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Thursday 25 November 2021

The Radiotherapy team at the Worcestershire Oncology Centre have worked with Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Charity to fund reusable, biodegradable water bottles for patients undergoing pelvic radiotherapy treatment that follow a drinking protocol for treatment.

The bottles were introduced to help support patients in drinking the correct amount of fluid for their radiotherapy treatment and to drastically reduce the use of single use plastic in the Oncology department.

On the introduction of the new reusable bottle scheme Therapy Radiographer Richard Cormie added: “We are delighted to be able to introduce the reusable bottles for our patients undergoing pelvic radiotherapy treatment, thanks to the support of our friends at the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Charity.

“Good hydration during cancer treatment is encouraged as it can help with treatment fatigue and can assist with flushing toxins from the body. We hope that individual patient water bottles will encourage good hydration and assist patients with their bladder filling requirements during radiotherapy planning and treatment.”

With Climate change posing a major threat to the health of patients, staff and the communities the team further hope that  providing the bottles will reduce the departments’ environmental impact and minimise the amount of single use plastic ending up in the bin and landfill.

Worcestershire Oncology patient Richard Stark said “The reusable water bottles are a wonderful idea; Patients know exactly how much water they are drinking due to the graduated scale on the bottle.

“They also dramatically reduce the quantity of single use plastic cups being used which is excellent for the environment as well as reducing the costs of replacement cups for the NHS, altogether a win-win situation.”

Patients given a bottle have the option to make a charitable donation of £2 to Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Charity which will go towards purchasing more bottles for radiotherapy patients undergoing pelvic radiotherapy treatment.

Sophie Burt, Head of Fundraising and Community Development for Worcestershire Acute Hospitals charity added: “We are delighted that we are able to support such a fantastic scheme, which not only focuses on putting patients first but also focuses on how we can make a positive contribution to protecting our planet, for our patients, staff and the communities we serve.”

If you would like to make a contribution to the charity to fund water bottles for future radiotherapy patients you can donate by texting BOTTLE to 70085 to donate £2. (Texts cost £2 plus one standard rate message.)