Our Trust | Issue 12 | Spring 2020

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London North West University Healthcare

NHS Trust

FGM clinic helps victims

Staff celebrations at annual awards in Wembley Stadium

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OurTrust Issue 12 | Spring 2020

3-D surgeons put Beryl brews up a treat smile on my face

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urgeons at Northwick Park Hospital used 3-D technology to reconstruct a man’s jaw using part of his leg bone.

Albert Goodman’s jaw was reconstructed as a 3-D computer model allowing surgeons to plan incisions and cuts to within one mm. The blueprint was then used to guide them in the operating theatre.

Mr Goodman, 88, had been in constant pain for several years and unknowingly suffered a fractured jaw after the bone was weakened by previous radiotherapy treatment for cancer.

Doctors were initially reluctant to suggest a procedure given the pensioner’s age but his persistence paid off.

Mr Goodman, a former ambulance driver who lives in Ruislip, said: “I didn’t even know my jaw had been fractured and simply struggled on to a point where I could barely open my mouth and only eat liquefied food. I ended up losing two-anda-half stone.

“I was shocked when I went in for an appointment and was diagnosed with a broken jaw.”

It really wore me down and I just wanted it sorted.”

Maxillofacial surgeon Abdul Ahmed pre-planned the 12 hour procedure recreating a virtual model and performed virtual surgery from the scans.

It allowed the surgical team to reconstruct Mr Goodman’s new jaw using his leg bone so it fitted perfectly.

Albert Goodman

Mr Ahmed said: “Virtual surgery saves time and allows us to be far more accurate so we can get straight down to business. It’s a real game changer and the technology is only going to get better.”

@LNWH_NHS

Beryl Carr knew what to do when rain threatened to put the dampers on Ealing Hospital’s Open Day …put the kettle on.

The 98 year-old volunteer with the Friends Café was one of more than 60 stallholders who pitched up to promote the work of the trust as part of Ealing Hospital’s 40th birthday celebrations.

London North West Healthcare

www.lnwh.nhs.uk

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Our Trust

Our Trust:

Director’s Cut

Contents 5

Jacqueline Docherty, Chief Executive It is time for me to say goodbye. After more than 50 immensely rewarding years working in the National Health Service, my retirement is now approaching at the end of March.

I shall never forget the launch of our HEART values in early 2017. It was wonderful to see staff come together and decide for themselves what qualities we value most as a community. I will always remember the joy and fellowship shared by our teams as we unveiled our new values at each of our sites. Most of all, it showed the path by which we would realise that potential we had seen so early on.

Since then, I have watched staff take the values to heart and build a new culture from the ground up. We have become one team, regardless of our history or geography.

We have proudly claimed our place as one of the most diverse NHS organisations anywhere in the country. And we have set out our ambition to achieve true excellence, while always remaining friendly, approachable and respectful.

With this cultural shift has come a sea-change in our quality and performance. Last year, our A&E teams were cited as the most improved in London and the third most improved in the country. This achievement is only made more remarkable by the fact that we frequently receive the most ambulances of any trust in the capital.

Our historic flagship services continue to offer superb care, as with our stroke unit or our sickle cell and thalassaemia service. Others

I was very happy that the CQC recognised so many of these improvements in their recent inspection. There is still much to be done, but the Trust is on the right track as it continues its journey to outstanding.

The financial challenge ahead of us is real. With demand for our care continuing to rise, we have a responsibility to work sustainably and safeguard our services for the future. But I truly believe that our teams have the right tools and the support of our growing number of Improvement Fellows to do the job, and to do it well. I, like the rest of our communities, must now place my trust in our teams, for this really is in your hands.

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It is an abiding belief of mine that the NHS must never stand still. We must always strive for improvement and challenge ourselves to embrace better patient experience, radical innovation, and safer care.

In this spirit, I welcome Chris Bown, LNWH’s new interim Chief Executive, and wish both him and LNWH the very best of luck for the future.

It has been my privilege to work with and for you.

Thank you for a wonderful five years.

Dame Jacqueline: 50 years of NHS service 1969: starts training as a student nurse in Scotland 1974: b ecomes a Senior Sister at the Royal Free Hospital 1980: s tarts work at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, eventually becoming Senior Nurse for Acute Services 1992: m oves to the Scottish Office (Department of Health) as part of the Management Executive, with responsibilities for quality standards and clinical effectiveness.

1996: b ecomes Director of Nursing for King’s College Hospital 1999: a ppointed as London Regional Champion for the ‘Improving Working Lives’ campaign 2001: b ecame one of the first combined Directors of Nursing and Operations

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2004: became Deputy Chief Executive at King’s, becoming acting CEO in 2008 2004: made a Dame Commander of the British Empire for services to nursing and the NHS 2007: appointed as Chair to the General Nursing Council for England and Wales Trust 2009 appointed CEO of West Middlesex Hospital 2007: appointed as a trustee to the King’s Fund 2012: became Co-Chair of the London Social Partnership alongside Unison 2015: became the CEO of London North West University Healthcare 2017: became chair of the Patient Safety Committee for Imperial College Health Partners 2018: awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award for London in the NHS70 NHS Parliamentary Awards

1 3D surgeons saved my life 2 Director’s Cut 3 Vocal coach speak out 4 FGM clinic 5 Staff excellence awards

6 Sickle cell centre 7 Father and son 8 What the Dickens!

9 Charity champions 10 Celebrating success 11 Your views 12 Back page

GET IN TOUCH The next issue of Our Trust will be published in the summer.

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Onto that vision of one team working fluidly across boundaries for all our patients and service users.

are innovating, with our orthopaedics service becoming an international leader in robotic surgery. And all the while, new services develop ground-breaking work: at Ealing, our service offering same-day care for our patients with heart failure was recently very highly commended at the national Health Service Journal awards. This ability to change is both driven and harnessed by our transformation programme, which is building a culture of improvement where staff have the skills and empowerment to make changes locally.

London North West University Healthcare

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his is a special moment for me, as I reflect on how far our Trust has come over the last five years.

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NHS Trust

FGM clinic helps victims

Staff celebrations at annual awards in Wembley Stadium

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Page 5

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OurTrust Issue 12 | Spring 2020

3-D surgeons put Beryl brews up a treat smile on my face

S

urgeons at Northwick Park Hospital used 3-D technology to reconstruct a man’s jaw using part of his leg bone.

Albert Goodman’s jaw was reconstructed as a 3-D computer model allowing surgeons to plan incisions and cuts to within one mm. The blueprint was then used to guide them in the operating theatre.

Mr Goodman, 88, had been in constant pain for several years and unknowingly suffered a fractured jaw after the bone was weakened by previous radiotherapy treatment for cancer.

Doctors were initially reluctant to suggest a procedure given the pensioner’s age but his persistence paid off.

Mr Goodman, a former ambulance driver who lives in Ruislip, said: “I didn’t even know my jaw had been fractured and simply struggled on to a point where I could barely open my mouth and only eat liquefied food. I ended up losing two-anda-half stone.

“I was shocked when I went in for an appointment and was diagnosed with a broken jaw.”

It really wore me down and I just wanted it sorted.”

Maxillofacial surgeon Abdul Ahmed pre-planned the 12 hour procedure recreating a virtual model and performed virtual surgery from the scans.

It allowed the surgical team to reconstruct Mr Goodman’s new jaw using his leg bone so it fitted perfectly.

If you have an interesting story to tell or would like to showcase your team’s innovative work in the next edition, please call 020 8869 2235 or email lnwh-tr.communications@nhs.net Albert Goodman

Mr Ahmed said: “Virtual surgery saves time and allows us to be far more accurate so we can get straight down to business. It’s a real game changer and the technology is only going to get better.”

@LNWH_NHS

Beryl Carr knew what to do when rain threatened to put the dampers on Ealing Hospital’s Open Day …put the kettle on.

The 98 year-old volunteer with the Friends Café was one of more than 60 stallholders who pitched up to promote the work of the trust as part of Ealing Hospital’s 40th birthday celebrations.

London North West Healthcare

www.lnwh.nhs.uk

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Vocal coach shares secret illness “ P ” op star Boy George’s vocal coach has thanked St Mark’s Hospital for saving his life and supporting a decision to go public with a condition he kept secret for years.

It’s a remarkable show of courage and it’s trailblazers like Chris who nudge things along for everybody else.

to the extreme, a huge onslaught, physically and psychologically, but he has bounced back very high despite all the adversities.

Christopher Mitchell, 33, told no-one except his family and medical staff that he wore a stoma and ileostomy bag as a result of ulcerative colitis.

His video describes his operations and return to physical health after going down to eight stone and resorting to smoking and drinking.

Now, he has made a heartfelt video describing his battle hoping it will help others facing the same life-threatening disease.

He is also frank about subsequently throwing himself into work and bottling up his experiences with the result that “there was something missing” from making a full recovery.

“I hope this video will show a wider audience that through a difficult journey there’s not just survival at the end, but people also re-build their lives in a way that they achieve exactly what they were going to, and sometimes more.

Christopher is part of a growing trend of people with stomas who are being more open and up front about their condition.

Professor Omar Faiz, clinical director at St Mark’s, said: “Christopher’s journey would have tested anybody

Surgeon got me to party on time Jaysukh Bulsara wasn’t going to let a stroke stop him attending his granddaughter’s engagement party.

under local anaesthetic allowing Jaysukh to be discharged in time for the party the following day.

The 73 year-old was admitted to hospital several days beforehand and pleaded with doctors to patch him up.

M Rudarakanchana said: “I think Mr Bulsara was more concerned about letting his granddaughter down than the procedure and took it all in his stride, despite the fact that we had cut the side of his neck open.”

Surgeon Nung Rudarakanchana agreed and performed the procedure

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For more details, see www.instagram.com/ chrisdavidmitch/ and https:// twitter.com/ChrisDavidMitch

Ealing celebrates the big 40

Ealing Hospital celebrated its 40th anniversary this year with a tea party and 70s themed refreshments

Jaysukh (far right) and his family on the big day

Boy George

The hospital, which opened in 1979, was predated by King Edward VII Hospital which was opened by Princess Helena in 1911.

The royal connection continued with a visit by Princess Anne during the 1980s and the hospital has since attracted a host of celebrities.

These included Olympic gold medallist Linford Christie, singer Elton John, actor Ian McKellen, Shirley Valentine actress Pauline Collins.

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Our Trust

FGM clinic helps victims for non-pregnant women over the age of 18 years old.

“We want to provide a ‘one stop’ service where woman can get advice, support and treatment outside a hospital setting.”

The trust recorded more than 986 incidents of female genital mutilation in 2018-19 - the highest in the country - and will be one of eight female genital mutilation support clinics centres across the UK The FGM team

Brent is one of three London boroughs to host a new community based service for non-pregnant women with Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

The Hibiscus Clinic is based in Wembley Centre for Health in Brent.

The team, which includes a specialist midwife, FGM advocate and counsellor, provides a holistic approach treating both the physical and psychological trauma associated with FGM. A spokeswoman said: “There is a real need for a community based service

The clinics will also work with local community groups to change the culture and thinking around FGM. The physical dangers associated with FGM include safety risks around being able to deliver a baby vaginally, urinary and reproductive tract problems, scarring and possible menstrual problems.

Patients pain-free world of virtual reality

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atients at Meadow House Hospice got to grips with virtual reality (VR) headsets to help manage anxiety and pain.

Specialist nurse Jennifer Draper says it was popular with in-house and day patients offering ten seven minute VR experiences including outer space, underwater and wildlife adventures.

Jennifer said: “It is primarily a distraction tool to help manage pain and has come from America where it has seen widespread use in tackling the opioid epidemic.

“It has a different use here but the distraction technique is still the same as many of our patients live with pain, despite medication. It relieves anxiety and aids relaxation and breathing.”

A patient said: “I’ve been into space today, walked with penguins in the Arctic and seen the Great Wall of China and the Egyptian Pyramids.

“It’s a fantastic. I’ve never experienced virtual reality before and it just blew me away.”

Virtual reality already has several uses in medicine including patients being taken through their surgical procedure with a 360° VR reconstruction of their anatomy.

The trust was approached to set up the service by NHS England last year because of its high recording of FGM attendances.The FGM Community Clinic enables women to self-refer into the service or via their GP or another hospital department.

Digital leaders plug into trust’s vision of future Sarah Wilkinson, CEO of NHS Digital, were joined by William Warr, the PM’s health advisor.

The trusts’ showcased existing innovation, such as the Infinity e-portering app which allows A&E staff to call a porter using their mobile, and electronic patient letters.

The group’s tour took in medical records where more than half-a-million paper files are stored along with visits to the hospitals’ data centres and telephone exchange rooms offering evidence of the trusts’ outdated paper based and fragmented digital systems.

Digital chiefs visit the trust The NHS’s top digital influencers visited Northwick Park and Hillingdon hospitals to see the tech challenges they face and national support needed for investment.

Matthew Gould, CEO of NHS X, and

The trusts’ three priorities for investment are the introduction of digital care records, tackling the backlog of issues affecting its digital infrastructure and increasing cybersecurity.

Matthew Gould said: “It’s been fantastic and confirms my view that actually there is a ton of innovation going on in the NHS and we just need to work out how we capture and scale it. There are brilliant people thinking up brilliant things all over the trust.”

Enhanced recovery getting patients home faster St Mark’s is promoting an enhanced recovery programme allowing patients to leave hospital several days earlier than normal.

A group of interventions implemented before, during and after surgery optimise patients’ health and chance of a quicker recovery.

Research shows that the earlier a patient gets out of bed and starts walking, eating and drinking after an operation, the quicker their recovery time.

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Staff Excellence Awards celebrate our achievements

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he work of healthcare staff and support workers from London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust was celebrated at the annual Staff Excellence Awards in Wembley Stadium last week.

More than 500 people attended the event to see the winners of thirteen categories announced including one very special nominee.

It also offered the opportunity to look back over the previous year and celebrate some of the trust’s achievements. This included winning several national awards, becoming a European leader in robotic knee surgery, and the best performing A&E in London.

opportunity to take stock and realise how much we have achieved in the past year.

“Staff are the lifeblood of any successful organisation and we have an abundance of people here who regularly go above and beyond what is expected of them.

“We tend to associate healthcare with clinical staff but there is a large army of people behind the scenes making sure things run smoothly, such as our volunteers, porters, domestics, waste mangement and catering.

Chief Executive Dame Jacqueline Docherty said: “We don’t celebrate our successes enough and this was a great A special commendation went to Dr Nicholl and his furry sidekick, Pike, a Pets as Therapy dog. Labradoddle Pike, trotted up to collect his award to the sound of Who Let the Dogs Out.

Strictly gloveless

Mental health

The trust is looking at ways of reducing unnecessary glove use after estimating it spends nearly £500,000 a year.

The Trust has employed its first full-time mental health nurse to work in A&E helping patients presenting with mental health issues.

Helping hand Northwick Park A&E has teamed up with Young Harrow Foundation, local charities and councils to address the growing number of young people being treated for mental health issues and youth violence in A&E.

The fifteen winners were: Emergency and Ambulatory Care Division • Dr Harmandeep Singh, Consultant • Osama El Banna, Housekeeper Integrated Clinical Services Division • Esther Slinn, Inpatient therapy lead Integrated Medicine Division • Linda Scantlebury, Medical Secretary Surgery Division • Usha Raman Nair, Ward manager Women and Children’s Division • Gene Taylor, Neonatal Matron Unsung hero • Waste team HEART Hero • Christine MacManus,

Matron, Eimir Bourke, Sister, Lorraine O’Riordan, Ward Manager Quality and Improvement • Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy (OPAT) Team Volunteer of the year • Connie Holmes, Radiology Fundraiser of the year • Rose Amankwaah, Clinical Theatre Manager • Emergency Department Team Learner of the year • Nafisha Jama, Healthcare Support Worker Chief Executive’s Lifetime Achievement • Jaswinder Dosanjh, Clinical Lead Nurse Specialist, Anticoagulation Chairman’s Team of the Year • Emergency Planning Team

Thank you A big thank you Douglas Milsom who retires after 25 years services as a volunteer driver. The sprightly 80 yearold says it will give him more time to run.

Flu queen Nurse Jackie Serrano has given flu jabs to more than 650 hospital staff.

Hearty success: Ealing Hospital’s heart failure longue prevented 212 hospital admissions over a six month period through its innovative ‘one stop’ service.

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Our Trust

Sickle cell centre celebrates in style The first specialist centre dedicated to treating Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia in the UK has celebrated its 40th anniversary.

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he Brent Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Centre opened in Central Middlesex Hospital (CMH) in 1979 helping people with an inherited blood condition that affects the body’s red blood cells.

The condition, which predominantly affects the African, African-Caribbean and Asian communities, was only given cursory attention before the efforts of Dr Misha Brozovic and nurse Elizabeth Anionwu who founded the centre.

Elizabeth said: “Misha really opened my eyes to what was happening and it made me angry that I had never been taught about the condition or the fact that the illness was neglected because it mainly affects marginalised black communities.”

Elizabeth, whose many accolades include being made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire for her services to nursing and being inducted in the Nursing Times Hall of Fame, was recently given a Pride of Britain Lifetime Achievement Award for her work.

The event was attended by the Mayor of Brent Ernest Ezeajughi, Dame Elizabeth, Sir Graham Morgan, Dame Sally Davies who was a leading specialist doctor and researcher in sickle cell at CMH and TV presenter Trevor Phillips OBE Dr Lola Oni, OBE, currently runs the centre where the specialist team look after more than 600 people.

Kids come face-to-face with St Mark’s robot Brothers Arjun and Sachi Dave were given a special look at the robot surgeon who helped save their dad’s life at St Mark’s Hospital.

Dad Samir was diagnosed with colon cancer and when he had to have sudden surgery his sons struggled to come to terms with what was happening to him.

Surgeon Danilo Miskovic had the perfect solution inviting Arjun and Sachi to visit the operating theatre, and even let them try out the robot.

Hospital welcomes new trainees The trust welcomed its latest group of students as part of pre-Project SEARCH work experience, a national initiative offering work experience and employment opportunities to students with learning disabilities and autism.

The national employment rate for people with learning disabilities and autism is 6% but the trust has offered more than 70% of its interns paid employment since 2017.

The new trainees

Super Trooper

Interim CEO

New job for John

A pensioner has had a ‘tailor-made jacket’ fitted inside his body to support a swollen artery that threatened to burst.

Chris Bown has been appointed as the interim trust chief executive for the next 12 months. He is a long standing chief executive with a wealth of experience across the NHS in both hospitals and community services.

Congratulations to Dr John McSorley who is the new President of the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV.

The suit, which is made of polymer fabric, means Brian Trooper no longer has to live with a ‘ticking time bomb’ inside him.

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Baby Zara’s gift of life Rebecca Patel’s commitment to organ donation was sparked by the loss of her baby to meningitis seventeen years ago.

Rebecca and her husband agreed to donate 14 month-old Zara’s organs after she failed to regain consciousness.

Her recipient donor has just started university and the decision to donate remains a source of comfort for Rebecca and her family.

In the picture: A&E staff with the sepsis video

Sepsis video on show in A&E

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arents whose children attend A&E with fever or a suspected infection are being shown a video on sepsis before being discharged.

Northwick Park is the first hospital in the country to make patients watch the four minute video so they can spot

potential danger signs if their child’s condition worsens.

Lauren Fraser, a Paediatric Emergency Medicine Consultant at the hospital who helped produce the video, said: “It’s a great way of reassuring parents as there has been a lot about sepsis in the media recently.

“In children, it’s a rare complication of infection but can be treated effectively with antibiotics if caught early enough.

Warning signs for children with a fever include abnormal drowsiness, rapid breathing, a rash that doesn’t fade when you press it that and mottled pale skin.

“It was the right decision and the fact that someone else is living because of Zara makes it more bearable. It’s good to know she helped save someone else’s life.”

The mother of three, who works as a transfusion nurse and lives in Kenton, Brent,now sits on organ donor committees at Northwick Park and Great Ormond Street hospitals.

Father and son grin and bear it for charity gruelling single day sporting event in the world. It comprises of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bicycle ride and a marathon 26.22-mile run; competitors must finish within 17 hours in order to gain the title of “Iron Man”.

Brunel describes crossing the finish line of his first Iron Man as the ‘best and worst day of my sporting life.’

Charity champions: Brunel and Theo Eiliazadeh

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atients don’t come more grateful than the Eiliazadeh family who have undertaken a succession of gruelling challenges to raise £50,000 for St Mark’s Hospital.

Brunel Eiliazadeh, 39, wanted to say thank you for the support the hospital continues to give his wife, Laura.

It marks a stark turnaround of the family’s opinion of the NHS after their poor experience at a previous hospital.

Brunel said: “St Mark’s has gone a long way towards restoring our faith in the NHS and we can’t thank them

enough for the support they’ve given us” To date, Brunel has completed in more than 25 triathlons, multiple competitive cycling events which led to qualification for the World Championships, several Iron Man events and three Megavalanches which is a 30km, 8,000 foot descent down the side of glacier by bike.

He was introduced to the pleasures of the Iron Man triathalon by St Mark’s consultant Simon Gabe.

The Iron Man is known as the most

His do-daring has now inspired his son Theo to get involved in fund raising and he recently completed his second sprint triathlon.

Brunel added: “It means the world to me to have my son on board. He has cerebral palsy due to being born 3 months premature but is proof that the only disability in life is a bad attitude.”

So, what’s left on the bucket list of torturous events for Brunel?

“Well, I’d like to do Marathon des Sables at some point, a six day ultramarathon across the Sahara Desert, but the wife might have something to say about that. If she does, I may suggest climbing Everest instead!”

Zara Patel

So, have things improved in the intervening years?

“People are much more aware of organ donation nowadays and specialist nurses a lot more proactive in approaching families.

“It’s tough but necessary job as more than 400 people died waiting for a donor in the UK last year. The sad thing is it is avoidable if we had more donors.

“My family are all registered and I’d encourage anyone to remember that they can save a life after they’ve gone. You can’t give someone a better gift than life, can you?”

»Like to become an

organ donor? contact www.organdonation.nhs.uk You can find out more about Rebecca’s story on YouTube at bit.ly/2qlCW60

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Our Trust

Did hospital save Dicken’s career?

Thumbs up: Lorenzo Patrone and patient John Byrne

How social media saved my leg A man used social media to save his leg from being amputated.

John Byrne, 49, had suffered from peripheral artery disease (PAD) for several years and couldn’t walk more than a few yards without painful cramps.

Doctors temporarily fixed the problem but told the social worker he faced losing the limb and, in desperation, he turned to a Facebook support group for people in a similar situation.

“It’s not the most conventional way of seeking medical advice but it was the best decision I ever made,” said the father of two whose family has a history of PAD. John subsequently met Dr Lorenzo Patrone in cyber space after the consultant had been invited to join the group because of his pioneering work in the field of endovascular surgery.

Endovascular surgery involves guiding catheters and wires along the body’s blood vessels helping unblock arteries so blood can flow back into the limbs.

John added: “I’m so glad I decided to get a second opinion. I’d been living in pain for several years because my lower right leg was starved of oxygen and dying.

“I struck up a conversation with Lorenzo over social media and he invited me down to see him in London. It was such a relief when he said he was confident he could succeed in the operation.

Lorenzo, a consultant endovascular specialist at Northwick Park Hospital, said: “I guess my work has similarities to a plumber although I clear blockages from veins and arteries instead of pipes.

“The tools are certainly a lot more expensive and we have to have a lighter touch.

“We managed to clear a passage through John’s artery which was blocked between the groin and the knees. You could immediately see the blood supply flowing back into his lower limb”.

Charles Dickens

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harles Dickens might never have sat down and written another book without the assistance of surgeon Frederick Salmon, the founder of St Mark’s Hospital.

founded his own practice in1835.

The hospital, which today shares the same site as Northwick Park Hospital in Brent, helped the writer who went on to write some of his most famous novels.

It operated from a single room but quickly grew in size and reputation moving to a succession of larger premises and attracting influential benefactors including the Archbishop of Canterbury and future PM Lord John Russell.

Dickens had- found it increasingly difficult to sit for any length of time without being in pain saying it was a ‘consequence of sitting too much at my desk.’

It was no laughing matter and he sought the help of Salmon who, tiring of a medical profession that favoured patronage over ability,

St Mark’s began life as the Benevolent Dispensary for the Relief of the Poor Afflicted with Fistula Piles and other diseases of the Rectum and Lower Intestines.

Dickens, who had recently wowed his readership with Nicholas Nickleby and The Old Curiosity Shop, came to Salmon as a private patient complaining that ‘all manner of queer pains were floating around my illustrious person.’

Hospital patients in for shock treatment Northwick Park physios are one of the first hospital trusts in the UK to offer shockwave therapy to its patients.

The handheld device delivers high energy sound waves to affected areas increasing blood flow through the damaged tissue, easing pain and encouraging cell growth.

Statistics show a 60-90% success rate with pain relief and recovery from Achilles Heel as high as 90%.

The therapy is free with patients receiving 3-6 treatments for common conditions including back, heel and hip pain, tennis elbow and shin splints.

Lead physiotherapist Tanya Aptowitzer said: “Surgery should always be seen as a last resort and any noninvasive therapy is always preferable.

“Patients should get some pain relief almost immediately and can be used for both new and long-standing injuries.”

Salmon discovered an anal fistula was troubling the writer and Dickens later noted that he suffered ‘agonies’ and could ‘scarcely bear’ the procedure that was carried out without any anaesthetic.

It proved successful and a relived Dickens expressed a ‘spontaneous and most heartfelt emotion of gratitude’ and gave the surgeon several autographed copies of his latest work, The Pickwick Papers, and contributed ten guineas to the hospital Dickens went on to write another 16 novels including many of his classics, such as David Copperfield and Great Expectations, and secretly blessed the surgeon who saved his career.

‘Appy times for trainee surgeons A surgeon is using a phone app to help train doctors in surgical techniques in developing countries.

Mr Abdul Ahmed, a consultant maxillofacial surgeon at Northwick Park Hospital, uploads the stepby-step video guides to the Touch Surgery app along with advice, insights and Q&As. Abdul said: “An instructional video is always going to be more useful than a book and the fact that more people have access to smart phones than expensive medical textbooks shows how useful it can be.

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Charity champions do us proud It’s been a busy 12 months for London North West Charity and Our Trust looks back on some of its successful fundraising activities Michael Reed got on his bike to say thank you to staff at Northwick Park’s Maxillofacial Centre after extensive surgery for mouth cancer followed by a gruelling course of radiotherapy.

He showed his appreciation by raising money after completing Prudential Ride London, a 100 mile charity cycle ride.

Michael said: “It was just a small token to recognise the amazing work done by the centre and the entire hospital for caring for patients like myself.”

And a final thanks to...

Michael’s surgeon, Bhavin Visavadia, added: “I stand in admiration of Michael and his tremendous efforts to raise such a substantial sum having “Having met the challenges of such significant cancer treatment, including reconstructive surgery and radiotherapy, Michael succeeded in completing the 100-mile challenge.”

You can read Michael’s account of his Ride London experience at www.lnwhcharity.org.uk/news.

If you would like to take on a challenge to support a ward or department at any of our hospitals, contact simon.pitts1@ nhs.net

LU staff head overground for charity walk London Underground staff working on the Piccadilly West Line swapped their high-vis jackets and safety boots for t-shirts and trainers when they completed a 12-mile night walk crossing 12 some of the capital’s most iconic bridges.

A team of 16 walkers raised more than £4,000 for Northwick Park’s Neonatal Unit which looks after premature babies.

The challenge took place between 10pm and 3am starting at Albert Bridge before cross-crossing its way back up the river to finish at Tower Bridge Cheyvonne Barber-Welch, Customer Service Supervisor at LU, said: “My colleagues and I wanted to continue to support the Neonatal Unit and the amazing work the staff do in treating premature and sick babies, and the care provided to their parents and families.”

If you work for a company or organisation that would like to support a ward or department, please contact lnwh-tr.charity@nhs.net

Local group raises £13,925 for hospital A local branch of the largest Jain organisation in the UK has donated £13,925 to help fund new equipment at Northwick Park Hospital’s renal centre.

OAUK North West Area, which is a part of the Oshwal Association of the UK (OAUK), said the donation reflected the fact that a significant number of its own community used the service.

The centre, which provides specialist nephrology and predialysis care for patients with kidney disease, treats up to 300 people a week in Brent and the surrounding area.

These patients require lifesaving dialysis to remove waste products and excess fluid from the blood and come in for treatment three times a week.

The organisation’s generous contribution will pay for a haemodialysis machine and treatment chair.

Charity runners raise £19,000 for hospice More than 50 runners took part in the Ealing Half Marathon helping raise a whooping £19,000 for Meadow House Hospice after it was chosen as one of the race’s ‘golden charities.’

The Oshwal Association of the UK raised nearly £14,000 for the Renal Unit at Northwick Park.

The money was used to buy an additional dialysis machine and specialist treatment chair.

The ITU team channelled their inner Bake Off to raise £745 through a cake sale; Kamran Moderesi raised £230 at a classic car event; and St Bernadette’s Catholic Primary School in Harrow raised £620 for Jack’s Place.

Are you up for a challenge in 2020?

Is there something you have always wanted to do but have never found the time or the inspiration? Do you have a goal to get fitter and healthier? Are you a runner, a cyclist, a trekker or sky-diver?

We will have a variety of new opportunities for you and your friends and family to support a ward, department or service at any of our hospitals in 2020.

Please contact simon.pitts1@nhs. net to register your interest and see how you can make 2020 an incredible year to remember.

For more details about how we can support your efforts, go to: www.lnwhchairty.org.uk.

Tel: 020 8869 3367.

Email: lnwh-tr.charity@nhs,net.

Charity Number 1083634

10

Our Trust

Sister awarded medal for hospice care

Hospital team top the roster

LNWH has won a national award for its work encouraging more than 300 nurses to make greater use of electronic rosters.

The e-rostering team picked up

top prize in the ‘Operational Roster Excellence’ category at the annual Allocate Awards.

The biggest challenge was changing the behaviours and perceptions about moving

away from paper rostering which, for some staff, had worked well in some areas for more than 30 years.

The scheme is being rolled out across the rest of the trust.

Big-hearted Harrow Mosque present £11,00 to Northwick Park The Muslim community in Harrow showed its appreciation for the work of Northwick Park Hospital by raising £11,000.

Representatives from Harrow Mosque in Watford Road handed a cheque to staff on Chaucer ward showing its commitment to help the wider community.

A

local sister, who has spent the past 15 years looking after the sick and terminally ill at Meadow House Hospice in Ealing, has been presented with a medal.

Sister Nichola Lovett was awarded the Badge of the Order of Mercy by the League of Mercy Foundation.

Sister Lovett, who worked as a nurse and midwife in Africa and is a trained HIV/AIDS consultant, currently works with the hospice’s day team.

The money will be spent on sensory and communications equipment for children with specialist needs and their families.

The service provides physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech and language therapy to more than 2,000 children and young people with special

R&D team win national accreditation The trust’s research and development department (R&D) is the first hospital trust in the UK to achieve clinical research site workforce quality accreditation.

The Bronze Level award means it will be used as a benchmark for other R&D departments to aspire to and was described as ‘above and beyond expectation’ by the International Accrediting Organisation for Clinical Research.

needs in Harrow.

Nasir Bashir Warsi, Chair of Harrow Central Mosque, said: “It is imperative the Muslim community engages with the wider community and shows its kindness by

supporting much needed local services in and around Harrow. The generosity of Harrow Muslim community is evident from the size of this donation and we hope this continues”.

HSJ hails porter app An app that allows A&E staff to call a porter using their mobile phone has won a national award.

The Infinity e-portering app, won the Driving Efficiency Through Technology category at the Heath Service Journal Awards.

The app replaces the practice of staff filling out a request form as well as reducing time spent following up portering requests at Northwick Park’ It co-ordinates more than 100,000 transfer requests a year as well as giving porters’ instant, up-to-date information about the patient they are collecting.

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Robotic team celebrate 250th procedure

Claire Taylor, MBE Macmillan Nurse Dr Claire Taylor has been awarded an MBE for her work in the field of colorectal cancer nursing.

Claire, who works at St Mark’s Hospital, was presented with the award by Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales.

Crutch amnesty The physio team are asking former patients to return walking aids as thousands are believed to be gathering dust in people’s homes.

Chair lift

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linical staff at Central Middlesex celebrated the completion of their 250th procedure using robotic surgery for knee replacements.

The computer-guided Navio system generates a 3D model of the knee allowing replacements to be fitted

more accurately than the traditional ‘jig’ technique.

Orthopaedic surgeon Simon Jennings said: “Logic suggests that if we can fit the replacement more accurately it will feel better and people can get up and about more quickly.

“The initial results are promising and there is a significant saving for the NHS because people are discharged within a couple of days.”

Central Middlesex is now the leading exponent of Navio robotic surgery in Europe and a training centre for visiting surgeons.

Radiographer celebrates 50th anniversary

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ne of the UK’s longest serving radiographers has celebrated her 50th work anniversary.

Bozenna Wereszczynska began working as a radiographer at Central Middlesex Hospital in 1969.Bozenna plumbed for radiography after a visiting radiographer gave a talk at her convent school.

The dominant feature of Central Middlesex was a half-mile long corridor that ran from one end of the hospital to the other.

Bozenna said: “The radiography department was at one end and theatres at the other so we rushed up and down it all day taking

x-ray cassettes to be processed in the darkroom.

“We’d then head back to theatres with the developed film dripping down the corridor. It was a bit like Doctor in the House - a popular TV show in the 70s - with doctors in long white coats and nurses wearing butterfly caps but the camaraderie was fantastic. It felt like one big family.

Does the UK’s longest serving radiographer have any plans to retire?

“It would be nice but I own six horses with my partner. They are my children and, like children, you want the best for them.”

A company has installed a free stairlift after hearing of a terminally ill patient’s struggle to use the stairs.

The Yorkshire based business, which already enjoyed a national partnership with the Marie Curie charity, linked up with the Harrow Community Palliative team.

Book opens new chapter on diabetes awareness

A local GP, community dietician and the Brent Integrated Diabetes team have written a book they hope will empower Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities to minimise or manage the impact of diabetes by being more aware of the carbohydrates in their food and adapting their eating habits.

BAME communities are up to six times more likely to develop Type Two diabetes and Carbs and Cals World Foods by Harrow GP Dr Joan St John and local dietician Salma Mehar provides a unique picture-led guide.

The book, which has already sold several thousand copies, has been sponsored by the North West Collaboration of Clinical Commissioning Groups.

The book includes 750 photos of food and drinks regularly eaten by African, Arabic, Caribbean and South Asian communities.

12

Your views

Your views

A selection of your comments from social media

Thank you to the great folks at Northwick Park Hospital and Hammersmith Hospital who have superbly managed my various conditions for the last 25 years.

Twitter

A huge thank you to all those in the NHS working to keep us all cared for

I just want to say a huge THANK YOU to all the team & the staff on the main Recovery unit for looking after me and getting me through a traumatic 48hrs!!

My husband was in A&E today and the team were amazing.

Thank you so much.

Twitter

Facebook

Facebook

Just want to say what a fantastic experience we had on taking my 11yr old son for his first trip to A&E for an injured ankle on Saturday night Facebook

Thank you so much for your ongoing care.

Mr Lee and my nurse Kelsie and all the staff at the Breast Clinic and ACAD have been great.

Staff at Central Middlesex hospital were marvellous this morning. Never had so much amazing care in a hospital before!

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Facebook

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20/12/2019 16:04