1 of only 2 Neuromodulation suites in the North West has been officially opened by actress, comedian and mental health campaigner Ruby Wax OBE at the Knowsley Resource and Recovery Centre based at Whiston Hospital, near Liverpool.
The American-born author and performer opened the suite during a gap in the schedule of her nationwide tour, ‘I’m not as well as I thought I was.’ She met representatives from Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust, who run the service, alongside service users and was given a tour of the new facility.
Dr Noir Thomas, Medical Director at Mersey Care, said:- “We’re very proud that we are 1 of only a handful of NHS Neuromodulation services nationally for difficult to treat depression and we’ll provide the only service in the North of England with a purpose-built suite. To have that recognised by having Ruby Wax here for the opening, an international, high profile mental health campaigner, was a real distinction for staff and patients. I know this is an area of huge interest and support for Ruby, so we’re very thankful she found time to come and visit us during her time in Liverpool.”
The new suite has been opened in response to increasing clinical evidence supporting the effectiveness of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) in reducing depressive symptoms, with Mersey Care providing one of the few NHS neuromodulation services nationally.
The new unit will significantly increase the capacity of our current rTMS treatment delivery. Since 1st launching the service 2 and a half years ago, Mersey Care has already treated 60 individuals with higher than expected positive clinical outcomes.
