Burns patient returns to the hospital that transformed her life 60 years ago

Brenda Ranson made an emotional return to Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead where she was cared for as a child nearly 60 years ago.

Back in 1954, Brenda sustained severe burns on her hands from an electric fire when she was three. She was taken to the specialist hospital known for its pioneering burns treatment and continued to be treated by the hospital until she was 16.

Recalling her time as a patient at Queen Victoria Hospital, Brenda said: “I don’t remember the pain, but I remember my hands being curled up in a ball. They took skin grafts from my thighs to transplant new skin to my hands. It’s a miracle how they did it”.

“The days here were never sad, always happy. I used to love coming here. All the staff were lovely. We had different activities to keep us going like music and movement to the radio. That was all the entertainment we had in those days.”

Paediatric Ward Matron, Julie Baker said “There has been considerable progress in the way we care for children with these types of injuries now and the drugs that we have available, but some of those routines are still in place.”

“Whilst children would stay on the ward for a lot longer in the 1950s, our aim now is to get them home as soon as possible, as we know they recover better in a home environment.”

Brenda recently got in touch with the Queen Victoria Hospital as she wanted to fundraise to give back to the hospital that means so much to her. The QVH Charity raises money to fund medical research projects, improve hospital environment and purchase equipment which is outside of the core NHS funding.

Brenda continues: “We have chosen QVH Charity as my Lady Captains Charity for Purley Downs Golf Club this year. All the money raised will go to the Peanut Ward where I have so many happy memories. The Ladies of Purley Downs are all very motivated to raise as much as we can for them. It’s an amazing place.”

If you would like to find out more about how you can support the QVH Charity please email Camilla.slattery@nhs.net or phone 01342 414170. You can also find information on www.supportqvh.org