Patient property boxes

Keeping your essentials safe

If you are coming to stay in hospital, you will be asked not to bring in any valuable possessions unless they are essential. You may however need a safe place to keep glasses, hearing aids and dentures. 

We have funded bright yellow, single-use and recyclable patient property boxes help to protect these items and make them easy to find so patients at Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust can see, hear and speak comfortably - and stay involved in their care. 

How do I get a patient property box?

Just ask a member of your ward team. We’ll help you label the box with your name and keep it close by - usually on the bedside table – so it’s easily to access. If you move to another ward, please make sure to take the box with you. When you leave hospital, you can take it home or recycle/dispose of it appropriately. 

Please note: We have not yet been able to rollout the patient property boxes across all our wards and have initially focused on the locations where they are most needed. If you are receiving care on a ward without a box and would still like to use one, please ask a member of staff or collect one from the Charity Hub in the Pinderfields Hospital atrium or one of our Volunteer Desks where a friendly volunteer in yellow will be happy to help.

What should go in the box?

  • Yes: glasses, hearing aids, dentures and supporting items such as the chargers and storage boxes for these.
  • No: valuables (for example phones, jewellery and cash). It’s best to give these to a friend or relative to keep safe for you or speak to a member of ward staff about where these can be stored safely.

Why are these boxes so important?

Losing glasses, hearing aids or dentures can be upsetting and may affect how you eat, speak and understand information. Replacements can take time, so using a yellow box is a simple step that keeps your essentials secure and helps to support care and reduce anxieties about being in hospital.  

Can you support this initiative?

MY Hospitals Charity supports this initiative and is fundraising so that patients can continue to benefit from these boxes. To get in touch with the team, email midyorks.myhospitalcharity@nhs.net, call 01924 546017 or visit the Charity Hub in the atrium at Pinderfields Hospital.

Please text Propertybox to 70460 to give £10 (texts cost the chosen donation amount plus one standard network rate message) or donate online. We really value your support in helping us keep this initiative going.