Victory for OUH at national awards for children’s services

Paediatric orthopaedic colleagues from Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH) walked away with two awards and several commendations at the National Orthopaedic Alliance Excellence in Orthopaedics Awards last week.

The awards, hosted in Birmingham on Thursday 15 May, recognise NOA member organisations, projects, and teams that have distinguished themselves through exemplary contributions, influence, and commitment to transforming services across orthopaedics – both clinically and non-clinically. 

Paediatric Orthopaedic colleagues: 

• Won the Award for Innovation in Orthopaedics for their work on the Children’s Ultrasound-guided Biopsy One-Stop Service (‘CUBOS’)
• Won, with Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust (BHT), the Award for Partnerships and Integration Initiative for Advancing Children’s Orthopaedic Care in the Thames Valley Through Collaborative Working
• Were finalists and runners-up for the same category for the Award for Partnerships and Integration Initiative for Oxford’s Paediatric Skeletal Dysplasia Multiprofessional Service.

These were all in collaboration with other OUH services including Radiology, Clinical Genetics, Paediatric Rheumatology, and colleagues at Stoke Mandeville Hospital.

Through the introduction of the innovative CUBOS clinic, the team showed that awake ultrasound guided biopsy of paediatric musculoskeletal tumours was achievable, and decreased diagnosis time when compared to a biopsy under general anaesthetic. The CUBOS clinics allow tertiary centre specialist clinical review, diagnostic imaging, and biopsy on the same day, and avoids the need for general anaesthesia. The service is also in line with the NHS cancer national waiting list and diagnostic-treatment targets.

The collaborative working with BHT represents a paradigm shift in the delivery of orthopaedic care between our trusts. This way of working has transformed the delivery of orthopaedic care for young patients, with both waiting times and theatre lists decreasing.

The Paediatric Skeletal Dysplasia Multiprofessional Service provides improvements in diagnostic capability and knowledge in clinical genetics and radiology. As a result, the team has been able to provide more definitive diagnoses for children with skeletal dysplasias, as well as more holistic treatment and care.

Andrew Wainwright, Clinical Lead for Oxford Children's Orthopaedic Service at OUH, said: “We are delighted to have been recognised nationally in this way. This success reflects the work and dedication of everyone involved with each of these projects, including the wider paediatric orthopaedic team, and radiology, clinical genetics, paediatric rheumatology colleagues who have all been part of this significant success.”

Professor Andrew Brent, Chief Medical Officer at OUH, said: “This is fantastic news, and huge congratulations to all of our colleagues and partners involved.

“These initiatives have patient care at their heart, and I am incredibly proud of the people behind it and the difference they make to so many people.”

Pictured left to right: Mr Max Mifsud, Dr Karen Partington, Dr Kathy Bailey, Andrew Wainright