Governor takes on another patronage

Sunday 22 January 2023

The Lieutenant Governor has taken on the role of official Patron of Guernsey’s Chest & Heart LGB, a charity that provides free health screenings to islanders.

His Excellency, Lieutenant General Richard Cripwell, accepted an invitation from the charity after moving to the island to take up his post last year.

Last week he visited the clinic where he met staff, led by Centre Manager Julie Jones, who was keen to demonstrate the clinical facility.

"We are absolutely thrilled and honoured that His Excellency has agreed to become our patron as his endorsement is a reflection of how important our service is to the community," she said.‌

"For us to maintain what is potentially a life-changing health screening service, it is critical that we build our profile so that people understand we rely completely on charitable donations.‌

"Ours is a professionally-led organisation that supports health equality but the stark reality is that, without the support of the public, the service could cease operating altogether, something we sincerely hope won’t happen."‌

Chairman Dr Stephen Brennand Roperl also gave a talk about the future of the service and how the pandemic has impacted it.

"We are an independent not-for-profit organisation entirely reliant on charitable funding in order to provide a free screening service to the local population, between the ages of 25 to 75 who do not have any known illness, in order to identify potential risk factors for coronary artery disease," he said.

"The unit has been providing this service for nearly 50 years and our aim is to continue for as long as we can but the challenge, like all charities, is to increase awareness and improve revenue, otherwise we will have difficulty in maintaining the service. Costs are always increasing and we need to use modern methods of screening and embrace available technology to communicate effectively with clients and general practices."

The Lieutenant Governor and his wife are patrons of a number of local good causes and application forms are available on the Government House website for anyone who wishes to enquire about them taking on further patronages.