The radiology team at The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust (PAHT) welcomed Sir Rod Stewart, singer and songwriter, for a special visit to the mobile MRI unit today (24 February).
Sir Rod kindly funded a day’s worth of scans for patients who require a MRI scan which were carried out in a mobile unit at the hospital. The funds were used to cover the hire and use of the equipment, maintenance and operational costs.
The mobile unit is an additional resource to the existing two MRI scanners at the hospital, enabling an extra 20-25 patients to be scanned in a day.
Edmund Devlin, who received an MRI scan today, said: “I’m here to have a much-needed MRI scan as I’m in a lot of pain and it’s really difficult to walk at the moment. Hopefully, they will be able to find out what is wrong and go from there. It’s a really generous thing of Sir Rod to do, and I am very thankful.”
When visiting the hospital, Sir Rod Stewart said: “It’s been an honour to fund the MRI scans taking place today at PAHT. Early detection and MRI scans are so essential in protecting your health.
“If this is a big success, which I think it will be, I’d like to do it in Belfast, Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester, and just keep it going, and hope some other people follow me.
“Bless the NHS workers, they work so hard. Thank you for the invitation.”
Stephanie Lawton, chief operating officer at PAHT, said: “It has been fantastic to work with Sir Rod and we are grateful for his donation and support.
“We have been able to scan between 20-25 additional patients today, which will help to reduce our waiting list by 10%, and move those patients onto the next stage of their diagnosis and treatment.
“A huge thank you to Sir Rod and we would be delighted to work with him again in the future.”