The Friends

Journalist Zoe Chamberlain here writes an account of the history of the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital's League of Friends. Founded in 1975 by consultant surgeon Max Harrison, the League has grown to support all aspects of hospital life including a Welcoming Service, a Visiting Service, a Gardening Club, a Hydrotherapy Club and the fundraising Woodlands Travel Club, which has arranged holidays for the Friends and former patients over the year and which has sponsored publication of "The Friends". The League of Friends was heavily involved in supporting the Hospital's continued existence when it came under threat of closure from the Secretary of State for Health and in no small part contributed to the successful fight against such closure.