The Royal Orthopaedic Hospital is shortlisted in the Patient Safety Awards for Cancer Care
The unique one-stop-shop cancer clinic run by the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital has been shortlisted for a national award.
Due to its national profile as a specialist centre for treating bone cancers, patients come from across the country to receive expert help. The unit prides itself on offering all oncology patients an efficient service, regardless of where they come from in the UK. The one-stop-shop cancer clinic allows patients to have scans, biopsies, results and consultations all on one day, reducing stress and the need for frequent long distance travel. This is a prime example of putting patients at the heart of their medical care, and ensuring that their needs are prioritised at all times.
Because of the seriousness of some of the condition, and the distances some patients need to travel, each appointment needs to be efficient in order to:
- Maximise the speed at which the tumour can be identified and the patient provided with a treatment plan.
- Minimise stress upon the patient, who will naturally be fearful of the results of tests.
- Reduce the need for regular travel to a hospital which may be several hours from home at a time of stress and trauma.
A patient recently wrote:
“I was referred to the ROH after a CT scan at my local hospital showed what was thought to be bone cancer. I received an appointment within a week and was put at ease the moment I stepped through the door.
“My consultant put my mind to rest immediately by telling me they were almost 100 per cent sure it was a haemangioma, and not cancer, but would like to do a bone biopsy to confirm it.
“Although relieved, I was a bit apprehensive about the biopsy, but again, they reassured me that it would be under a general anaesthetic and I wouldn't feel a thing. I was sent for my pre-op tests there and then.”
The award shortlisting comes on the back of a successful visit by our oncology surgeons to the European Musculo-skeletal Oncology Society Conference 2016, where the team made 15 presentations, and won second prize for a paper on Ewings Sarcoma.
The award winners will be announced at a ceremony in Manchester next month.
