The Minister of State for Care, Stephen Kinnock MP, has visited Montagu Hospital in Mexborough to officially open the Phoenix Therapy Suite – the first NHS stroke rehabilitation facility of its kind in the country.
During the visit, the Minister was welcomed by senior leaders and clinicians from Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals (DBTH), before touring the state-of-the-art centre. He observed a number of patients using the cutting-edge therapy systems and took the opportunity to try several of the devices himself, including balance and gait training machines designed to rebuild strength and coordination following stroke.
Based within the Fred and Ann Green Rehabilitation Centre, the Phoenix Therapy Suite is designed to accelerate stroke recovery by combining advanced robotics with gamified, interactive activities.
The facility brings together seven highly specialised devices which enable patients to complete hundreds of guided movements in each session – far more than is possible in conventional therapy – while keeping them motivated and engaged throughout their rehabilitation.
The equipment includes robotic gait trainers to help people relearn how to walk, leg trainers that rebuild strength and coordination using pressure sensors to track progress, and multi-purpose therapy stations that work on upper limb, trunk and postural control.
Other systems support arm movements using virtual reality, guide individual finger motions to restore grip and dexterity, provide cognitive rehabilitation through visual scanning and problem-solving tasks, and challenge balance and core stability while monitoring performance.
The development was supported by £1.3 million in capital funding and £580,000 from the Fred and Ann Green Legacy, with further contributions from DBTH Charity.
The suite opened earlier this summer and is already supporting patients from across South Yorkshire and North Nottinghamshire, helping them access therapies that were previously only available in private healthcare settings.
Dr Peter Anderton, Stroke Consultant at DBTH and project lead for the suite, said: “This facility is revolutionary for NHS stroke care. It gives our patients access to world-class robotic therapies that can transform recovery, helping people to regain movement, independence and confidence following a stroke.
It’s inspiring to see patients already benefitting – it’s a privilege to see people making progress every day.”
The Phoenix Therapy Suite is the latest in a series of major investments at Montagu Hospital, which has also seen the development of the Mexborough Elective Orthopaedic Centre of Excellence and a new Community Diagnostic Centre, as part of DBTH’s wider programme to modernise care and improve patient outcomes.
