Douglas South MHK Sarah Maltby has been a woman on a mission to get accessible changing places installed at key sites across the Island.
She's raised the issue multiple times in the House of Keys and has again put pressure on politicians this week.
Now though, a new changing places facility in Noble's Hospital has officially been given the green light!
The trustees have agreed to fund the room, which is a larger accessible toilet with equipment such as hoists, adult-sized changing benches and space for carers.
Mrs Maltby has been telling Amy Griffiths more:
Hi there, I'm Amy Griffiths and I'm one of the journalists in Max Radio's newsroom. And on this episode of Newscast, we're talking with Douglas Southam H.K. Sarah Maltby. She's been a woman on a mission to get accessible changing places installed at key sites across the island. She's raised the issue in the House of Keys multiple times and once again this week. But now, a new changing places facility in Nobles Hospital has officially been given the green light. She's been telling me her reaction to the news. Yeah, really exciting news. So I received a name out this morning that following a meeting yesterday, the Nobles Hospital Trust have agreed to fund the changing place up at Nobles Hospital. This was following the question time yesterday in the House of Keys to the Minister. There was a meeting last night. I knew nothing about that meeting but this morning, I've been was told that the meeting took place through the trustees and they are going to fund the changing place at Nobles Hospital. So it's just fantastic news. I'm so pleased that we're going to be to get this facility up at the hospital, which is accessed by Islanders from across the whole island. This is not just going to help a small population of people. This has happened to people right across the Isle of Man and their needs are finally being listened to and they're going to get that changing place at the hospital, which is just, I'm just so pleased. Yeah. And do you feel like it's long overdue considering particularly in a place like Nobles Hospital that they should really have something like this? Yeah, I recognize that there has been some work had to be done here and the HASPA had to have a feasibility study done. They have had to look at the space. Space is a premium, try to work out how they're going to be able to fit something like they're saying because this isn't a small little dinky room. The idea is it's a room that is being able to be used with a hoist, a proper changing bed and is able to then be fully accessible for people. So I do accept that it just takes some time to get those things in line and in order. However, this has been a campaign that's gone on now in the UK for a number of years and I do feel like the Isle of Man was behind. This is why I decided when I was elected that I was going to try and pick that up and try to run with it and raise awareness. I'm about to go into my third year. I've been in MHK and to get this news today that Manx care have finally secured that funding from the amazing trustees, the Nobles Hospital Trust. It's just brilliant news. I'm so, so pleased and they're really going to change the lives of so many people on the island and the trustees, they've got my utmost respect for tapping into this and helping with this campaign to get better facilities for our island residents. And you sound quite emotional about this. How much does this mean to you? I was a carer for 20 years and when I became elected last year, I paid carer for over 20 years and I made it my mission to try and raise awareness of things that other people maybe didn't notice or weren't aware of. Not many people will know how difficult it is for a wheelchair user to be able to access places and when you are a carer, you get first-hand experience and I've lived and worked with people who have tried so hard to have their voices heard and they've just lost the energy to be able to continue it. So I made my mission when I was elected that I would try to do that for them and to get this now, although it feels like it's taken forever, really two years is nothing compared to the lives and the difficulties that those people have had to deal with. And so, yeah, I'm just so, so pleased and so relieved that I can say we've got there, we've done it, you know, thank you for having that faith in me to be able to do this and we'll continue because obviously we've still got the sea terminal to go and obviously other local authorities across the island. This is a shout out to you, please get in touch. I'd love to be able to help other places around the island to get these facilities. It's so important to me that we don't just represent the masses that we look at to those people who day-to-day struggle with just the basic human rights that most of us expect. And I realized that this has literally happened this morning, so this might be a bit premature to ask, but is there any idea of timescales, yes, and things about when work might get started? So they've got their plans, they've got their funding, and now up to MaxCare to go out to find the supplier, so that's the part now that they'll go off and do. But this is maybe a really advanced progressive thing on the island, but this is kind of like a standard thing that happens in the UK, so I'm hoping that they'll be able to find the supplier that they require fairly quickly, but yeah, you know, I'm not going to get too excited about that part, but I'm sure now that it's on its way, the trustees honestly have done a fantastic, I just am so pleased that they've recognized the urgency and recognized that this is so important for people on the island, and so just the fact that we're at this point now is huge progress and I can't thank them enough. It's just such a shame that it's taken for me to kind of keep asking questions and keep raising awareness and it feels like it's been a bit of a battle at times to try and understand what the problem is, what the barrier is, and now that we've got those feasibility studies done and both the DOI and Department of Health and Social Care have said, yeah, we can do it, we found the space to do it, funding is now the problem, so to have the trustees step in at the last minute yesterday and say, we're going to do it, we're going to fund the Manx Care Nobles Hospital, changing place, it's just fantastic news and I can't thank them enough for recognizing how important this is for people, and finally we're going to get that changing place up at the hospital which is, in my opinion, long overdue. Thank you for making it to the end of the Manx Radio newscast, you are obviously someone with exquisite taste. May I politely suggest you might want to subscribe to this and a wide range of Manx Radio podcasts at your favourite podcast provider, so our best bits will magically appear on your smartphone. Thank you. (gentle music) You
