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Thursday, 25 August 2005 09:48

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Stone to boost hospital aura

A £70,000 piece of Brazilian stone has been installed at the entrance of the University College Hospital in London hoping that it would make it more welcoming.

The polished piece of granite, entitled Monolith and Shadow is part of the Hospital's Art in the Hospital project.

Last night the stone, looking like a giant pebble, was criticized by patient groups and medical staff who believe the cash should have been spent on healing the sick.

But the money has been raised by donations, many from staff and patients.

Peter Burroughs from the hospital said: "This money was specifically donated for art in the new hospital and could not have been used for patient care”.

GP Dr John Cormack, a spokesman for the British Medical Association, said: “When most people donate to charity they want it to go to doctors, equipment, that sort of thing.

“People who donated the money may be understandably annoyed.

“If they want to use art in hospitals to help patients, they should use art that is inexpensive or free. Otherwise they are going to attract criticism”.

Louise Boden, chief nurse at the hospital, said: "A healing environment is crucial to a positive patient experience.

"There is increasing evidence that a welcoming and interesting atmosphere improves both patient well-being and staff morale, even speeding recovery in some cases”.

Independent charity King's Fund, which promotes better health, gave £35,000 towards the project.

Daniel Reynolds said: "There is a growing body of evidence that improving hospital environments actually helps to reduce violence on wards, boosts recruitment and retention of staff".

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