Changing Places team.