People recovering from life-changing brain conditions and spinal cord injuries are now being supported in the new Neuro Rehab Unit in Plymouth.
The specialist facility at Mount Gould Local Care Centre, welcomes inpatients from across Devon and Cornwall to support them in targeted neurological rehabilitation under the guidance of therapy teams from Livewell Southwest. The Neuro Rehab Unit has recently moved from an old ward to a new bespoke facility, which opened in December 2024. It offers enhanced facilities which are designed to support the personal rehabilitation goals of service users.
The building project was a collaboration with Community Health Partnerships (CHP), NHS Property Services, Baxendale, ReSound Health and Nevada Construction.
Kay Rangasmy from Torquay was one of the first patients to transfer from the old site to the new unit. She lost all movement from the neck down due to Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare condition that affects the nerves.
Words from Patients & Staff at the Neuro Rehab Unit
1Kay Rangasmy
“The new ward is wonderful. It is light, airy and modern with so much room to move around. Getting in the kitchen is bliss. It is my go-to place. The care you get when you are in there is amazing.
The team are watching every move you are making to ensure you are not over stretching and then at the end of it, having a meal, which for me as a coeliac, is so good.
“The energy and the effort they put into everything here is unbelievable. They know they are doing a good job, but they don’t realise how good.”
Kay now plans to spend more time with her grandchildren, explore the southwest coastal path and travel to new places around the world. She said:
“I just feel like you have got to live your life. You take it for granted that it is always going to be the same, and it may not be.”
Kay stayed in one of the seven single en-suite rooms. They provide a greater level of privacy than the old unit and are all equipped with overhead hoisting facilities. There are also two bays of four-beds for people that may have enhanced care needs.
2Occupational therapist Gemma Howard
“When Kay arrived on the ward, she had almost no movement at all in either of her upper or lower limbs and was relying entirely on other people to do absolutely everything for her.
“She has worked really hard in her rehabilitation journey to get to the point that she is now. She needs some support for her mobility when she is standing, but functionally she is really doing very, very well. It is a huge difference.”
Gemma worked with Kay on preparing her own meals in the new occupational therapy kitchen.
“Not only is it an occupation that Kay likes to do, and she enjoys, we all need to be able to cook for ourselves and it was really important to her that she was able to do that before she goes home. Now we know that she can, and she was able to practice that in our kitchen on the ward.
“I am so proud of her. I feel really lucky to work with patients like Kay, and to see the progress that they make. It is an amazing feeling.”
3Matron Sally Sephenson
“Patients benefit from practising their independent living skills, in addition to the targeted therapy sessions.
It can enable patients to prepare their own simple meals or share a meal they have prepared with their family, as they would at home.
“This is a much better environment, made to meet patients’ needs. For clinical teams, we have a great new space with the latest technology, to really help our patients on the next stage of their rehabilitation journey.”
