Our Community

We think you’re well overdue a round-up of what’s been going on at The Ralph over the past month or so. It’s been busy, to say the least! With just a couple of months until the grand opening, activity has really been ramping up – and with our site manager, Pete, at the helm, lots of progress is being made every single day.

We have been introducing some colour.  Most of the clinical areas have white walls but there’s going to be some colour on the walls and doors. In some areas we have chosen a blue/green colour that is not only very ‘Ralph’ but that we hope will also contribute towards a calm, soothing and tranquil environment. Orange features in other areas.

We have also been doing a lot of ordering!  Much of the equipment we will need is now on order, and we can’t wait for it all to arrive.  Over the past few weeks, we have ordered our new X-ray machine, the Cuattro Cloud DR (digital x-ray) system, our underwater treadmill and our phacoemulsification machine, the Whitestar Signature Pro.

Despite the advent of advanced imaging technology e.g. CT and MRI (those are on order too!), X-ray remains an important part of our diagnostic toolbox. The images will appear on a high definition touchscreen which can be saved directly to the patient’s records. We can zoom in and out, enhance the images, and much more besides. This reduces the need for multiple x-rays and avoids prolonging the patient’s anaesthetic or sedation.

We think it looks pretty slick, too…

Our Head of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation, Kim Sheader, believes that hydrotherapy can be a useful supplement to land-based physiotherapy. It allows patients to practice walking when they are unable to walk on land. It can be especially helpful for those recovering from orthopaedic (bone/joint) surgery (once all their wounds have healed). Or for dogs and cats that cannot use their legs properly due to a nerve-related problem (paraplegic, tetraplegic).

Kim said: “This model of HydroPhysio treadmill has several features which optimise the treatment we can offer our patients. These include:

– Extended platform length
– Side platforms for the therapist to stand on while the treadmill is running
– Adjustable incline, speed and water levels”

Here it is, in all its glory:

And last but not least, the Whitestar Signature Pro.

Phacoemulsification is a type of surgery that is performed by specialist Ophthalmologists to treat cataracts. This is when the lens in the eye becomes cloudy or opaque for a variety of reasons which results in loss of vision.  We are looking forward to being able to give our patients the best possible opportunity for better vision and the Whitestar Signature Pro will certainly help to facilitate this.

We have also very recently had the canvas installed under the atrium dome in the waiting area. We will share more on that in due course though, so make sure you check in for the next building update in a few weeks’ time.

Everything is certainly coming together and we are really starting to get a feel for how it is all going to look when we open.  We hope you agree that there are some very exciting times ahead.

Check in again soon for the next update and thanks for reading.

Take care,

The Ralph team