Plymouth first to recruit to post-surgery quality of life improvement programme

Last December, Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust became the first site across the UK to recruit patients for a national programme aiming to improve quality of life after surgery.

Major complications following surgical operations can be up to ten times more common than death, yet reducing morbidity tends to be the main focus of research studies. Now, the pilot Perioperative Quality Improvement Programme (PQIP) plans to tackle these complications in order to improve patients’ quality of life.

“Patients are asked to partake in the programme after their anaesthetic pre-assessment on the day of surgery”, explains Anna Perham, Speciality Registrar and PQIP Plymouth Lead. “We then measure and collect data before, during and after surgery, looking at indicators like pain relief, mobilisation and appetite.”

Trusts involved in the study then hope to utilise the information gained from the data in order to improve patient care.

“We need to do the research first before we can know what changes to make”, adds Matt Hill, a Consultant Anaesthetist who is also involved in the programme. “The more information we get, the more improvements can be made.”

Find out more about the programme by visiting www.pqip.org.uk

Plymouth team win second prize in Barcelona

A Plymouth team were awarded second place for their research poster at an international conference.

Researchers from Plymouth University and Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust presented their work at the 22nd Annual Rehabilitation in Multiple Sclerosis Conference, held in Barcelona between 4-6 May 2017. The second place prize was awarded for their poster, which gave an overview of their work on the Balance Right in Multiple Sclerosis (BRiMS) study.

Congratulations to all involved!

Find out more about the programme by visiting www.brims.org.uk

R&D team praised for their work

A Clinical Research Associate at Novella Clinical has praised the Research and Development team at Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust for their high standard of delivery whilst carrying out a piece of collaborative work.

“The research team (including the pharmacy) are just fantastic”, explained Bilal Hussain, “I’ve worked across hundreds of sites and yet [Plymouth] has clearly stood out.”

He also added: “I just want to say that it is an absolute pleasure to work with you as a site – the records are so meticulously kept that it’s a joy to work with you all. It’s incredibly refreshing to work alongside a site that excels in every aspect of the conduct of the trial - thank you all so much.”