Patients benefit from £1m legacy (From Gazette Series)

Patients benefit from £1m legacy

THANKS to the last wishes of a Wickwar man, patients at Frenchay Hospital can now benefit from £1 million worth of brand-new equipment.

Sheep and cattle farmer John Daniell, who died in 2001, left £1 million to The Friends of the hospital, who this year agreed to fund ten pieces of life-changing equipment.

The Friends were the main beneficiary in his will. He left estate valued at more than £2.5 million.

Mr Daniell was well-known throughout the village, where he lived and farmed at Southfields for more than 25 years, and the wider farming community in general.

Resident Merv Pollard remembers the man who now has a suite at Frenchay named after him. He told the Gazette: "He always took a keen interest in the village and his wife was the secretary at Alexander Hosea School for a long time.

"He came from a wealthy family, didn't have any children and his wife passed away some years before he did.

"He was a good farmer who certainly never wasted anything."

The most expensive item bought for the hospital is a £700,000 digital angiography unit which can detect vascular problems including tiny blood vessels in the head which can then be unblocked.

Lives are already saved by the hospital's dated version but by being able to see 3D crystal-clear images, doctors can pinpoint the blood supply to a tumour much faster.

Radiology services manager Bob Robson said: "The scanner is really helping us to see patients more quickly and the clear images enable us to diagnose conditions more easily."

Friend Diana Grove said: "We agreed to consider paying to replace vital equipment.

"We were given a list of 12 possible items and we have agreed to finance ten of those at a cost of £1,139,899.

"We are grateful for all the support we have been given, especially to the late John Edward Daniell whose bequest has made it possible for us to purchase the angio scanner."

The Friends hold annual fundraising events such as strawberry fairs and car boot sales, as well as through legacies and generous donations and can be contacted on 0117 9560848.

Pictured: North Bristol NHS Trust staff and Friends of Frenchay Hospital volunteers at the official opening of the new John Edward Daniel Suite