Actor Lynda Baron officially opens £1.2m Croydon Heart Centre
Actor Lynda Baron, who played Nurse Gladys Emmanuel in Open All Hours, officially opened the Croydon Heart Centre at Croydon University Hospital on Wednesday 25 October 2017.
The £1.2 million centre means cardiac patients can benefit from modern purpose-built facilities and £180,000 worth of state- of-the-art technology, including new electrocardiographs (ECGs) and analysis equipment.
Lynda, who has also appeared in Eastenders, Dr Who and the children’s show Come outside, joined consultant cardiologist Dr Asif Qasim and other staff from the unit, along with patient groups, local dignitaries and the centre’s architects for the official opening on Wednesday 25 October. Also at the event were senior representatives of Croydon Health Services NHS Trust including Chief Executive John Goulston and Medical Director Dr Nnenna Osuji.
All were given a tour of the facilities including the Catheterisation Laboratory and rooms where patients are scanned using echo, stress echo and ECG machines.
Unveiling a new plaque in the centre’s main reception area, Lynda praised the new facilities saying that from what she had seen, people in Croydon were “very lucky indeed.”
“On behalf of the general public I would like to say that we normally walk past hospital buildings and don’t notice them,” she said. “We don’t know what happens in them day in and day out until the day we might need them.”
Cardiac Consultant Dr Asif Qasim said: “We think this new unit gives the people of Croydon the state-of-the-art facilities they deserve. We are very proud of the new centre that is purpose-designed to meet the needs of the 30,000 patients we see here each year. We have a fantastic team and are delighted to now have such excellent facilities.”
John Goulston, Trust Chief executive, thanked Lynda for officially opening the centre and all the staff who had made it possible.
“This is a fantastic facility not just for our patients but also for the staff,” he said. “Asif and his colleagues worked so hard to get to this point and all are delivering excellent care for people in our community.”
PICTURE CAPTION: Our Dr Nnenna Osuj and Dr Asif Qasim, alongside Lynda Baron and our chief executive John Goulston.