A view from our teams: Charlene Tehan – ward sister

As the opening day for our new wards approaches, we’ve been speaking to some of the staff who will be working in the new building to see what they’re looking forward to.

Charlene Tehan is a ward sister on Fanshawe Ward at the Royal South Hants and has worked at Solent NHS Trust since 2015. She has been part of the project to develop the new building at the Western Community Hospital and has attended a site tour to see the wards while under construction.

How will the new building affect what you do?

Charlene said: “The new building will open up so many opportunities to grow and new pathways to offer our patients. It will give us the freedom to develop the care we offer our patients and in the near future I hope we can become that centre of excellence and lead the pathway in inpatient rehabilitation.

What have you thought about the project?

“The new building looks amazing. Listening to Mark Maffey and hearing all the details about how they have planned everything from the way the light lands and where the windows are positioned down to the heating system and how they can extract the air really blew my mind. It makes me feel so lucky that we will be working in this building.

What are you most looking forward to when the new building opens? 

“We have always given a really high standard of service and this new facility will give us the environment that will reflect that for our patients. It will be a building that equals the vast knowledge and expertise our team members have.

“The patients are going to be in a wonderful environment. The thought that has gone into the design to make the most of light and green spaces has all been done with patient wellbeing in mind and I’m sure it is something that we are going to see in practice once we move in. To have access to outside spaces for our patients is such a positive addition and something we have lacked in the past. It really feels like a once in a career opportunity and I will be proud to work there.”