Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust

Researchers leading a project to improve the way symptoms of bowel cancer treatments are reported to their medical team – ultimately hoping to improve quality of life for patients – have hit a major milestone. The Royal Surrey team has successfully recruited 380 bowel cancer patients across 26 hospitals in England to take part in the first stage of the CITRuS trial. This stage focuses on whether patients taking part are willing and able to use electronic data collection to report their symptoms following treatment for their cancer. Launched in March 2022, the trial is headed up by Dr Alexandra Stewart, Consultant Clinical Oncologist and Lead Investigator. She said: “Patients don’t always tell their doctor how they are feeling after their treatment, perhaps because they’re pushed for time or are embarrassed about symptoms. If patients are able to submit information electronically via a phone, laptop, tablet etc this lessens their embarrassment and helps us easily identify clusters of symptoms that may be affecting patients. “The hope is that this will help find future treatments that can help patients, whether they have had radiotherapy, chemotherapy or surgery, and identify the best time to deliver these treatments to patients.” The research team is now working on the second stage of the study, CITRuS 2, which is trialling interventions for patients using the gathered data. The third stage of the CITRuS trial will be a randomised trial designed to assess how well the interventions work. Read more 👉 https://ow.ly/Ww3Y50U0w5T

Royal Surrey cancer patients took to the catwalk and raised more than £6,000 at the Fountain Centre’s fabulous fashion show. Funds raised by the show, which took place last month, will help the charity provide support for our patients and their loved ones from cancer diagnosis and beyond. The Fountain Centre is based at our Guildford site and offers emotional support and counselling services as well as complementary therapies such as acupuncture, massage and reflexology. Thank you to everyone who supported the event 💙

Congratulations to our brilliant radiographers, Antony Harris, Sam Allison, Sandra Dymond and Hannah Nayee who were invited to speak at the Society of Radiographers’ annual conference earlier this month 🏥 The team, based at Guildford and Redhill, has a reputation for being dynamic and innovative and is always looking at ways to improve patient outcomes and experience 💙 #RoyalSurrey #Radiology #NHS

We’ve received a generous donation of activity packs to support our patients living with frailty and dementia. Electronic Arts (EA) gifted 462 activity packs (worth £1,500!) to help patients beat boredom and stimulate their memory. Working with Royal Surrey Charity, a team of more than 20 colleagues came together to assemble the packs of puzzle books, adult colouring books, colouring pencils and pens. They also contain a whiteboard to help the patients communicate with staff and family members. Lydia Russell, Dementia and Delirium Lead Nurse said: "We have already seen the impact of these activity packs and the joy they have brought to the patients. We really do appreciate the thought and kindness behind each one.” Thank you to Electronic Arts (EA) for the kind donation and to everyone involved in getting the packs to our patients

Happy Diwali to our staff and patients who are celebrating today 🪔 #Diwali #RoyalSurrey #NHS

Meet Megan, Operating Department Practitioner, who’s been making great strides to reduce our carbon footprint in surgery #WorldSustainabilityDay From launching simple initiatives that reduce energy use and make recycling easier to using her know-how to create a more sustainable way of working, Megan’s initiatives help us run a greener, more eco-conscious operation every day. 🖥️ She has tackled energy waste by producing an elective theatre shutdown checklist for the team, which included working with IT and clinical colleagues to make sure that all equipment can be safely turned off at the end of the day. ♻️ She’s also made it easier for colleagues to recycle by introducing green bins in every operating theatre, along with clear information about what can be recycled. 💊 She is working with our pharmacists on new ways to cut down on drug waste. 🧠 She’s keeping her ear to the ground to make sure that sustainable practices are built into our new Cancer and Surgical Innovation Centre. Megan took on the role of sustainability lead for theatres at the start of the year and we’re very proud of her incredible work to make our trust greener 💚🌍 #WorldSustainabilityDay #SustainabilityInHealthcare #EcoFriendlyNHS

“We are fortunate to have a large team of professionals from different disciplines that work incredibly hard to provide the best possible care to patients in our community who are being treated for breast cancer,” – Olga Sueros-Velarde, Lead Breast Clinical Nurse Specialist. As we come to the end of #BreastCancerAwarenessMonth, we want to show appreciation and love to our fantastic Breast Cancer team 💙 The team brings together a range of specialist healthcare professionals to deliver the best care for those diagnosed with breast cancer. Working closely together, five teams provide all aspects of care for patients including tests and diagnostic results, surgery, nurse-led clinics and cancer treatment such as chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Olga Sueros-Velarde praised the team’s dedication to breast cancer patients. She said: “I am hugely proud of everyone within the team who work tirelessly, and go the extra mile, to ensure that patients are supported and cared for during what is a very difficult and distressing time for them. “They deserve so much praise for the wonderful work that they do day in and day out. We are very lucky to have a team that is so dedicated.”

We're highlighting our invaluable Medical Records team who manage all of the paper records for our Trust, making sure they are available for clinicians to provide care and treatment for our patients. Made up of 52 members, their responsibilities include preparing, filing and delivering patient records for our staff and patients. They also support with records in our community sites, mainly in Haslemere and Cranleigh. Other requests for medical records can come from solicitors, police and other clinical providers to help provide further support for patients. Michael Hanham, manager for the team, said: “The staff in Medical Records are very diligent and knowledgeable, committed to ensuring that records are available whenever needed. “This is a large and friendly team and we are very supportive of each other during challenging times, and always willing to help out with the wide variety of queries that we receive. I am very proud of all the team and their hard work to make sure we provide the best possible service to staff and patients.” #RoyalSurrey #MedicalRecords #NHS

A huge THANK YOU to everyone who helped raise a whopping £76,000 through this year’s Stride for Cancer Care to support our world-class cancer service 💙 This year, 250 super striders took part in the annual walk organised by our Royal Surrey Charity. Marianne Dabbs, Associate Director of Operations for Oncology, walked the 10km route. She said: “The support and donations really help to make the centre even more comfortable and welcoming for those living with cancer, and means we can buy the latest equipment and invest in research and treatment to provide extraordinary cancer care. We see first-hand the impact of this on our patients and we are so grateful for your support – we hope to see even more of you at Stride for Cancer Care next year!" Thinking about walking next year? Register your interest: https://ow.ly/Og7v50TSr6m #RoyalSurrey #Charity #StrideForCancer

Congratulations to Dr Hashir Aazh, an honorary hearing research consultant at Royal Surrey, who has received the ‘Friends Forever’ plaque from the World Hearing Centre in Kajetany, Poland. The plaque was given in recognition of Dr Aazh’s scientific contributions to projects led by the Institute of Physiology and Pathology of Hearing. The “Friends Forever” initiative began in 1997 by the World Hearing Centre to express gratitude to those who contributed to improving the quality of life of people with hearing impairment. Read more about Dr Hashir Aazh: https://ow.ly/9RBb50TSENR #RoyalSurrey #Hearing #NHS