Abseilers needed to help hospital save more childrens’ lives in London.

Imperial College Healthcare Charity is looking for thrill-seeking participants to take on their abseil challenge down 10-storeys of St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington.

The popular abseil event takes place on 26 April 2017 and is in support of the charity’s More Smiles Appeal. The fundraising appeal aims to raise £2 million to upgrade and expand the hospital’s children’s intensive care unit, transforming it into a state-of-the-art facility that matches the expertise of its staff.

Abseil participants will scale 150 feet from the rooftop of the hospital’s Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother building, taking in spectacular views of London on the way. Full training will be provided on the day of the abseil and it is open to everyone over 18-years-old including staff, supporters and members of the public.

This will be the fourth year the abseil has taken place, raising money for numerous departments and projects at St Mary’s and across the London hospitals of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. Last year it raised an impressive £10,600 and it is hoped that even more will be raised this year for the More Smiles Appeal.

Sadly the children’s intensive care unit is currently unable to meet demand and forced to turn away many children in need of its services. The expansion will increase capacity from 8 to 15 beds, meaning up to 200 more critically ill children can be treated there each year. The upgrade will also include new equipment, a dedicated parents’ room and a private room allowing space for doctors and nurses to provide emotional support and care to families whose children are seriously ill.

Thanks to the generous support of the public and the charity’s supporters, the appeal has raised £1,368,254 so far, but continued support is needed to help get this vital work completed. The unit is a world leader in the understanding and treatment of serious infections in children such as pneumonia and meningitis. It also specialises in other life-threatening conditions including severe trauma, neurological conditions, children who have undergone surgery and those with lifelong conditions such as sickle cell disease.

The unit’s expertise recently featured in the popular BBC Two documentary Hospital, in which 18-year-old patient Debbie underwent a lifesaving bone marrow transplant. The Trust is one of the few in the country where a transplant can be done with a 50 per cent match, allowing her brother to donate his bone marrow to her, curing her of sickle cell disease.

Laura Kell, head of fundraising at Imperial College Healthcare Charity, said: “We can’t wait for this year’s abseil and we’ve already had lots enquiries from people keen to get involved. The More Smiles Appeal is an incredible cause to be supporting and the money raised will make a huge difference to some of the capital’s most severely ill patients and their families.”

Imperial College Healthcare Charity raises funds for the five hospitals of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust which serve a large area of Central, West and North-West London. This is used to provide grants for clinical research, equipment and healthcare projects. The More Smiles Appeal is run in partnership with COSMIC – the charity for the children’s intensive care unit at St Mary’s Hospital. The remainder of the £10 million redevelopment project of the unit is being jointly funded by the Trust and Imperial College Healthcare Charity.

There is a registration fee of £30 to participate in the abseil and a minimum fundraising target of £80. For more information and to sign up, visit the More Smiles Appeal website www.moresmiles.org.uk.

Alternatively, contact Lauren Levy at the charity on 0203 312 5694, or email lauren.levy@imperial.nhs.uk.

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Notes to editors

For more information about the More Smiles Appeal, contact Amanda Richards on amanda.richards@imperial.nhs.uk, or call 0203 312 5693.You can stay up to date with the appeal through the appeal website www.moresmiles.org.uk or on Twitter @MoreSmilesApp

St Mary’s Hospital More Smiles Appeal

The St Mary’s Hospital More Smiles Appeal is a joint appeal between two charities, COSMIC (Children of St Mary’s Intensive Care) and Imperial College Healthcare Charity. It is aiming to raise at least £2 million to help fund the £10 million expansion of the Children’s Intensive Care Unit at St Mary’s Hospital, London. The Appeal’s vision is of a top quality children’s intensive care unit, able to care for every critically ill child who needs it. www.moresmiles.org.uk

Imperial College Healthcare Charity

Imperial College Healthcare Charity raises funds for five London hospitals within Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust: Charing Cross, Hammersmith, Queen Charlotte’s & Chelsea, St Mary’s and Western Eye hospitals. Since 2009, the charity has awarded over £34 million in grants to more than 500 pieces of clinical research and healthcare projects across the hospitals, all of which aim to improve patient healthcare. www.imperialcharity.org.uk

COSMIC

COSMIC (Children of St Mary’s Intensive Care) was founded in 1994 to support and raise money for the Children’s Intensive Care Unit at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, London. The charity funds vital state-of-the-art medical equipment, a ground breaking programme of internationally significant research into life threatening childhood illness and provides support and accommodation to help families through one of the most difficult times imaginable. www.cosmiccharity.org.uk

Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust provides acute and specialist health care for around a million people annually. We have five hospitals as well as community services across North West London. With Imperial College London, we are a designated academic health science centre, improving care through rapid translation of research and excellence in education.