THE League of Friends of Launceston Hospital and Community have donated a fitness bench for the hospital’s physiotherapy department. 

Throughout the last 18 months the group has donated many items from dumbbells and weights through to footballs and balance boards for the department to improve and enhance the treatment it is able to provide patients.

The bench now completes a suite of equipment for the department, ensuring it remains up there with some of the best physio departments in the county.

Discussing the donation, a spokesperson for the physio team said: “We are very excited about all our new equipment. We will be able to improve the service we offer to our patients by optimising their training loads, ensuring that exercise is functional and promoting gym use for better health. 

“There is a lot of fun stuff to use which will improve patient satisfaction and outcomes. As well as exercise equipment the league have also donated a flexible spine model - this allows the team to explain things and educate patients about anatomy and the principles of painful problems and rehab.  

“If patients are able to understand their problems better, they are more likely to improve, we are grateful to the League of Friends for their generous donation.” 

Chairperson of Launceston League of Friends Lisa Dymond added: “We are so fortunate to have a great phsyio department and team at the hospital and we are only too pleased to support them with a wide range of equipment to enhance the treatment that they are able to provide to the patients locally as part of their rehabilitation.

“We are grateful for all those who support us which enables to buy the equipment and to support all departments at the hospital and within the community.” 

The League of Friends’ next fundraising event is the annual ‘Summer Fete’ at the hospital on Saturday, July 13, followed by a joint concert with Launceston Male Voice Choir and the Popchoir in the town hall on Friday, October 11.

The group are currently raising money to buy a bladder scanner for the community nursing team which costs £6,000.