Here’s a list of Stars Appeal projects that can help you while you or a loved one is in Salisbury Hospital. All of this work is funded by donations and gifts in Wills to the Stars Appeal and is therefore available to you free of charge.
Free patient essentials and comforts
- Tea trollies (on inpatient wards)
- Watercoolers (in various inpatient and outpatient areas)
- Phone charging stations (located in A&E main waiting areas and the Pembroke Suite)
- Patient toiletry packs (Shower gel, shampoo and conditioner, toothbrush and toothpaste, hand cream, eye mask)
- Clothing (Hoodie, t-shirt, jogging bottoms, dressing gown, slippers)
- Eye masks and ear plugs
- Reading glasses
- Hair care packs (microfibre hair towel, satin bonnet, comb, hairbands, small mirror)
- Dry shampoo caps (no-rinse hair cleansing caps for patients unable to wash their hair easily)
- Lip balm
- TV cards for patients experiencing hardship
- Games, puzzles, notepads, stress balls
- Sensory bags for neurodiverse patients
- Digital hearing amplifiers (to help patients with hearing difficulties hear conversations more clearly)
If you’d like any of these patient essentials and comforts, and have not been offered them, please speak to the nurse in charge, a Stars Appeal Engager, or a Stars Appeal funded Chaplain.
Free Stars Appeal Wi-Fi
How to connect to the Wi-Fi:
- Go to the Wi-Fi settings on your phone, tablet, or other device
- Select _StarsAppealFreeWiFi from the list of available networks
- Click connect to Wi-Fi on the sign in welcome page screen
Trouble connecting? Please call 0344 848 9555.
Companionship and Wellbeing
- Stars Appeal Engagers
Our specially trained volunteers are able to provide companionship, distraction and a listening ear to patients in hospital who are feeling lonely, sad or struggling with life in hospital. To request a visit, ask a member of hospital staff to contact the Engagers, or call 01722 336262 ext 4795 or email sft.engage@nhs.net
- Chaplains
The Chaplains are here to offer emotional support to people of all faiths and none. To request a visit, ask a member of hospital staff to contact the Chaplaincy team or contact them directly on 01722 429271 or on ext 4271 from inside the hospital.
- Stars Appeal Aromatherapist (Pembroke Suite and Ward, Odstock Ward, and Neonatal Unit only – please speak to the nurse in charge)
- Free swimming sessions, re/prehabilitation, snacks and refreshments, free headwear (Pembroke Suite patients only)
- Stars Appeal Play Assistant (Children’s Ward, A&E, Odstock Burns and Plastics, and other areas of the hospital where children are treated – please speak to the nurse in charge)
- Day trips and recreational activities (Spinal Treatment Centre and Odstock Burns and Plastics Unit (through BUGS)
- Stars Appeal Gardens (various locations around the hospital)
Accommodation
The Stars Appeal supports a range of accommodation for parents and families, including:
- Sleeper chairs for loved ones staying alongside patients (available on all wards)
- Relatives’ bungalows (in conjunction with the League of Friends)
- Parent beds and a dedicated flat on Sarum Children’s Ward
- En-suite double rooms and ‘mother and baby’ rooms on the Neonatal Unit
To access this accommodation please speak to the nurse in charge.
Arts and music
- Stars Appeal Live (Stars Appeal-funded professional musicians and participatory artists perform three days each week on wards across the Hospital)
- Arts and crafts activity packs
- Artworks and therapeutic environments in wards and outpatient departments throughout the hospital
Arts and music funded by the Stars Appeal are delivered by ArtCare, Salisbury Hospital’s arts project. To request a visit from a musician or an activity pack, call 01722 336262 ext 5617 or email sft.artcare@nhs.net
Equipment, buildings and other projects
In addition to the projects detailed above, the Stars Appeal fund a range of equipment, buildings and other projects across Salisbury District Hospital that may help you during your time in hospital. For example, CT and MRI scanners, new buildings and facilities such as the Breast Unit, Benson Suite, Bereavement Suite, and equipping the Imber Elderly Care Ward, and a wide range of other projects, all made possible by those who so generously donate and leave gifts in their Wills.
Read more about these in the Our Work section