My Blog
Just some musings as a I move through my career. Reflections are such a key part of our job, and sometimes sharing them can be helpful. All views are my own and not of my employers or any organisation I am affiliated with.
Router Sled – Bigger and Better
Bigger & Better – I needed something bigger than a trim router, so I got a plunge router……
Wood for Tables
Starting out I just bought Walnut wood as I saw on YouTube, but its time to branch out!
Duty of Candour
In the realm of healthcare, trust is the cornerstone of the patient-physician relationship. Patients rely on medical professionals to provide competent and compassionate care. However, as fallible humans, medical errors can and do occur. Recognising the importance of...
Occupational Sound Exposure in Orthopaedics
Your hearing is precious – occupational sound exposure in orthopaedics is significant!
Post-Foundation to Pre-Consultant
There are always going to be some negatives but it really depends on how you react and adapt. It doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t fight to make things better, we just shouldn’t lose sight of the original goal.
Convertible Picnic Table
I got the BBQ, but needed somewhere to eat….
Life as a Foundation Doctor – 15 years on.
Since medical school there has always been some issue related to training and junior doctors. At medical school the Moderning Medical Careers (MMC) changes led to a huge number of doctors career paths and progression. Then the coupling/uncoupling of runthrough...
Have you done the NJR form?
Have you done the NJR form, some thoughts on the practical elements of using mass data.
Green Surgery
Going green in Surgery – Small steps
Annual Review Part 2 – Appraisal
Appraisal time is coming up – some thoughts on the process.
Annual Review Part 1 – ARCPs – Two sides.
ARCPs can be very tedious…here are some of my reflections
100% Invested
So as a trainer, i’ll always start off 100% invested in you. Maintaining that investment is up to you! 🙂
Valentines Day – Celebrating One Year at WorcsAcute
One year Anniversary – @worcsacutenhs 😂
NHS Industrial Action
NHS Industrial Action – just some reflections on the current state of affairs
PGVLE – Empowering Trainees
One of big things about being a consultant is the fact that my job plan involves sessions for non-clinical activities. Over an 8 week cycle I have: Elective Operating Theatres Elective Clinics Ward Rounds Trauma Fracture Clinic On-Call activity Trauma Operating...
Epoxy Resin River Table
My First Attempt at a River Resin Table…..
DIY Router Sled
All the US videos on resin tables had, at some point, a trip to a friendly lumber yard where the resin table was planed down... No such luck in the Midlands as most yards were only prepared to (understandably) manage their own products. The only option there was to...
Garage Workbench
For those who have read the Epoxy Resin Table post will realise that I entered a difficult situation of having a beautiful piece of table that needed to be planed. Yet no-one in the region could offer me a planing service which was incredibly frustrating. Mainly...
CSTHubUK
After leading the way with Virtual Core Surgical Training in the West Midlands with consistently high feedback and trainee/trainer engagement the model has been adapted for the national stage. It's a proud moment for the @PGVLE team to be supporting @CSTHubUK as...
Hello Worcestershire!
After 2.5 years at SaTH, during an incredibly difficult time for everyone across the nation I have taken an exciting new opportunity at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust as a Lower Limb Arthroplasty and General Trauma Surgeon. I am joining an exciting and...
PGVLE – Anatomy.TV integration
As the PGVLE surpasses 7500 users, we continue to plan for the future and are proud to announce a collaboration with Primal Pictures to integrate Anatomy.TV into the PGVLE. Now we have, for all of our surgical trainees, access to the Anatomy.TV encyclopaedia which...
Goodbye SaTH
After 2.5 years at Shrewsbury & Telford Hospitals NHS Trust I have opted to leave. In what has been a fantastic opportunity to developed my consultant persona and establish my practice, i've been facilitated by a terrific department at Telford. During my time here...
PGVLE approaches 7500 users
As we close on 2021, the PGVLE continues to grow and now has nearly 7500 users registered on the platform with ongoing uptake. The recognition that remote and virtual teaching and learning is core part of educational strategy means that this form of delivery is here...
Aspiring Vascular Courses – Aspire 7 & Aspire 8
So a proud collaboration with the Vascular Society to deliver the Aspire 7 (FRCS practice course for 40 trainees with 23 faculty over 2 days in March 2021) and Aspire 8 (Consultant preparation course for 16 trainees with multiple faculty from the worlds of management,...
Custom Built-in Wardrobe
When we moved house, we went back to the to drawing board and stripped the house back to brick. Looking at room layouts, the conclusion was that a built in wardrobe would be a nice feature so I had my first big project. The dimensions of the space meant that any...
Elevation
The inevitable frustrations of having been given the small room met that my youngest needed something to coax him into a good mood. So instead of rebuilding the bunk beds for the kids in the larger room I took it apart and elevated it. Trusty circular saw out, and a...
Hobby Time
With all the career focused activity that almost takes over during training, many of my hobbies fell by the wayside but it's never to late to have a go at something new. True to my Orthopaedic roots I figured why the hell not live up to the stereotype of being a...
National Association of Clinical Tutors Article
Virtual learning continues to establish itself and the infrastructure that we've built in the West Midlands is garnering interest everywhere! It was incredible to receive a request for an article by Dr Ed Briggs (Editor, NACT Newsletter) sharing our regional...
BOA Education & Careers Committee
As my work with the PGVLE goes on, my experience continues to grow. I now look forward to take these ideas to the British Orthopaedic Association Education & Careers Committee as the new Lead for Simulation and Digital Learning. I hope to continue on my personal...
2000 Users on the PGVLE!!!!
One of my overriding aims was to grow the PGVLE organically. Not just build it and put it out there but to nurture and invite groups into the fold. We started with surgery - Vascular and Ortho leading the way, but now all rotations in the West Midlands on board (with...
Virtual Learning – Moving Forward
This month my article on the ‘Virtual Learning - Moving Forward’ was published in the December 2020 issue of the Journal of Trauma & Orthopaedics In this article I highlight the way in which Virtual Learning has been a real opportunity for positive change in the...
Virtual Fracture Clinic
Virtual Fracture Clinic is a process by which patients are afforded comfort by not having to come into hospital unless absolutely necessary after an injury but can be safe in the knowledge that a committed consultant led team will be reviewing their case. Since we...
Organic Growth
We've now launched the next phase of our Virtual Learning Environment and have rebranded from the SVLE to the Postgraduate VLE to acknowledge several non-surgical specialties joining the programme. The platform is built in this second phase for 3000 users (up from...
Virtual Teaching & IT Solution Webinar
Learning new skills. In just over 8 weeks I went from an idea to full implementation and expansion of the new West Midlands School of Surgery Surgical Virtual Learning Environment. I had the opportunity to share thought processes as part of a proactice panel of...
COVID-19 – Building for a “New Normal”
My skill set and experience has allowed me to work from home during this COVID pandemic. Surgical training the world over has been majorly impacted so making sure that this is mitigated is vital as prepare to live and work in a new world. Since April 1st I've been...
COVID-19 – A note for my colleagues
During this crisis, orthopaedic surgery has become a supporting specialty. The trauma has been still been coming in and I credit my colleagues at both SaTH and at RJAH for doing a magnificent job for Shropshire in maintaining the highest possible standard of care...
Collaboration, Facilitation & Empowerment
This month my article on the 'Birmingham Orthopaedic Network - Collaboration, Facilitation, Empowerment' was published in the March 2020 issue of the Journal of Trauma & Orthopaedics In this article I highlight the awesome potential of trainees within the clinical...
Health Education England Secondment
I've joined the team at Health Education England as the West Midlands Training Programme Director for Core Surgical Teaching on a 3-year secondment. My main role is to coordinate the delivery of the teaching programme for approximately 120 Core Surgical Trainees in...
Joining SaTH as a Substantive Consultant Surgeon
Today I've started consultant life at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH). I've been appointed to complement the existing team in providing a general trauma service and also to further develop the arthroplasty service in order to maintain the highest and...
NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Training Programme
The Clinical Entrepreneur Training Programme is an exciting opportunity to learn how to take ideas and take them forward in a commercial way, something that most clinicians know nothing about. It was an interesting interview up in Leeds and I am delighted to have been...
HSJ 2019 – Proud Finalist
This year was not our year, but I had a tremendous time at the HSJ Value awards in Manchester this year. On reflection being a finalist and receiving recognition for my work with the Birmingham Orthopaedic Network was tremendous, but it also whetted my appetite to...
Birmingham Orthopaedic Network – First Peer Review Article
Since starting in July 2017 the BON has gone from strength to strength. I'm proud to have got the BON involved with a tremendous national collaboration leading to the BON contributing to its first peer review publication!
HSJ 2019 Nomination!
The Birmingham Orthopaedic Network - A project i've been proud to have conceived, developed and implemented has been shortlisted for a Health Service Journal Award. Ignore the beard! For more information on the Birmingham Orthopaedic Network click here to visit the...
BOA Clinical Leadership Programme 2017-18 – Graduation
A successful conclusion to the BOA CLP 2017-18, achieving a successful project launch (The Birmingham Orthopaedic Network) and a Level 7 Certificate in Strategic Management & Leadership from the Chartered Management Institute.
BOA Travelling Fellowship
I feature in this months edition of Journal of Trauma & Orthopaedics (Vol 5 Iss 4 December 2017). I utilised the travel fellowship from the BOA to visit the renowned EndoKlinik (Hamburg). Tremendous opportunity to see how continental colleagues do things with some...