Media Release
Walking aids amnesty at the RUH
Remember to return your crutches and help the Royal United Hospital to save money.
The RUH is calling an ‘amnesty’ for the return of any crutches, walking frames or walking sticks that are no longer required.
It costs the RUH in the region of £30,000 a year to supply walking aids to patients and over 3,000 crutches, walking frames and sticks have been supplied during the last year. Returning them will help the hospital save money.
Physiotherapy supply the emergency and orthopaedic departments with crutches and frames etc., and these are loaned to patients for a short time. Some are returned but lots won’t be and are probably sitting in people’s garages or attics gathering dust.
The crutches cost around £10 a pair and around £15 for a walking frame. By returning them, people will be helping the Trust to save quite a lot of money.
Every time we supply a pair of crutches or a frame, a form has to be completed and one copy is given to the patient and the other gets filed. Every couple of months the filed forms are reviewed and patients are contacted to ask if they are able to return the equipment they’ve been loaned, which is time consuming.
Any walking aids that are returned will save time and unnecessary spending and help reduce the phone bill!
Walking aids be returned any day between 9.00am and 4.00pm, to the reception areas in either the emergency department or the physiotherapy department.