NHS staff are ready and set to run in support of their hospital charity and raise vital funds to improve care and experience for patients and staff.
Around half a dozen staff from South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust will be taking part in the AJ Bell Great North Run to boost the funds of its STS Charity and its recently launched Vision Appeal.
Money raised will be used to buy equipment, improve facilities and makes sure patients have access to things which make their care better.
It will also support the development of the Trust’s new eye hospital in Sunderland. Construction is now underway and expected to take two years.
This year’s Great North Run will take place on Sunday, September 8.
Among the runners taking part to support
the STS Charity will be Bunmi Ojuri, a specialist Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist who works in its Occupational Health and Wellbeing Team.
She said: “I’ll be running it for the very first time. I signed up because it’s my first year working with the Trust and I feel it would be a great way to give back.
“I’m looking forward to it and quite excited.”
Her fundraising page can be found here.
Julie Conlon, an Advanced Clinical Physiologist and Amanda Dowson, a Specialist Clinical Physiologist, both work in Neurophysiology at Sunderland Royal Hospital will be taking part for the Red Sky Foundation.
Mam-of-three Julie said: “It is only my second GNR, last year was my first. I feel it is a fantastic event and a great way of raising money for charities across the North East. The training is difficult, but it does keep you fit. I have a condition called Polycystic Kidney Disease which effects the size of my kidneys, their function and causes high blood pressure. Running helps keep my blood pressure down.”
Her funding page can be found via this page.
Amanda added: “This will be my fourth GNR however my previous races were over six years ago so it’s all new again. Training has been hard, but I’ll be proud to get to the finish line.”
Amanda’s funding page can be found through this link.
James Hardy is a Foundation Year 1 doctor who has just begun the next stage of his career with the Trust. He is based at Sunderland Royal Hospital and is working on D46, a ward which supports patients who have had a stroke.
He is running for the Albert Kennedy Trust, which is known as akt. The charity supports LGBTQ+ young people aged 16 to 25 who are facing or experiencing homelessness.
He said: “AKT is important because 24% of homeless young people identify as LGBTQ+ and 77% believe that coming out to their parents was the main factor. I know that a single pound can change a life. I feel so incredibly lucky to have such supportive family and friends, thanks for being there for me. For now, I’m looking forward to race day.”
James can be sponsored through this fundraising page.
The course will take the tens of thousands of runners on a half marathon course which passes the gates of South Tyneside District Hospital.
Additional staff will be on hand in its A&E for any runners who become unwell or injured on its section of the event.
Meanwhile, a team of volunteer workers from the Trust will help man the field hospital close to the finishing line on the South Shields seafront.
Visiting will be suspended at South Tyneside District Hospital on the afternoon due to the road closures. This means the John Reid Road entrance will be closed off to traffic, although vehicles can still get on and off site via Harton Lane.
The full details of the road closures can be found here.
STS Charity plays a vital role in helping to improve the experience of those who use and visit hospitals and community services in South Tyneside and Sunderland. The charity helps to fund improvements that wouldn’t normally be provided through NHS funding.
