Kidney stone and vascular access surgery now available at the Horton
18/06/2019
This article is more than four years old.
Patients with kidney stones can now receive specialist laser treatment at the Horton General Hospital.
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust introduced the procedure earlier this spring following an extensive theatre upgrade to accommodate new ways of working. The project, which cost £225,000, included laser-proofing the theatre, purchasing new equipment, and training staff on the new procedure.
The new service uses precision equipment and a dedicated laser to fragment kidney stones with minimal side-effects. Most patients having stone surgery at the Horton will be home the same day.
From July 2019, the service will be treating around six or seven patients a week
Ben Turney, Consultant Urologist at the Trust, said: "This is a great service here at the Horton, and a real investment for the hospital
"Kidney stones are usually extremely unpleasant and painful, and by offering these operations at the Horton we can get people operated on more quickly.
"This has been a real team effort - everyone from theatre staff, to anaesthetists, to procurement and estates staff have worked incredibly hard to get this up and running. Our staff had extensive training to learn the new procedures, and worked long hours to make sure everything ran smoothly. This has now paid off, and patients have reported excellent levels of care from the staff at the Horton."
In addition, dialysis patients are now being offered vascular access surgery at the Horton. Operations to create a fistula, which provides access in the veins for dialysis treatment, are now available, when historically patients were sent to the Churchill Hospital for this procedure.
Kathy Hall, Director of Strategy at the Trust, said: "I'm incredibly pleased that these new services are at the Horton. By offering these operations, people can be seen a lot more quickly and, for those in the north of the county, much closer to home.
"This is another example of our investment in the Horton, and our ongoing commitment to providing more services for people in Banbury and the surrounding areas."
Pictured: Horton Theatres and Day Case Unit staff involved in the first Urology Laser Stone procedures at the Horton General Hospital