Nee neuro rehab unit opens in Plymouth

Specialist facility is at Mount Gould

People recovering from life-changing brain conditions and spinal cord injuries are now being supported in the new Plym Neuro Rehabilitation Unit in Plymouth.  

It is a specialist facility at Mount Gould Local Care Centre, that welcomes inpatients from across Devon and Cornwall to support them in targeted neurological rehabilitation under the guidance of therapy teams from Livewell Southwest. 

The unit has recently moved from an old ward to a new bespoke facility, which opened in December 2024. It offers enhanced facilities which are designed to support the personal rehabilitation goals of service users. 

Kay Rangasmy from Torquay was one of the first patients to transfer from the old site to the new unit.  

She lost all movement from the neck down due to Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare condition that affects the nerves. 

The former cook remembers: “Within a matter of days, life just changed because everything just stopped. I had been feeling ill for weeks and then my legs gave away and that is when I really started to panic. It was slowly going up my body and that is the nature of the illness that I have got which is Guillain-Barré syndrome.”

She was rushed to Torbay Hospital before being transferred to the former Plym Neuro site in August 2024 where she received specialist support for her condition. 

Occupational Therapist Gemma Howard recalls: “When Kay arrived on the ward, she had almost no movement at all in either of her upper or lower limbs and was relying entirely on other people to do absolutely everything for her. 

“She has worked really hard in her rehabilitation journey to get to the point that she is now. She needs some support for her mobility when she is standing, but functionally she is really doing very, very well. It is a huge difference.”

Gemma worked with Kay on preparing her own meals in the new occupational therapy kitchen: “Not only is it an occupation that Kay likes to do, and she enjoys, we all need to be able to cook for ourselves and it was really important to her that she was able to do that before she goes home. Now we know that she can, and she was able to practice that in our kitchen on the ward.
“I am so proud of her. I feel really lucky to work with patients like Kay, and to see the progress that they make. It is an amazing feeling.”

Kay said: “The new ward is wonderful. It is light, airy and modern with so much room to move around. Getting in the kitchen is bliss. It is my go-to place. The care you get when you are in there is amazing. The team are watching every move you are making to ensure you are not over stretching and then at the end of it, having a meal, which for me as a coeliac, is so good.