Part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust
Connect
The newsletter for Trust members with an interest in heart and lung care
September 2021
Royal Brompton researchers fill knowledge gap in adult congenital heart disease
Professor Konstantinos Dimopoulos, consultant cardiologist, and his PhD student, Dr Andrew Constantine, have created a simple tool to determine the risks associated with surgery for adults with congenital heart disease (ACHD). Little is known about how to identify patients with ACHD who may be at risk of complications after surgery, but the test aims to help both clinicians and patients make more informed decisions before surgery.
The PEACH (Perioperative ACHD) score was developed by studying 1,782 ACHD patients who underwent surgery at Royal Brompton Hospital between 2003 and 2019.
Professor Dimopoulos said, “A tool that can reliably estimate perioperative risk was desperately needed. Determining risk is at the heart of our ACHD practice, and we believe that the PEACH score will prove invaluable to colleagues and patients around the world.”
Read the full article here.
Royal Brompton researcher recognised for his work in cardiomyopathy
Dr Brian Halliday, specialist registrar at Royal Brompton Hospital and clinical lecturer at Imperial College’s National Heart and Lung Institute, has been awarded £1.1 million in research funding from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) to study a possible treatment for dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM).
DCM is a heart condition where the left ventricle of the heart becomes dilated (stretched and thin), which makes it harder to pump blood around the body. It is also one of the most common reasons people need a heart transplant and is often inherited, although it can also develop due to excessive alcohol intake or during, and shortly after, pregnancy.
Dr Halliday said, “I am thrilled to be awarded this funding, the more clinical trials we can do, the more likely we are to find new therapies to treat cardiomyopathies. I am also very grateful to teams at Guy’s and St Thomas’, Barts Hospital and Hammersmith Hospital for their support in this trial.”
Read more here.
National groups appoint Royal Brompton and Harefield representative
Nisha Bhudia, lead pharmacist in critical care and anaesthesia, has been appointed to the Society of Cardiothoracic Surgery Nursing and Allied Health Professional (NAHP) committee.
Nisha will be the committee’s first ever pharmacy lead. She will serve three years with the committee, which aims to increase the nursing and allied health professional profile within the cardiothoracic surgical speciality, the cardiothoracic arena and among the general NAHP community.
Nisha said, “This committee plays an important role in the field of cardiothoracic surgery – improving ways of working, improving communication between national centres and encouraging innovation. I’m delighted to be a part of it.”
Nisha has also been elected to the Intensive Care Society’s professional advisory group for pharmacists. The group, which is one of seven professional advisory groups that includes nurses and speciality doctors, is made up of 10 pharmacists from across the UK who are voted for and elected by the society’s members.
She adds: “I am so happy to represent our hospitals in such a big role. The advisory groups work together to help shape the delivery of patient care, and pharmacists play a big role in that.”
Harefield Hospital physios partner with Brunel University to help patients
With the pandemic putting a stop to many work-based student placements, a group of six physiotherapy degree students, who would ordinarily complete their work placement at Harefield Hospital, have been able to put theory into practice using Brunel University’s large gym facility, thanks to a new partnership.
Read more.
Double-lung transplant survivor celebrates ten-year anniversary with ten fundraisers
Sophie was three months old when she was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF), a genetic disorder which affects mostly the lungs, along with the pancreas, liver, kidneys, and intestine. She was just 17 when she became one of Britain's youngest double-lung transplant recipients after doctors gave her just two months to live. Sophie was transferred to Harefield Hospital, in Uxbridge, which specialises in heart and lung care. After she agreed to the prospect of a lung transplant, she was given the green light for the operation following a three-day assessment. The money Sophie raises will go towards heart and lung disease research at Harefield Hospital and new specialist equipment for lung and heart patients.
Read the full article feature in the Mirror.
The final Annual Review for the Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust covers the period between April 2020 – February 2021 – before our merger with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust. It has been an extraordinary year for all of us, a year that has in many ways seen the NHS at its best, and this Annual Review really highlights our team’s remarkable response.
We hope you enjoy reading about these 10 months in the Annual Review, which you can download here or read online.
From the Archives- Harefield through the decades
Before a hospital stood on the site, Harefield Park was home to a sprawling estate owned by a succession of wealthy families. Upon the outbreak of the First World War, the owners provided use of the manor to Australian forces, and eventually, the number one Australian Auxiliary Hospital was established in 1915, marking the beginnings of Harefield Hospital, in a very different form. The manor house was converted into doctors’ accommodation and wooden pavilions were constructed in the grounds to house the wounded soldiers.
A farm on the estate provided an element of self-sufficiency for the hospital through the production of eggs, poultry and produce. After the war, Middlesex County Council purchased the estate for use as a County Sanatorium for tuberculosis patients, and the farm remained an important part of the sanatorium until 1960. Keep an eye out for more on the history of the sanatorium in a future update, or to undertake your own research into the history of Royal Brompton and Harefield, contact Barts Health NHS Trust Archives, where records of the hospitals are held.
MEMBER EVENTS
Artificial Intelligence: transforming heart and lung care
Date: Thursday 23 September
Time: 11am - 12pm
Online
To register, please click here.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is driving innovation in the detection, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis evaluation. Hear from our teams leading ground breaking work on applications of AI to improve outcomes for heart and lung patients. Speakers will explain the role of AI, it’s current application and how it will impact the future of healthcare.
Speakers:
Thomas Burgoyne, Senior Scientist, Royal Brompton Hospital and Research Associate, UCL Institute of Ophthalmology.
Antonio De Marvao, Fellow in Inherited Cardiovascular Conditions, Royal Brompton Hospital.
Andreia Lucia Pinto, Thoracic Research Associate, Royal Brompton Hospital, Honorary Research Associate of the Imperial College London.
Digital Patient Storytelling- an introductory workshop
Date: Tuesday, 21 September
Time: 7pm - 8pm
Online
To register, please click here.
The patient and public engagement team invite you to join them to learn more about digital storytelling, why it is a powerful tool and how you can get involved with this initiative. Digital storytelling is the practice of using technology and multimedia, such as video and voice recording, to share your story.
Participants will learn about the importance of stories as a tool to:
- Celebrate great care
- Improve the services we provide
- Place patients at the heart of our work.
As well as sharing some digital stories patients have created, this workshop will include a short presentation about our training programme for people who want to volunteer to support others tell their story, including how to apply. No previous experience is required.
Annual Public Meeting
Date: Wednesday 29 September
Time: 6pm - 7.00pm
To register, please click here.
Please join us for the Annual Public Meeting to learn more about the performance of the Trust over the last year and our plans for the future. The meeting will feature updates about our response to COVID-19 and our merger with Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust. Speakers will include the Trust Chairman Sir Hugh Taylor, our Chief Executive Ian Abbs, and Lead Governor Heather Byron. Participants will have the opportunity to submit questions prior to the event. Instructions on how to send questions will be sent to registered participants along with a joining link. We hope to see you on the 29th.
Updates and events hosted by the charities supporting our hospitals
Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals Charity
Calling all dancing queens and super troopers, Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals Charity is incredibly excited to announce Dancin' Through the Decades, a celebration of the music of the 50s, 60s and 70s.
The event, taking place on Friday 22 October, will be hosted by Gala Leisure UK at the Metropolitan Bushey Event & Sports Venue. Tickets include a two-course meal and a night filled with hits from the 50s, 60s and 70s worthy of Saturday Night Fever.
Making sure there is a little less conversation and a lot more dancing will be Abba tribute act Sing Out Sisters, a special Elvis tribute artist, and DJs playing floor fillers from across the decades.
All the funds raised will go towards the Charity’s Covid-19 Relief Fund, to purchase equipment to help the hospitals treat Covid-19 patients now and other patients in the future.
Tickets can be purchased here.
In October we are also offering a few lucky supporters an opportunity to try firewalking: the ancient art of walking barefoot over a bed of hot coals without getting burned. For more information and to register to take part, click here.
Brompton Fountain
The Brompton Fountain is holding a number of events in September for young patients and their families. We're heading to Battersea Park Children's Zoo on Sunday 19th September for our annual family day at the zoo. This is a fun day out for the children, and a chance for parents to meet one another. On Sunday 26th September, our Trailblazers (aged 13-25) will be taking on another online escape room and hoping to make it out before the clock runs out. If you are interested in either of these activities, please email [email protected] and we can provide further information.
Meanwhile, at Royal Brompton Hospital, we are pleased to be welcoming a number of volunteers from Placing Platform Limited to sand and paint the benches that were installed in the courtyard earlier this year. The revamped courtyard has proven to be hugely popular with visitors and in-patients, and we are so grateful to our volunteers for providing this final touch.
RB&HArts invited BAT Studio to develop a welcoming design for the waiting rooms and reception spaces for patients of the new Scanning Centre at Royal Brompton Hospital. Please find a sneak preview into their practice and use of materials.
Click here to view the video.
Member survey – thank you for your participation
Thank you to everyone who completed the recent membership survey. We will be reviewing your responses and will present an overview of the findings to the Membership Development, Involvement and Communications (MeDIC) Working Group later this month. Together with the Trust governors, we will update the membership strategy to reflect your feedback. You will be able to review the revised strategy in the October issue of Connect.