OperationHero

What is an NHS Charity?

NHS Charities provide extra care and support for NHS patients and staff, enabling health services to do more. We do not replace core funding, we enhance what is already available, providing additional support that prevents ill health and improves services for patients and staff.

We are the legal way the NHS receives, holds and spends charitable funds, and are dedicated to solely supporting the NHS. We exist for the benefit of current and future NHS patients and staff.

As the official charity of NHS Lothian, we are the only charity dedicated to supporting all of NHS Lothian’s work, all its staff and all the patients and families it cares for. We work in strategic partnership with our NHS Lothian colleagues and other partners to support ways to make the hospital environment a more welcoming place to be, make a patient’s stay more comfortable, fund additional equipment or technology that can help speed up recovery but is not part of core delivery, support the emotional and physical wellbeing of staff, and fund research that could have the potential to transform the way that care is delivered.  

We are here to strengthen NHS Lothian’s ability to excel for the communities it serves. The support we provide, combined with our expertise and experience, helps create opportunities that enable NHS Lothian to foster innovation, explore ideas and transform healthcare. Together, we make healthcare better.

Find out more about some of the amazing projects we’ve supported

The Midlothian Hospital at Home team with llamas on their team building day

A Day of Wellness and Development: Investing in staff to improve patient care

Our commitment to enhancing wellbeing support for our NHS Lothian colleagues recognises that happy and healthy staff leads to better patient care.

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Three children feeding a llama as part of a trip for young people with a cancer diagnosis

Making a difference for children living with cancer

Young people aged 13 to 18 who are undergoing treatment for cancer enjoyed a special trip to connect with others and try new experiences.

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ELCHFeatured

Enhancing the Patient Experience at East Lothian Community Hospital

Thanks to the generous support of The Blythe Family Trust, we are delighted to be funding several key projects designed to significantly enhance the experience of patients and their families, with a particular focus on those in our inpatient wards who require more specialist and long-term care.

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Creation and enhancement of the oncology registrar doctor's office at the Western General Hospital

Supporting a Dedicated Office Space for Oncology Registrar Doctors

We were delighted to support the creation of a dedicated office space registrar doctors in the Oncology department at the Western General Hospital, Edinburgh to help improve team dynamics, collaboration, morale and overall wellbeing.

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