Manchester’s Hospitals praised for ‘pioneering work’ by one of UK’s top surgeons

President of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, Professor Neil Mortensen, has praised clinical teams in Greater Manchester for their work during a two-day fact-finding visit.

The visit involved meetings with clinicians working at the 10 hospitals run by Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT).

Professor Mortensen was impressed with the pioneering work in surgical specialties such as major trauma, cancer, transplants, and children’s surgery, as well as the innovative work being done at the Manchester Surgical Skills & Simulation Centre where clinical teams train.

Speaking to I love Manchester, he said: “It’s been an honour visiting MFT and in particular hearing from surgical colleagues about the work being done to transform and recover elective care services in Greater Manchester.

“The Oxford Road, North Manchester and Wythenshawe sites have some inspirational leaders and surgeons and it was a pleasure to meet with them all.

“The Trafford elective hub is a fantastic example of surgical teams using innovative ways to reduce waiting times for some of the most common procedures.

“The MFT staff have successfully established new ways of doing things, bringing together the skills and expertise of all members of the team to transform surgery in Manchester”

During the visit, staff working at Trafford General Hospital shared how they have transformed their services to become a ‘green site’ hub for planned surgery, allowing thousands of patients to receive delayed procedures due to the impact of the COVID pandemic.

Professor Mortensen praised the surgical teams for their use of innovative ways to reduce waiting times for some of the most common procedures.

Miss Toli Onon, Joint Group Medical Director for MFT, expressed her pride in the innovative work being done in Greater Manchester, stating that the hospital has world-class achievements in the field.

She said: “Professor Mortensen and his team from the RCS were incredibly generous with their time, visiting us for two days and meeting dozens of our surgical staff who carry out an impressively wide range of activity day-in, day-out.

“We are rightly very proud of the innovative ways in which they are constantly striving to improve our services to patients. We have world-class work going on right here in Greater Manchester.

“By adopting the best practice of others and sharing the lessons we are learning with our colleagues elsewhere, we will help improve surgery for patients across the whole of the UK.”

Miss Gemma Faulkner, the RCS England Regional Director for Greater Manchester and a Consultant Surgeon at the Wythenshawe site, also welcomed Professor Mortensen and his team and was pleased to showcase the academic and clinical achievements of the diverse surgical team.

The visit highlighted the success of MFT staff in establishing new ways of doing things, bringing together the skills and expertise of all members of the team to transform surgery in Manchester.

By adopting the best practices of others and sharing the lessons they are learning, MFT aims to help improve surgery for patients across the UK.

Professor Mortensen praised the inspirational leaders and surgeons at MFT, stating that it was an honor to meet with them all.