Connect magazine Spring 2024

CONNECT

We care because we were there Meet our armed forces veterans Hospital Group of the Year!

Merv gets back on his bike

WIN! £50 John Lewis voucher

Unlocking Access to Excellence.

At Practice Plus Group we believe everybody deserves access to outstanding healthcare.

In our hospitals and surgical centres, this means working with the NHS to treat as many NHS patients as possible and helping to reduce waiting lists.

It also means making private surgery more affordable and easier to access for those who choose to pay for themselves.

We offer faster diagnosis and rapid access to surgery at a time that suits you, with no hidden costs, a dedicated coordinator to guide you through, and at up to 30 per cent less than traditional private hospitals. The outstanding care you need, without paying for what you don’t.

Welcome to the spring 2024 issue of Practice Plus Group’s Connect magazine, for our patients and colleagues.

In this issue we share former patient Mervyn’s story of his epic cycle challenge thanks to his new knee from Practice Plus Group, Ilford. We also reveal one of the reasons we see an increase in enquiries for our Wellsoon private treatment during the colder months from people wanting to get well on time for their summer holiday, and celebrate being crowned Hospital Group of the Year by top industry consultancy LaingBuisson.

There’s also a special feature on just some of the many veterans who have found a home working at Practice Plus Group. Due to the proximity of some of our sites to military bases, we are honoured to count many veterans, spouses of serving personnel and people from military families in our workforce.

We are honoured they have chosen to transfer their skills to a career with us and in this issue we hear from one particular trio who have supported our Plymouth hospital to gain ‘veteran aware’ accreditation so we can in turn support the veterans in the communities we serve.

I hope you enjoy this issue,

Jim Easton Chief Executive

A day in the life of...

Simon Henderson, Ward Manager, Shepton Mallet

Diagnostic Radiographer

Cover image: Grace Todd,

1 in 5 on NHS waiting lists risk holiday healthcare fees

New research commissioned by Wellsoon from Practice Plus Group shows 1 in 5 people on NHS waiting lists plan to holiday abroad this year without the correct travel insurance, risking falling ill overseas and incurring healthcare fees while on holiday.

With the number of people waiting for consultant-led treatment now totalling more than 6.4 million people, and 1.6million waiting for a diagnosis, the number likely to go away this summer either with no appropriate cover in place, or who are paying extra because of their health, could be more than a million people.

Of those who do ensure they have cover, it comes at a cost, with 15% of people who are on a waiting list or who have been in the last three years having paid up to £1000 extra to cover their pre-existing condition.

Graeme Wakerley found himself in this situation when he suffered a hernia. Graeme, 71, said: “A scan through my GP showed it wasn’t strangulated which meant I couldn’t even get on NHS list for surgeryand when I did it would be two years in pain.”

Graeme started worrying about his travel plans because there was a risk the hernia would strangulate on holiday and carry a risk of needing emergency treatment.

A keen traveller, Graeme was planning a trip to America. “There was no way I could travel without declaring the hernia as the costs for emergency surgery in America should the hernia strangulate would be astronomical. I was also worried about my health as a strangulated hernia can lead to sepsis quite quickly and I didn’t want to end up seriously ill in another country, even if the costs were covered.

“I realised the cost of travel insurance premiums for the next few years while I lived with this hernia would probably be more than just paying to get better, not to mention the worry of it and the pain. I decided to pay and it was about

“It was worth every penny to feel better and to have peace of mind, and I’m off to America this year.”

It’s a story we hear regularly from people who have a health issue they want to be addressed before they go on holiday, but they’re on a waiting list. They’re worried about going away when they’re in limbo, potentially needing to seek medical help a long way from home and not knowing how much it might cost, or their insurance being void.

If you need specialist travel insurance, visit the MoneyHelper directory from the Money and Pensions Service. If you want to access treatment quickly, give our Wellsoon team a call for a chat.

Merv gets back on his bike!

After being a runner for most of his life, with European and World Cup Marathon running events under his belt, Mervyn, 71, started experiencing knee pain.

He said: “I went to see a surgeon to get some advice and I knew I needed a replacement, but I really didn’t feel like I was ready, or that it was the right thing to do at the time. I persevered and tried a knee brace and continued cycling as much as I could.”

Mervyn enjoys his cycling and before COVID had planned to cycle the iconic Lands End to John O’Groats ride with two friends

During COVID, unfortunately one of those friends committed suicide and the ride plans were put on hold.

Mervyn made the decision at the end of 2021 that he was ready for the knee replacement, and attended Practice Plus Group Hospital, Ilford, for surgery in June 2022.

He said: “I was in at 6.30am, had my surgery at 9.30am, and was home the next day. The first two weeks were painful as there was bruising and swelling, but after my clips were out, I was back on the bike!”

Mervyn followed his physio’s advice and used a static bike for his recovery. He built up his exercise gradually until he could cycle on the static bike for periods of 30 minutes. In July, he was on his bike, outside on the road doing a 54-minute gentle ride.

By January 2023, Mervyn was already thinking the plans to do the Land’s End to John O’Groats ride were a possibility and after an opportunity to join two other cyclists came along, he signed up.

Having lost his friend to suicide he decided he would raise money for MIND from his trip and collected an impressive £2,820 for the charity.

Mervyn said: “I set off from Land’s End on 7th May, 11 months after my knee replacement and I felt really good.

“My surgeon Mr Nannaparaju was fantastic and my knee just feels better and better each day. I can’t speak highly enough of the hospital and staff.”

It certainly wasn’t the knee that caused the issue, it was the first few days of heavy rain!

However, as we cycled through the miles, the weather got drier and it was an amazing trip.

I was able to cycle roughly 100 miles every day for nine days and couldn’t have done that without my new knee.”

Graeme Wakerley

Hospital Group of the Year!

We are thrilled to announce we have been crowned ‘Hospital Group of the Year’ in the top industry awards from healthcare consultancy LaingBuisson!

One of the questions asked in the nomination process was what sets us apart from other independent hospital groups.

We were the first independent hospital group to achieve 100% ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’ CQC ratings across all our locations, and we have repeatedly retained these ratings.

The majority of our sites achieved 99% ‘would recommend’ ratings in the latest national Friends & Family Test, with 95% overall. Our hospitals and surgical centres have collectively achieved a 100% clean rating for hospital acquired infections and sustained it. We are the only group to have full Joint Advisory Group (JAG) accreditation for all our endoscopy services, and are now training endoscopists to help address the national shortage.

In the most recent PLACE (Patient Led Assessment of Clinical Environment) audit, we scored highest in four areas out of all independent hospitals: condition, appearance and maintenance; cleanliness; and meeting the needs of patients with disability and dementia.

We can evidence the same and often higher quality outcomes as other independent providers, and where people choose to come to us as private patients as opposed to NHS, they will pay typically 30 per cent less.

As LaingBuisson described in their self-pay report this year: “For consumers, this is a real shift in offering affordable options… Practice Plus Group is offering a genuine alternative to traditional private hospitals.”

“Practice Plus Group is offering a genuine alternative to traditional private hospitals.”

Nurses, consultants and colleagues collecting the award

Congratulations also to our Ophthalmology service who were shortlisted for the LaingBuisson Excellence in Nursing Award for our fast-track mobile service for NHS patients with Wet AMD (age-related macular degeneration), the leading cause of vision loss in adults.

The wet AMD service was originally delivered from one mobile unit in the North West in 2014, and our nurses now run 15 clinics from four

mobile units across the North West, Yorkshire and Winchester.

Wet AMD is an age-related condition, so the ageing population means increasing demand for treatment, at a time when NHS waiting lists are at a record high.

In the last 12 months, the team have launched a new, £430,000 unit in Castleford, near Wakefield, doubled their capacity across three days in

the busiest areas, recruited new members of the team, held training events, partnered with the Macular Society to raise awareness and fundraise, and have helped reduce pressure on the NHS.

Stay awake for shoulder surgery

Congratulations to Dr Medhat Hashem and Dr Goran Jejina, Consultant Anaesthetists at Practice Plus Group Hospital, Ilford, who recently presented research at the Winter Scientific meeting of the Association of Anaesthetists in London and were published in the Anaesthesia Journal.

The research, involving 93 patients who remained awake for shoulder surgery, showed that staying awake for shoulder surgery significantly reduces the patient’s length of stay in hospital, saves high dependency

beds and avoids the use of anaesthetic gases that have a similar effect to the green-house gases that pollute the environment.

Regional anaesthesia provides a safe method of anaesthesia for patients undergoing shoulder surgery and is particularly useful in avoiding cancellation of surgery for high-risk patients.

One of our nurse-run mobile eye units

Medhat Hashem

WE CARE BECAUSE WE WERE THERE

Practice Plus Group Hospital, Plymouth, is the first of our hospitals to gain Veteran Aware accreditation for providing focused support and care to the local Armed Forces community. Meet the members of the team with a special interest in making this happen...

Last year, Practice Plus Group signed up to the government’s Armed Forces Covenant, a promise by the nation to ensure that those who serve or who have served in the armed forces, and their families, are treated fairly.

As part of this we also achieved the bronze level of the Employer Recognition Scheme which shows we welcome veterans to our workforce.

Now, our Plymouth hospital has become the first to achieve official recognition as a ‘Veteran Aware’ healthcare provider, recognising their commitment to making sure that members of the armed forces community will not be disadvantaged in the care they receive and where possible, receive personalised care.

The south west of England has one of the highest UK armed forces veteran populations in the UK.

In Plymouth, 8.4 per cent of the population aged over 16 years and over have served in the armed forces.

Now retired, consultant anaesthetist Dr Andy Burgess drove the programme forward initially.

He said: “Having completed a significant number of deployments in the military, particularly the latter Iraq and Afghan ones, I have had a strong desire to make sure care for our military personnel continues after they have left the military.

“Anyone deployed to the likes of Afghanistan is never the same and I include myself in that. Anything I can do to help our veterans deal with life in Civvy Street must be useful.”

Andy has now handed over the reins to veteran colleagues in Plymouth, including Grace, James and Fiona…

Fiona Wright

Fiona Wright, Lead Endoscopy Nurse, served in the RAF for ten years.

I qualified as a nurse with the RAF and was eventually medically discharged following an ankle injury I sustained in training, which led to hip damage.

On leaving the RAF I worked for the NHS in Plymouth and came to Practice Plus Group for surgery on my ankle. I was so impressed, I knew it was somewhere I wanted to be. I was right - my team here have looked after me so well, it feels more like a family again, which I missed after I left the RAF.

I hadn’t realised there were other veterans here at work until some posters went up about the Veteran Aware project. It’s been great for building relationships with people in different departments as we don’t work closely together on a daily basis.

Now I know I can go and talk to James or Grace if I need to, and if a veteran patient needs some extra support I know we will work hard to provide it.

Our Plymouth hospital has become the first to achieve official recognition as a ‘Veteran Aware’ healthcare provider

Fiona Wright

James Potter

James Potter is a Physician Associate in anaesthetics.

He joined the RAF at the age of 16 and became a weapons and bomb disposal specialist, serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The more close calls I experienced in bomb disposal in Afghanistan, the more I came to realise this wasn’t how I wanted to make a livingparticularly by that stage when I had a two-year-old daughter at home waiting for me.

I am currently working with the University of Plymouth to pioneer an access route for military medics finishing their career to retrain as Physician Associates (PAs).

At present, medics who may have reached very senior positions in military healthcare, including the running of a field hospital in a war zone, leave the service with precious little academic equivalence to show for it. This was how the PA role originated in America, utilising those experienced medics returning from the Vietnam war and preserving that vital experience gained to produce a brand new stream of talented clinicians.

I fully support the Veteran Aware programme as it will allow us to identify veterans and make any necessary adjustments to our patients’ treatment that may improve their experience, both during their stay and post-op. Many veterans suffer with mental health difficulties and hospitals can be the kind of unfamiliar environment that triggers many of these painful memories.

Grace Todd, a Diagnostic Radiographer at Plymouth, served in the Royal Navy for 10 years as a Weapons Engineer Artificer.

Her role was to operate and maintain part of destroyer ships’ radar weapons systems. She served on a number of destroyers, deploying to the Falkland Islands, America and the Mediterranean. She met her husband in the Navy and left when they started a family.

l come from a Naval family.

Having served myself, and having a serving husband, I can appreciate the impact of military life from all sides.

I was really excited to have an input in the Veteran Awareness initiative as it not only supports veteran patients, but staff members and all members of the armed forces community.

Plymouth has a very large military community and we often meet patients who are veterans. We are working on initiatives to identify veteran patients so if a veteran has a service attributable condition, in other words a condition caused by their time in the military, we can get them the help they need as soon as possible.

There are so many transferrable skills from having a career in the Armed Forces. In the Navy, I worked with complex equipment, which helps my understating in the radiology world.

I was a team medic out there - I could stabilise people, carried tourniquets and could help when someone went down. I got a taste for healthcare and on coming home I trained to become an Operating Department Practitioner (ODP) in Peterborough RAF hospital, and then in Plymouth, my hometown. In 2017 I left the RAF to join Practice Plus Group and they supported me to train as a Physician Associate.

Having a military background helps you to keep a cool head in stressful situations and it’s no surprise we have a strong military contingent here.

I hope, as a veteran suffering with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) myself, we are able to use that relative experience to establish bridges with our community. Just recently, we had an unstable PTSD patient in need of a knee replacement- when I started telling him about my past I could see his walls come down. He knew I understood.

So many veterans have ground their knees to dust because of the lifestyle they led. Although it’s hard to directly relate someone’s osteoarthritis to their service, they have spent years maintaining high fitness levels, including running with heavy bags and kneeling during training and deployment.

As a Radiographer I am responsible for operating X-ray equipment safely, it’s a very fast moving in terms of new techniques, so having an engineering

“I can

appreciate the impact of military life from all sides”

Other Practice Plus Group hospitals are set to follow suite and become Veteran Aware in the coming months.

For more details, visit veteranaware.nhs.uk/

Grace Todd

James Potter

Grace Todd

A day in the life of...

Simon Henderson Ward Manager at Practice Plus Group Hospital, Shepton Mallet

Simon Henderson, Ward Manager at Practice Plus Group Hospital, Shepton Mallet, tells us how he swapped cheese for hips and knees!

Tell us about your role at Practice Plus Group

I have a dual role as Ward Manager and Safeguarding lead, which

means I’m responsible for helping to identify and acting on any concerns staff have about patients we see who may be victims of abuse or neglect in their lives.

I began at Practice Plus Group as an Acute Practice Nurse, and became a Ward Manager in a baptism of fire during the early days of the pandemic.

We were fully supporting the NHS at this time by taking patients from hospitals that had become overwhelmed with COVID.

My interest in a healthcare profession was first piqued when I was working in security at a university and was trained to an Intermediate Lifesaving Level.

My life took a bit of a turn and I put my medical dreams on hold for a while. Bizarrely, I ended up working in Somerset as a cheese maker! I hadn’t given up my dreams of becoming a nurse though, and after being splashed with goat curd for the 100th time, I thought ‘what am I doing?’ I was accepted on a University course straight away, qualified in 2008 and have not looked back.

What does your typical day look like?

We are fortunate to work with patients who have been fully assessed and screened for risk, so we can assume that most people we treat will have very few complications, if any. Our surgeries are always planned in advance, so we’re lucky in that respect and don’t have to compete with emergencies taking priority, unlike our NHS colleagues.

Each day I juggle administrative tasks, meetings, staffing rotas and whatever is necessary in my

Safeguarding role, for example attending regular Integrated Care Board (ICB) regional meetings and keeping up to date with new policies.

How has your role changed over the years?

I stopped being so hands-on in the clinical aspect of the ward due to a heart condition, as I have a defibrillator. Physical exertion can trigger the defibrillator which results in me not being able to drive for a month. It’s only happened once, and my manager was wonderful and truly empathetic to my needs.

I put my trust fully in my team and their amazing skills to make the right

calls and give our patients the best care possible. I am here to provide support and offer advice. I have a four-day working week so that I can have a full day off each week to support my condition.

“We regularly come together as a team and have a very supportive culture both in, and outside, of work”

What is your favourite aspect of your job?

“I feel I am able to recognise people’s strengths and help them achieve their goals and be happy in their work.”

My team ranges in age from 19 to 65 and I get to find ways to help each of them progress their careers in a way that suits them. I feel I am able to recognise people’s strengths and help them achieve their goals and be happy in their work.

What makes Practice Plus Group a great place to work?

There is so much camaraderie. We look out for each other and provide support on good and bad days We regularly come together as a team and have a very supportive culture both in, and outside, of work, participating in team building days and social events. We celebrate and recognise each other’s achievements which I think is really important and helps colleagues to feel valued in the workplace.

Simon Henderson

Expert Q&A Crossword competition

Our nationwide of team of physiotherapists offer advice on gardening with joint pain, and how to protect your back.

How can people avoid hurting their back?

Many of us know that lifting can be one of the worst offenders in the garden so it is essential to get the technique right. Our physiotherapists advise beginning with a stretch before starting out in the garden to warm up your joints.

Always bend at your knees, use your legs to lift, not your back, and establish a good base for support, with feet slightly apart.

Look out for hazards around you such as trailing cables and hoses before you start carrying any weight from A to B, take care when twisting and when lifting heavy items, such as soil or tools, and always keep the weight close to your body.

What if your hips and knees are painful?

There are ways in which we can protect our joints from injury and avoid making joint pain worse. Here are 10 top tips from our physiotherapists:

• Use raised planters or flower beds, this will reduce the stress on your knees as you won’t have to bend as low to the ground

• Use a stool where you can; it can help if you have trouble balancing

• Garden scooters, mini wheelbarrows and other garden mobiles can really help when lifting or carrying heavy items like compost bags

• Use long handled tools were possible, like long-handed trowels. A water lance can extend your hose pipe to make watering hanging baskets or far out borders easier without over stretching

• Use pads on your knees when kneeling, they will help guard your joints when you are pulling out weeds in the ground

• Use kneelers with handles, to help get up and down safely

• Wear a knee brace if appropriate

• Wear good shoes, trainers or footwear which has good grip can help with balance on uneven terrain, and arch support will help for comfort

• Change positions regularly! Gardening keeps you busy but remember to take a break, have a cuppa and don’t be in one position for too long as you may get repetitive strain injury

• Ask for help if you need it rather than take risks. If you are in pain then stop. Speak to your medical professional about gardening safely after injury or joint replacement surgery.

Is there anything we can do outside of the garden to reduce the risk of injury?

You can help yourself when it comes to protecting your joints and back, and that is by taking part in some muscle strengthening exercises.

This can be done at home, in a group or with your physio, but should always be performed under supervision if you are recovering from injury or surgery or if you’re in any pain.

Strengthening exercises are easy to do and they will keep you mobile and flexible, ready for shovelling, bending and squatting.

Always take advice from your physio or surgeon if you have had a joint replacement or joint surgery. It can take one to two years to be back to full strength after a joint replacement so it is essential you follow a plan with them, to get you gardening safe for the future.

Read more about gardening after hip replacement surgery and exercising pre- and post-surgery in the Knowledge Hub section of our website: practiceplusgroup.com.

Complete and send in the form below with your crossword to be entered into a prize draw and the chance to win a £50 John Lewis voucher. The closing date is 10th June 2024. Ts and Cs below.

Across

1 Senior figure in a newspaper office (6)

5 A Farewell To ___, Ernest Hemingway novel (4)

7 Tiny girl in a Hans Christian Andersen tale (10)

8 Director of Citizen Kane (5,6)

9 Animated cat-and-mouse duo (3,3,5)

11 Port city in the south of France (10)

13 Second letter of the Greek alphabet (4)

14 Retriever, pointer or spaniel, perhaps (3,3)

Down

2 Get worse (11)

3 Cornish cathedral city (5)

4 40th anniversary (4,7)

5 Boring tool (3)

6 The Count Of ___, novel by Alexandre Dumas (5,6)

10 90s US sitcom (5)

12 Music genre that originated in 1950s Jamaica (3)

Spring 2024 Prize Crossword Entry Form

Fill in your details below and send your completed crossword to: Practice Plus Group Comms, Hawker House, Napier Court, Napier Road, Reading RG1 8BW

Name:

Address:

Postcode:

Telephone:

of prize is correct at time of going to press. 4. Winners will be notified by post. 5. The Promoter's decision on any aspect of the promotions is final and binding. No correspondence will be entered into. 6. The Promoter reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value should circumstances make this necessary. 7. Entry implies acceptance of rules. 8. The winner of the crossword prize of a £50 John Lewis & Partners gift card will be the first correct entry drawn out of the bag. 9. The Promoter is Practice Plus Group, Hawker House, Napier Court, Napier Road, Reading RG1 8BW.

Congratulations to Ian Davies, who won the latest prize.

Crossword by Richard Smyth

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HOSPITAL GROUP OF THE YEAR