Surgical training accolade for Hull hospitals team

‘PROUD’: The urogynaecology surgical team at Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. From left, Pooja Balchandra, Laura Rimmer, Jagdish Gandhi, and Kamalaveni Soundararajan

Hull is set to play a key role in training surgeons of the future.

The Royal College of Obstetrics & Gynaecology (RCOG) has approved applications from Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, and its partner, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, to become a urogynaecology subspecialty training centre.

Together, the two trusts represent one of just 15 centres across the country to deliver this particular course.

This means surgeons from both trusts are now able to deliver a two-year training programme to equip aspiring surgeons with the skills they need to perform both routine and complex procedures.

Pooja Balchandra, consultant surgeon (urogynaecology) and obstetrician for the Hull trust, said: “There are only a handful of training centres able to deliver this course around the country, so to be approved as one of them is a matter of great pride and huge responsibility.

“It is also reflective of the high calibre of staff we employ that we are considered suitable to deliver the course, and really demonstrates our commitment to teaching excellence and to training surgeons of the future.”

Urogynaecology is a sub-specialty of gynaecology. It covers services that provide assessment, investigations, and treatment for women with urinary incontinence, vaginal prolapse, recurrent urinary tract infections, bladder pain, and pelvic floor injury after childbirth.

Trainees will normally spend a year working in Leeds and a year in Hull, working alongside various teams and specialties, including urology, colorectal services, and physiotherapy to ensure a full understanding of surgical procedures and aftercare.

While in Hull, trainees will complete their primary training within the theatres and clinics of Hull Women and Children’s Hospital, but as their learning progresses, they will go on to train and learn within other areas of the trust, such as urology and colorectal clinics and theatres.

Now that the application to become a urogynaecology subspecialty training centre has been approved, the team is working towards accreditation from the British Society of Urogynaecology. It is hoped that such accreditation will help reinforce Hull’s reputation for expertise in this area, generating further national interest and helping with recruitment, the trust said.