Military Cross Award for Naval Medical Assistant Kate Nesbitt

SHARING EXPERTISE
Microbiology in the Community
Staff in the Microbiology department have been working
closely with colleagues from the Health Protection Agency
and Plymouth City Environmental Health Office to screen
stool samples from children attending the ‘Going Places’
Nursery in Plymouth.
The nursery was closed while the outbreak was investigated.
Several children attending this nursery had become ill with the
organism Escherichia coli type 0157, a bacterium which can
cause diarrhoea. In a small minority of patients, especially the
young, infection can lead to haemorrhagic colitis (Bloodstained
stools and abdominal cramps) or Haemolytic uraemic syndrome
(HUS), where haemolytic anaemia, acute renal failure and
thrombocytopenia are features.
Around 370 stool samples were tested, two for each contact,
to ensure children and staff were clear before returning to the
nursery. Samples were examined over a two week period,
and Microbiology staff attended regular teleconferences with
professional colleagues to ensure the management of the
outbreak went smoothly, and the nursery could be reopened
as soon as possible. Staff processing samples use a biological
safety cabinet and extra safety precautions as this organism
is a potential hazard to laboratory personnel. The nursery was
commended for good hygiene levels, and cooperated fully with
the investigation.
The source of the outbreak remains unknown, although the
Plymouth area has seen several sporadic cases of E.coli 0157
infection over the last few months.
This is a great example of how different departments within the
Trust are of value to the wider community and in this case can
help to contain and resolve serious issues.
Stereotactic Radiosurgery
Workshop
Participants in the Workshop
study hard
The Trust, as
one of only a few
centres in the
UK to provide
Stereotactic
Radiosurgery (SRS)
and Radiotherapy
(SRT), recently
hosted a workshop
where clinical staff
were provided with
a detailed insight
into the clinical
applications of
these treatments.
This specialist
service, using the
BrainLAB m3 micro-
Multileaf Collimator,
was first introduced
to the Trust in 2005
and to date more
than 250 patients
with intracranial tumours have been referred for Radiosurgery
and treated locally in Plymouth.
The workshop was an educational event where specialists from
Plymouth as well as invited guest speakers from Singapore
and Brussels shared their clinical experience and results in
treatments of patients along with 30 participants from other
centres across the country.
Peter Whitfield, Consultant Neurosurgeon said: “Stereotactic
Radiosurgery is a proven treatment for some intracranial tumours
as an alternative to surgical methods and also in some cases
where surgery is not technically feasible. While such a service is
routinely available across Europe and the United States, we at
the Trust are very privileged to be able to offer such treatments
as only one of a handful of
centres in the UK.”
“We were delighted to be able
to host this essential two-day
workshop, and to be able
to share in the experiences
of practitioners from other
countries and Trusts.”
David James, Area Sales
Manager for BrainLAB, added:
“We have been very pleased
with the development of the
stereotactic radiosurgery
service at Plymouth. For
patients in Devon and
Cornwall, access to the
treatment is not only local but
also usually within a shorter
period of time than is the case
nationally.”
Stereotactic Radiosurgery
uses precision equipment
which allows for a high degree
of accuracy to enable the
treatment to be applied in a
single session. The Plymouth
Stereotactic Radiosurgery
Programme has grown
steadily since becoming
clinically available in 2005 and
for more than four years the
Trust has treated patients with
different brain tumours and
malformations and is now a
leading centre for SRS in the
UK.
James Palmer, Consultant
Nuerosurgeon presents at
the workshop
8 Autumn 2009 Cascade