New room opened at Milton Keynes University Hospital emergency unit to help families in distress

The new Dragonfly Suite has officially opened at Milton Keynes University Hospital to create a comfortable place for relatives facing bad news.
Dragonfly SuiteDragonfly Suite
Dragonfly Suite

This quiet space for families in the emergency department has been transformed with comfortable seating and beautiful artwork, thanks to local charity Harry’s Rainbow.

Founder Odette Mould worked with hospital staff to create a calm, private area with tasteful soft furnishings. Odette has first-hand experience of the difference that surroundings can make when you are receiving bad news.

When her son Harry died in 2009, aged 5, she received the news in a room so small there was barely room for the consultant to sit down.

Odette said: “It became my mission to create a comfortable, private space for families in distressing situations.”

She contacted the hospital’s bereavement team and worked with them to come up with designs for a space that would offer a calm and comfortable area. The dragonfly is the international symbol of grief and to reflect that dragonfly artwork was designed by some of the bereaved children Harry’s Rainbow supports and brought to life by textile artist Jane Charles.

Chief executive Joe Harrison paid tribute to Odette and the charity. He said: “It gives me great pleasure to officially open the suite. Thanks to Odette and her team, families facing difficult news in the hospital now have a comfortable and peaceful space at what is a difficult time.”

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