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Orthopaedics

About the Service / Department

Trauma and orthopaedics currently has 17 consultants specialising in all areas of the body, including hip, knee, foot, ankle, shoulder, elbow, hand, wrist and Spinal Services.

Patients are either seen as emergencies, through accident and emergency [including Minor Injuries and the Urgent Care Centre] or they are seen in a fracture or orthopaedic clinics. Emergency operations are carried out at Watford Hospital and elective procedures take place at St Albans City Hospital. All theatres are fully-equipped laminar flow theatres (laminar flow is a special air flow used to reduce the risk of infection).

The department has a very low rate of MRSA rate and all patients coming through the department are routinely screened for MRSA (swabs taken from nose and groin), and given preventative creams and washes to help clear the body of these bacteria, which many people carry without knowledge.

Wards

The team

Consultants

Trauma and orthopaedics currently has 17 consultants specialising in all areas of the body, including hip, knee, foot, ankle, shoulder, elbow, hand, wrist and Spinal Services .

Our Extended Scope Practitioners

  • Sarah Parr [Spine]
  • Katherine Pond [Spine and Lower Limb]
  • Divyang Shah [spine]
  • Adam Meakins [Upper Limb ]
  • Nancy Venables [Upper Limb]

Nurse Practitioners

Theresa Maunganidze

The team includes also a number of:

  • Associate Specialist
  • ST (Specialty Training) doctors including Specialist Registrars
  • CT (Core Training) doctors
  • FY2 (Final Year) doctors
  • FYI [First Year]doctors

Trauma Nurse coordinators

  • Frances Scotchett
  • Lean Alphonse-Blasse

Frances and Lean are responsible for arranging trauma admissions for those patients who require surgery for their injury or fracture, but who do not require to be in hospital while waiting for their operation; this includes patients who have attended a clinic appointment where surgery has been mutually decided upon, and those patients who have attended the Emergency Department with an injury requiring surgery but that did not specifically require admission on that day.

The doctor who sees you will pass your details on to one of the Trauma Co-ordinators, and they will in turn liaise directly with you regarding details of your planned admission.

The trauma coordinators can be reached through the hospital switchboard on 01923 244366 Bleep 1045 between 07.30 and 7pm Monday to Friday and on Saturday


Referrals

Appointments are made either via the patient's General Practitioner, directly through Choose and Book or by the Musculoskeletal triage service in West Herts.