About National Hospital Development Foundation
The National Hospital Development Foundation (NHDF) is the charity dedicated to raising funds for The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery.
The National Hospital is a leading centre for the diagnosis, treatment and care of patients with a wide range of neurological conditions including epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s, stroke, brain tumours, Parkinson’s Disease and head injuries. Ten million people in the UK suffer from a neurological disorder, either from birth, through injury, or a slowly developing illness that occurs later in life. Over the last ten years NHDF has raised more than £15 million for cutting edge equipment, buildings and research.
Current Appeals
Funds of £2.4 million are currently being raised by the NHDF for a project phased over three years (2008 – 2010) to create the UK’s first Brain Tumour Unit at The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery.
In years one and two the Unit will establish a collaborative and interdisciplinary programme where basic science research, clinical trials and translational research are joined together to advance the field of neuro-oncology and above all the care of patients with brain cancer.
The project will culminate in 2010 with a 14 bed in-patient unit where length of stay will range from 24 hours to end of life care. The unit will also provide facilities for assessment and triage of patients referred from outpatient clinics or from other hospitals and provide clinical space for treatments and procedures on ward attenders. Space for this has already been identified and approved by the hospital and full plans and a final detailed budget will be finalised by November 2008.
Past Appeals
Clinical Neurosciences Centre
This new building at 33 Queen Square has brought together three vital elements: research, teaching and clinical practice.
Neurocritical Care Unit
In addition to intensive emergency care, this service looks after patients who have undergone major brain or spinal cord surgery. The Unit makes it possible for the hospital to carry out pioneering surgery as patients can get the specialist care they need afterwards.
Scanner Suite
The Scanner Suite is a state of the art imaging facility that enables non-invasive diagnosis. The Suite includes an Interventional MRI Scanner, a crucial tool which allows real time image-guided surgery resulting in quicker, safer brain operations.
Dementia Research Centre
The Dementia Research Centre is the first of its kind in Europe. The Dementia Research Group at The National identified the first Alzheimer's gene and have pioneered MRI imaging techniques which track the progression of Alzheimer's Disease.
Our history
The hospital, formerly known as the National Hospital for Diseases of the Nervous System, was founded in 1859 in Queen Square, London. It opened as a voluntary hospital financially supported by gifts and voluntary contributions from patients. From the outset, patients came from all over the world for treatment. Great neurologists associated with the hospital have been Hughlings Jackson, Sir Gordon Holmes, Sir Charles Symonds and Sir Victor Horsley.
In 1948, at the founding of the NHS, the hospital together with the Maida Vale Hospital for Nervous Diseases was designated a postgraduate teaching group. 1948 also saw the expansion of radiology with the opening of a new X-ray department. The 1950s saw a polio epidemic and the establishment of a special unit with respirators to treat poliomyelitis.
1971 saw the birth of the Institute of Neurology alongside the National in Queen Square. Since 1996 the National Hospital has been part of University College London Hospitals (UCLH) NHS Trust, one of the country's largest NHS Trusts. This, together with the close link between the Institute of Neurology and University College, London, has created a formidable group for medical services, education and research, unrivalled in the United Kingdom.