Norfolk & Norwich Hospital

nnuh

Address:Colney Lane, Norwich, NR4 7UY
Phone:01603 286286
Founded:1771
Number of Beds:987
Educational Supervisors:Mr. Jim Wimhurst/Mr. Chris Ingham
Rota Co-Ordinator:Admin registrar
Website:http://www.nnuh.nhs.uk/
Human Resources:Debbie Akers
01603 286046 (x2046)
debbie.akers@nnuh.nhs.uk

Norfolk & Norwich Orthopaedic Department

There has been a strong tradition of orthopaedics in Norwich going right back to Benjamin Gooch.

Tommy Brittain was the first ‘pure’ Norwich orthopaedic surgeon.  He was appointed in 1935.  Mr Brittain gave his name to ischio-femoral arthrodesis of the hip using the flying buttresses of Norwich Cathedral as a mechanical model.

Innovative surgery in diseases of the hip have formed a pre-eminent part of our work and the late Ken McKee CBE was appointed in 1939.  He joined up with the late John Watson-Farrar to introduce the McKee-Farrar hip replacement, which was the first mass production hip replacement in the world.

The late Hugh Phillips was an accomplished orthopaedic surgeon and worked hard throughout his career to maintain surgical standards, his ultimate achievement was to be elected President of the Royal College of Surgeons by his peers.

The department now has over 25 orthopaedic consultants including an academic reader at UEA. Mr. Nish Chirodian is the Clinical Director. Comprehensive Orthopaedic services are provided at the NNUH including upper limb, lower limb, pelvic and acetabular surgery, limb reconstruction, spinal surgery and paediatric orthopaedics.

There are excellent opportunities for trainees to acquire surgical skills in elective orthopaedic and trauma surgery due to high numbers and availability of Consultants to supervise trainees. In addition, there are a number of surgical care practioners who work alongside consultants and trainees. Many trainees find the surgical care practioners experience invaluable and enable the development of more independent operating for arthroplasty surgery.

There are a team of Orthopaedic Nurse Practioners (ONPs) attached to each consultant team who provide an excellent level of care and allow the core surgical trainees timetable to be more surgically focused.

Rota

The rota is managed by a senior registrar.

There is a rolling rota in situ for on-calls although swaps can be made. The consultants share an on-call week (trauma week) with 3 at a time. During this week the registrars for the respective consultants will be either on-call for admissions, in trauma theatre or in acute fracture clinics (white list).

Leave requests

General rules:

  • Only 3 Registrars can be away at any time
  • Registrars cannot be away when their consultant is on-call and should ideally not be away the week after.
  • Registrar cross-cover expected for inpatients.

Annual leave – If you need to request annual leave please, contact your consultants directly. You will not be able to take leave, except for exams or major life events, during your trauma weeks. Once your consultants have agreed to your leave, please let the administrative registrar know and it will be added to the rota. You will need to keep track of your own days off and will need to organise cover from a colleague.

Study leave – All study leave requests need to be on an electronic form available from NanimeStudyLeaveAdministrator@nnuh.nhs.uk. You need to get Mr. Wimhurst/ Mr. Ingham to sign them off for you & this will only be done if, a) The course is appropriate, & b). You have confirmation that your bosses have approved your leave for the relevant dates.

Theatre and Clinics

With the appointment of new upper and lower limb consultants the rota/teams are likely to change slightly. A new rota/timetable will be available in due course.

Teaching and training

Teaching sessions include a trauma meeting every morning, Friday afternoon departmental teaching and Mr. Davis has also held teaching sessions on Monday or Wednesday evenings dependent on trainee engagement.

Pre-exam SpRs are required to attend the Cambridge Thursday teaching. Post-exam registrars may elect to stay in Norwich for clinical experience on Thursdays but may also attend the Cambridge teaching, particularly if the term is relevant to their future sub-specialty interest. You need to ensure that your Consultants’ secretaries know if you are not going to be present for clinics or lists at least 6 weeks in advance.

Induction information

General hospital induction undertaken on starting at the NNUH with mandatory online training.

Useful contacts

  • Hospital switchboard – 01603 286286
  • HR – Debbie Akers – 01603 286046 (x2046), debbie.akers@nnuh.nhs.uk
  • Educational supervisors: Jim Wimhurst, Chris Ingham

Trainee comments

High volume of cases and excellent trauma and elective operative opportunities in a busy department. Extended anaesthetic cover allows trauma lists to extend into the evenings on most days. The department benefits from the presence of Core trainees who have their educational needs facilitated by Orthopaedic Nurse Practitioners who undertake ward duties. Surgical Care Practitioners also work alongside trainees and consultants in theatre with invaluable expertise to facilitate training. As with many departments in the region, the winter bed crisis does impact upon surgical lists.