The story of MERU
The roots of MERU can be traced back to 1963, when Mr William Bond (pictured left), Senior Lecturer in Engineering Design at the Borough Polytechnic, London (now London South Bank University) organised a club to bring together people who were interested in the engineering challenges faced by the whole field of medicine. Regular meetings were held but were initially hampered by lack of input from clinicians. In March 1970 Mr Trefor Llewellyn Bowen (pictured right), Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, began to attend these meetings to discuss the design of equipment for disabled children.
The lack of clinical facilities soon became obvious and the members of the Club were invited to Queen Mary's Hospital for Children in Carshalton, where a formal meeting was held between the members of the Club and representatives from all the hospital’s departments.
From then on Club meetings were attended by hospital staff. Meetings were also held at the hospital to register and discuss new ideas and projects, allocate priorities and to control the Group's activities. By combining research time with his spare time, Bill Bond was able to attend Queen Mary's for at least a day a week, coming into regular contact with patients and staff. His contribution was recognised by the Hospital Management Committee in 1970 when he was appointed Honorary Consulting Medical Engineer.
Soon medical engineering became established as an invaluable adjunct to the care of young people with disabilities, but without more time, personnel and facilities the demand could not be satisfied. It was decided to raise funds from charity sources to build a Department of Medical Engineering in the hospital grounds.
The National Fund for Research into Crippling Diseases funded the employment of a technician/engineer and the purchase of equipment and materials. In 1972 a generous grant from the Triangle Trust allowed the conversion of a hospital building, which was formally opened by Lord Aberdare, Minister for Health and Social Security, in July 1973.
Continuing grants from the National Fund (Action Research) funded the employment of further technicians and an executive secretary. Business people donated valuable time to administration and fundraising, supplementing support given by the Area Health Authority. Round Table Clubs and other community organisations sponsored special projects and other generous donors, especially Phillips Electronics at Mitcham, helped equip modern workshops and supported the design and manufacture of many projects.
As a result, liaison with medical staff expanded to provide many forms of therapy - from play to living aids, new types of equipment for surgery and new technologies to help young people with disabilities. Trefor Llewellyn Bowen continued to work with and support the Medical Engineering Resource Unit until his untimely death in 1974, aged just 42.
By 1988 the number of staff and volunteers, and the amount of machinery and equipment at the Unit, meant that it had outgrown its premises so the hospital authorities provided a larger building.
Over time the emphasis changed from caring for children with disabilities in hospital to supporting them in the community, and Queen Mary’s Hospital became more of a resource for children with acute needs. As a result, many of the severely disabled children which MERU helped were now living at home with their families, and attending local authority schools. Only a small number, who had grown up at Queen Mary’s and knew no other home, were still resident there. MERU, now a registered charity, responded by expanding its services into the community.
Bill Bond eventually retired after a long and distinguished career, serving as the charity’s President until he passed away in 2007.
In June 1993 Queen Mary’s Hospital for Children transferred to nearby St Helier Hospital. The ever-expanding MERU then moved to 8 Damson Way, Orchard Hill, remaining on the old Queen Mary’s site. The move was an opportunity for the unit to cater for a more modern and far-seeing approach to medical engineering ( now called assistive technology) for disabled children.
In January 2009 MERU moved from the Orchard Hill site, which was being redeveloped, to a purpose-built light industrial unit in nearby Epsom. The new building is larger and better equipped, and has improved disabled access, enabling MERU to operate with full effectiveness in meeting the needs of disabled youngsters.
Trefor Llewelyn Bowen’s son - TV presenter and designer Laurence Llewellyn Bowen - is now the charity’s Patron.