The EHDEN public private project was set up under the framework of IMI2, with twenty-two partners, including academia, SMEs, patient associations, regulatory authorities and pharmaceutical companies, led by Erasmus Medical Centre, The Netherlands, and Janssen Pharmaceutica N.V., Belgium.
MD, MSc (Sports Medicine)
CCT in Trauma & Orthopaedics 2015, MSc in Sports Medicine
Currently studying: Diploma in Musculoskeletal Ultrasound
Dimitris practice is dedicated to the treatment of general paediatric orthopaedic / musculoskeletal problems, including hip dysplasia, congenital talipes equinovarus, guided growth, skeletal dysplasia and trauma. He has developed a specialist interest in sports injuries, especially knee problems, including patella instability (recurrent patella dislocations) and meniscal pathology.
Dimitris qualified from University of Patras-Greece, School of Health Sciences Medical school and subsequently underwent orthopaedic training both in Greece and UK. He completed paediatric orthopaedic fellowships in Birmingham Children’s Hospital, Great Ormond Street Hospital and Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital. He has a Master’s Degree in Sports Medicine, Exercise and Health from University College of London.
After completing his fellowships, Dimitris was appointed as a Consultant at Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge NHS Trust, before moving to a joint post between the Royal London Hospital, Barts Health NHS Trust and Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust.
Dimitris has published in peer reviewed journals and presented at both national and international meetings. He also participates regularly in training higher surgical trainees in the diagnosis and management of paediatric orthopaedic problems.
Outside work Dimitris enjoys spending time with his young family. He is a keen basketball and tennis player and has previously trained in 110-metre hurdles. He is a true believer of the benefits of regular exercise and enjoys running, swimming, cycling and healthy Mediterranean diet.
Follow Dimitris on LinkedIn.
Rachel is an orthopaedic trauma clinic nurse specialist at Whipps Cross Hospital in a team which cover the orthopaedic trauma coordination, virtual fracture clinic and patients with fractured neck of femurs.
Rachel qualified as a nurse in 2000 and has worked within the orthopaedic / trauma setting since. With a brief break to set up a surgical day unit for dentistry and general surgery requiring a longer post-operative stay than a conventional day case centre.
Rachel has worked her way from being a ward staff nurse to a ward manager and then a clinical nurse specialist, covering both elective and trauma orthopaedics, providing teaching to staff on orthopaedic and fragility care.
Rachel has been actively involved in the designing of the processes and protocols for Whipps Cross being the fracture neck of femur centre for Barts Health and continues to strive to improve the management of patients with neck of femur fractures, liaising with other specialities and designing a training programme for care of fragility neck of femur fractures which is being implemented on the orthopaedic wards.
MBBS, BSc Sports & Exercise Medicine, FRCS Eng (Tr&Orth)
Alexios Dimitrios is strongly driven by the opportunity to deliver a specialist, major trauma service for the NHS serving a diverse and multi-cultural population. His clinical interest is in complex lower limb trauma and management of bone deformity, infection, defect and non-union
Alexi is passionate about delivering clinical research and is a principal investigator for the NIHR funded SOLARIO trial. His research portfolio includes numerous publications in leading peer reviewed journals and international presentations. He is committed to advancing his field through clinical-academic collaborations with leading units. He is trained in the application of Ilizarov technique, software assisted hexapod frames and intramedullary limb lengthening devices.
He qualified from Barts and The London School of Medicine completing his Trauma and Orthopaedics training with the prestigious Percival Pott rotation. Throughout training and fellowship, he worked in leading London Major Trauma Centres and Limb Reconstruction Units including the Royal London Hospital, The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital and Great Ormond Street Hospital.
He is teaching faculty at various regional and international courses including our MSc in Trauma Sciences and delivers training in developing countries. He is our Unit’s lead on the joint Limb Reconstruction Fellowship with the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital. He is a member of the British Limb Reconstruction Society and AO Trauma.
I am Professor of Anaesthesia & Intensive Care Medicine at the University of Birmingham but have retired from clinical practice. From January 2013 I have led the NIHR Trauma Management Health Technology / Med Tech Cooperative. In 2016 I was named one of the top 100 most influential drivers of the health technology revolution, globally, and in 2017 became the Director of the Medical Devices Testing and Evaluation Centre (MD-TEC). In 2020 I volunteered to support the UK Government’s “Ventilator Challenge” using MD-TEC as a central testing facility. In 2021 I was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s birthday honours for services to the NHS during the COVID-19 pandemic.
My name is Jasmin Rahman. I am of Bangladeshi origin and I am a mother to 3 children. I am an expert with lived experiences and sit as a PPI Member on various research projects.
Lauren Exell is an Executive Assistant to Professor Xavier Griffin and the Bone and Joint Health group. She assists with the preparation and organisation of multiple projects, as well as overseeing the groups social media outputs, public engagement, and departmental finances. Managing our social media and online content working with patient, clinical and academic groups to ensure our work has wide reach, Lauren is passionate about patient and public engagement and the benefits of working with the public in developing research.
Lauren thoroughly enjoys supporting academics and senior members of staff. She assists with the preparation and organisation of multiple projects, as well as overseeing the groups social media outputs, public engagement, and departmental finances. Managing our social media and online content working with patient, clinical and academic groups to ensure our work has wide reach, Lauren is passionate about patient and public engagement and the benefits of working with the public in developing research.
Lauren began working in administration in 2014, where she worked as a Medical Secretary for the NHS. She developed an interest in clinical academia and after 4 years with the NHS joined the University of Oxford as a Personal Assistant. During this time Lauren’s role and responsibilities expanded providing administrative support to one of the largest academic groups within the Division of Medical Sciences in addition to coordinating the well-established National Institute of Health trauma trials research conference. Lauren was thrilled to take on a new role at Queen Mary University of London as executive assistant to the newly established Bone & Joint Health clinical academic group led by Professor Xavier Griffin.
Lauren coordinates the group’s public engagement activities working with organisations and individuals across East London to ensure the public are involved in the co-production of research from developing research questions, research design and sharing research findings.
Outside of work, Lauren enjoys running and has taken part in many events across England. She has also played for various football teams, including Oxford City ladies.
Follow Lauren on Twitter.
Steve is the Consultant Paramedic within the Medical Directorate at North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust. As part of his portfolio Steve is the Research Lead for the organisation with responsibility for setting the strategic direction for research and developing the Trust’s research portfolio through collaboration and participation in both NIHR Portfolio and non-portfolio studies. Steve is a member of the National Ambulance Research Steering Group (NARSG). Steve is also the Consultant HEMS Paramedic for the North West Air Ambulance Charity with responsibility for clinical governance and assurance; as part of this role Steve is clinically active undertaking regular clinical shifts as part of the Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) team.
Ali Noorani is a consultant orthopaedic and trauma surgeon specialising in shoulder and elbow surgery. A particular authority on sports injuries and trauma, he has treated many elite sportspeople, including Premier League footballers, professional cyclists, boxers and mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship competitors. Ali sees a multidisciplinary approach as the best way to treat patient’s upper limb problems. Well-known for adopting a holistic, patient-centric approach, only 20% of his patients will go on to have surgery.
Working together with a team of physiotherapists, he takes a meticulous approach to patient rehabilitation. When surgery is required, he uses his expertise in minimally invasive techniques to get his patients back to day-to-day activities as possible. He was the UK team doctor for the American National Basketball Association (NBA) and orthopaedic doctor for the American National Football League (NFL) and the Rugby World Cup (2015). For Ali, being an orthopaedic surgeon allows him to have a perfect job and values the impactful relationship he has with his patients.
Throughout his career Ali has been involved in several aspects of clinical research. More recently research in AI algorithms to offer predictive models in healthcare. The research that Ali is most proud of is the opportunity to look at big data and mitigate for race and gender bias that is often missed a normal routine medical research
Ali qualified from Imperial College School of Medicine in London in 2000 and completed my orthopaedic and trauma training at the prestigious Royal London Hospital Rotation.
The Young Adult hip Service is a subspecialty of orthopaedic surgery, treating young patients (usually <40yo) with painful hip conditions such as femoro-acetabular impingement, Hip instability, deformity, sports injury, avascular necrosis and degenerative conditions.
We aim to preserve native hip joints by treating the area of injury, for example labral tear by arthroscopic or key-hole surgery and addressing underlying bony deformity and compromised biomechanics with bony procedures. When degenerative changes are too severe for hip preservation, we offer hip resurfacing or replacement, by minimally invasive techniques or using tailor-made implants where indicated.
Our unit is based at the Royal London Hospital and Barts Health Orthopaedic Centre.
Our consultant surgeons, including Paul Lee, Josh Lee, Pramod Achan, Sebastian Dawson-Bowling, Gareth Scott, Professor Manoj Ramachandran, are skilled in various hip preservation, resurfacing and replacement techniques and work closely with specialist musculoskeletal radiologists and physiotherapists.
The unit engages and contributes to research and innovation with publications in areas of joint preservation and arthroplasty surgery. We run formal and informal teaching sessions for specialist training surgeons, for GP surgeries and for allied healthcare provider colleagues. Our referral pathway for primary, secondary and tertiary care is illustrated below. Our point of contact for enquiries is: najura.ahmed@nhs.net
MD MSc FRCS (Tr&Orth)
Kostas is passionate about delivering the best possible outcomes for his patients. He believes that effective communication and a thorough understanding of a patient’s individual circumstances, are key to successful long-term outcomes. His clinical interests include primary and revision hip and knee surgery, arthroscopic knee surgery and the management of general and complex trauma.
In addition to his clinical work, Kostas maintains a strong academic interest. In 2014, he completed a Masters (MSc) in Trauma and Orthopaedics at University College London. His research thesis examined corrosion and wear in total hip replacements. His ongoing research work includes, among others, the position as the local principal investigator for three national studies. He has published more than thirty manuscripts, abstracts and book chapters and has given presentations at some of the most prestigious orthopaedic conferences. He is a reviewer for several journals, including the Bone and Joint Journal.
Kostas is the orthopaedic lead for the hip and fragility fracture service, the reconfiguration of which will dramatically reshape the provision of care for these conditions. With the advent of the orthopaedic integrated care system, the repercussions of this transition will ultimately affect the majority of residents of North East London.
Kostas completed his specialist orthopaedic training on the UCH / Middlesex training programme. He then undertook two highly regarded specialist fellowships, first under Prof Michael Dunbar in Canada and then at the Barts Health Orthopaedic Centre and the Royal London Hospital. He had further fellowship experience from visiting centers of excellence for hip and knee surgery, such as the Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto.
Follow Kostas on londonlowerlimb.com.
Ben has a particular interest in Complex Spine surgery. Appointed in 1998, Ben introduced community-based spine musculoskeletal services, and pioneered the East London Spine service with introduction of major elective Spine Surgery at Whipps Cross University Hospital and collaborative working with the Royal London Hospital, providing undergraduate and postgraduate training in orthopaedics and complex spine as a clinical, educational supervisor, and GMC appraiser.
Ben has held various leadership roles within the trust in education, governance, trauma, infection, patient safety and Clinical lead for Orthopaedic service. He has performed several thousand spine procedures as well has large volume of general trauma and Orthopaedic surgeries.
Ben graduated from St. Bartholomew’s Medical School, London University and completed training for the Royal College of Surgeon of England fellowship at Charing Cross Hospital, St Mary’s Hospital and Royal Brompton Hospital. Orthopaedic Specialist Surgical training took place at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital/Royal Free Hospital Rotation. Throughout his education and training he has gained the following qualifications: MBBS London University/St Bartholomew’s Medical School 1987, Certificate of completion of specialist training, FRCS, and FRCS. ORTH.
Ben holds Spine Fellowship at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital and University College London/Middlesex Hospital; travelling fellowship and spine surgical skill education in Spine Surgery various overseas centres. He is also a member of, North American Spine Society, British Spine Society, British Scoliosis Society, British Orthopaedic Association, AO Spine Association, British Medical Association and Nigerian Spine Society and Visiting Spine Surgeon Nigeria.
MBBS, MS (Orthopaedics), PG Dip Orthopaedic Engineering, FRCS (Orth)
Mr Pimplé has been working at Barts Health for the past eight years, providing highly specialised care for complex hand and wrist, elbow and shoulder conditions. He has been able to develop a premier service with his team which includes Specialist Physiotherapists, Hand Therapists and Nurse Practitioners. The focus has been to create a patient-friendly environment to make a difference in the health and wellbeing of the local community. Seeing patients regain their function and return to work or sports has been the driving force. Innovative ideas and latest techniques are used for constant improvements with better patient outcomes. He has been able to provide keyhole and minimally invasive surgery for a variety of musculoskeletal problems followed by early rehabilitation with appropriate therapy. The academic support has enabled him to present research in national and international meetings and publish studies in peer-reviewed journals.
Mr Pimplé is an Educational supervisor for Surgical trainees and an Appraiser for GMC registered doctors. He is in the faculty for Regional and International courses for training surgeons and health professionals.
PhD, FRCS (Tr & Orth), MA (Int Rel)
Rej Bhumbra has been working as a consultant orthopaedic surgeon for ten years. He is an experienced, dedicated and caring doctor specialising in hip, knee and trauma surgery. He did his undergraduate training at St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School (now Imperial College) and has completed fellowships in Toronto, Birmingham, London and Mumbai.
He obtained a First in the Orthopaedic Sciences BSc at UCL and his PhD was awarded the Gold Medal for the best new innovation at the British Orthopaedic Association. He has authored multiple papers and books in the field of Global Health, Orthopaedics and Trauma. He was an editor at the British Medical Journal and has an interest in Health Technology and Artificial Intelligence for medical, radiological and surgical applications.
Additionally, he has been a device specialist for the MHRA and works as an Associate Medical Director at DePuy Synthes specialising in Medical Device Regulation. He has completed an MA in International Relations and Affairs, and is passionate about philanthropy and education from both within and outside the City of London.
He plays the drums, golf, cycles, skis and enjoys time outdoors with his wife and two, not so young, children.
BSc, MBBC, MRCS(Eng), FRCS(Tr&Orth), PgCert
Kes Sri-Ram joined Barts Health in 2014, and is based mainly at the Whipps Cross site, where he was the clinical lead between 2015 and 2021. His interests lie within lower limb surgery, treating conditions involving the hips, knees and feet and offering a high quality, patient-centred approach.
Kes completed his medical degree at University College London, completed his basic surgical training in North London and underwent his specialist orthopaedic training on the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital training programme. He then undertook further sub-specialist training on several fellowships including Sports Trauma and Knee Surgery (North Sydney, Australia), Hip and Knee Replacement Surgery (Wycombe and Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, UK) and Trauma (St Mary’s Hospital, Major Trauma Centre, UK).
Kes regularly teaches on courses and presents at national and international meetings. He has several publications in specialist peer reviewed journals, and also reviews articles. He has also authored chapters in books and is the editor of the highly successful text book ‘Postgraduate Orthopaedics – MCQs and EMQs for the FRCS (Tr&Orth)’ published by Cambridge University Press. He also has an interest in service development and clinical leadership. He has completed a masters level postgraduate certificate in Innovation and Improving Performance and a level 7 qualification in Strategic Management and Leadership with the Chartered Management Institute.
MA Cantab, MBChB, FRCS (T&O), MSc
Syed Aftab believes that the best outcomes for patients can only be achieved when decisions are carefully considered and works within the framework of a multidisciplinary team. He is the Clinical Effectiveness Lead for Orthopaedics at the Royal London and is actively involved in teaching other doctors, nurses and allied health professionals.
Syed has been pioneering the iMAS technique in the UK, using micro access techniques developed by Dr Robert Masson at Neurospine Institute, Orlando, USA (a Federally accredited Centre of Excellence). He is also an Honorary Senior Lecturer at Queen Mary University of London. He teaches and organises the spinal teaching programme for postgraduates studying trauma and orthopaedics.
Syed has published widely in a number of peer-reviewed medical journals and is actively involved in research into spinal surgery. He has presented at national and international conferences.
Syed studied medicine at Pembroke College, Cambridge University and Edinburgh University. He underwent higher surgical training in Orthopaedics and Spinal Surgery on the London NE Thames rotation at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, Stanmore.
He also gained a Master of Science at University College London in Trauma and Orthopaedics during his training. Syed completed advanced fellowships in Spinal Surgery at the Royal London Hospital. Furthermore, he continues to broaden his experience with visitations to international centres of excellence for spinal surgery (Antwerp Belgium, Bordeaux France, Neustadt Germany and Orlando USA).
Catherine is a specialist research physiotherapist within orthopaedics undertaking an NIHR PCA Fellowship. Her research is focused on helping patients with complex injuries get the best from their healthcare and rehabilitation.
Catherine is an experienced physiotherapist who has worked across a variety of settings in NHS Trusts since 2007. She completed a Clinical Research Master’s Degree at King’s College London in 2014. She has worked within the orthopaedic clinical research team at Barts Health NHS Trust for the past 7 years caring for patients within clinical trials and helping to form patient involvement groups for research grant proposals.
Angelos Kolias is a Consultant Neurosurgeon and Clinical Senior Lecturer in the Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Addenbrooke’s Hospital and University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. His clinical interests include neurotrauma, surgery for brain tumours, spine surgery, and general neurosurgery. In the field of trauma, he is the Co-Chief Investigator of four NIHR-funded randomised trials and the Associate Director of the NIHR Global Health Research Group on Neurotrauma.
Bsc (Hons) Physiotherapy
Becca has worked with the orthopaedics research team since 2021, primarily recruiting participants to a range of NIHR portfolio studies, as well as assisting with the set-up and coordination of these trials across Barts health sites. She qualified as a physiotherapist in 2013, pursuing a career in rehabilitation services across a number of NHS trusts before moving into her full time research role.
Becca is passionate about providing the best care for patients, using evidence to develop services to best meet the needs of our local patient population, and allowing patients to achieve the best outcomes.
After spending many years as a biomedical researcher, Jonathan moved into research management and has worked in Research Council, University and NHS settings. After moving from London to Leeds, he joined the NIHR in 2007, establishing the Comprehensive Clinical Research Network which involved setting up 25 regional research networks and overseeing the delivery of a large portfolio of research studies across 24 clinical specialties. Most recently he was the Assistant Specialty Cluster Lead for Cancer, Surgery and Oral & Dental Health in the NIHR Clinical Research Network.
With over 25 years of experience networking with charities, the public and private sectors, Jonathan is passionate about improving the access of patients, their carers and the public to research which makes a real impact on people’s lives.
Caroline is a Consultant in Emergency Medicine and Prehospital Emergency Medicine, with a specialist interest in major trauma and resuscitation.
Caroline is the current Clinical Lead for the Midlands Trauma Network and University Hospital Coventry Major Trauma Centre. She is Chair of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine PHEM-PAG, Executive Member of the Faculty of Pre-hospital Care, and Associate Editor of the Emergency Medicine Journal.
Justine Theaker is a Consultant Physiotherapist, and integrated Clinical Academic at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust. She specialises in Orthopaedic and Major Trauma clinical care, rehabilitation and research. She is currently a PhD Research Fellow with the Research in Osteoarthritis in Manchester (ROAM) team, based at Manchester University Medical School. Her research is also focussing on Major Trauma with contribution to networks of the National Major Trauma Nursing and Rehabilitation Group, the National Major Trauma Research Group and the Association of Trauma and Orthopaedic Chartered Physiotherapists. She is the AHP Lead Research Champion for Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust.
Rachel is a Consultant in Paediatric Emergency Medicine at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital and Group Associate Medical Director for Quality and Safety at Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. She is also the Clinical Director of the Greater Manchester Violence Reduction Unit.
Rachel’s interests include paediatric trauma, patient safety and experience and injury prevention.
I am a specialist occupational therapist working in the major trauma rehabilitation service in Newcastle upon Tyne. I work with people following orthopaedic trauma, and sometimes people with brain injuries, or spinal injuries. I work on a specialist 10 bedded rehabilitation unit. Here, I support people to return home by working with other occupational therapists, physiotherapists, psychologists, speech and language, and a social worker, as well as the patient and their family/friends/carers
I qualified as a Physiotherapist in 2010 and have experience in a wide range of specialities in the NHS.
In 2019 I was working as a specialist trauma Physiotherapist on an acute spinal ward, when whilst out cycling I was hit by a car and sustained multiple injuries. Since then I have undergone intense rehabilitation and have returned to work within orthopaedics.
My experience has increased my passion for improving rehabilitation within major trauma.
BSC Adult Nursing
Kemi is an orthopaedic nurse specialist at Whipps Cross University Hospital. She is part of a team of specialist nurses who help to co-ordinate the orthopaedic trauma cases, review and create care plans for the fracture neck of femur patients, take part in the virtual fracture clinic and also give advice to orthopaedic patients at home who call the orthopaedic nurse trauma phone.
Kemi began her Nurse Training in 2011 at the University Of West London. After she qualified she began working on elective and trauma orthopaedic wards, as a staff nurse and was later promoted to ward sister. Whilst working on the wards, Kemi also took on the role of surgical development nurse. In this role she was able to teach and guide junior staff on how to nurse orthopaedic patients to a high standard.
Kemi has a passion for orthopaedics, enhanced recovery and ensuring patients receives high standards of care. Kemi is excited to be a part of the orthopaedic team at BARTS Health NHS Trust, and is looking forward to continuing to deliver high standards of care to the patient.
BA, BSc, MFA, PgCert
Catherine Borra joined the team as a research associate in 2019, after working as a clinical lead physiotherapist in pain management and women’s health. She has an interdisciplinary background – including the humanities and medical anthropology – which forged her interest in mixed-methods and exploring intersectionality within health research.
At Barts Health, she works on a range of NIHR portfolio studies, randomised control trials and observational studies – and is leading a project on diversity within orthopaedic research. She is passionate about public involvement, narrative medicine and modelling social variables in population-representative health datasets.
In addition to her work, Catherine is a PhD candidate at University College London. Her project investigates the relationship between persistent pain and the menopause, using epidemiological and ethnographic methods. She teaches at higher education level at UCL and elsewhere.
Follow Catherine on Twitter.
Jade Brien is the lead Clinical Nurse Specialist for Limb Reconstruction within the largest Major Trauma centre at The Royal London Hospital. With over 10 years’ experience and interest in treating complex limb reconstruction in both adults and paediatrics she is working to gain her Masters in surgical care practice.
Jade is a significant member of the Limb Reconstruction multidisciplinary team, contributing to the enhanced limb reconstruction pathway for limb reconstruction inpatients and running nurse led outpatient clinics. Jade has been instrumental in shaping the service delivery and providing direct care for complex trauma, bone infection and congenital deformities patient group. With a background working as a senior nurse on the plastics and trauma ward Jade has extensive experience and skill caring for complex wounds and works closely within the orthoplastic team.
BSc(Hons) Physiotherapy, MATOCP, MCSP
Dan Church is a Limb Reconstruction Specialist Physiotherapist working in the Orthopaedic department’s Limb Reconstruction team at the Royal London Hospital. A well experienced physiotherapist who has a specialist interest in Orthopaedics, Trauma and Plastics surgery and the patient’s subsequent inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation. Dan runs limb reconstruction specific physiotherapy outpatient clinics, alongside working with the Consultants, CNS and Orthoplastics MDT in the limb reconstruction clinics, whilst also supporting our cohort of patients whilst there are an inpatient through an enhanced recovery pathway for Limb Reconstruction at the Royal London Hospital.
Prior to joining the Limb Reconstruction team, Dan was the specialist physiotherapist for the trauma and orthopaedic department at the Royal London Hospital, having completed rotations as a senior physiotherapist through Trauma and orthopaedics, Major Trauma, MSK outpatients, Neurosurgery and NeuroTrauma ACCU on the Major Trauma rotations at the Royal London Hospital.
Follow Daniel on LinkedIn.
Jamie’s primary role is to recruit patients to research trials running at Barts Health. A musculoskeletal physiotherapist by background, he has previously worked in outpatient clinics across London before moving into a research role in 2021. Prior to qualifying as a physiotherapist he completed a sport and exercise science degree, in addition to working with elite athletes at the South Australian Sports Institute, Adelaide. Since working within the NHS, his interests have evolved to encompass what contributes to good musculoskeletal health across our population, and how we can achieve this.
Outside of work Jamie enjoys tag rugby, languages, and spending time with his house rabbit.
MBBS, FRCS (T&O), FRCS (Eng), Masters in Healthcare Leadership
Prim Achan is a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon with vast experience in complex Hip and Knee surgery. He is a former Clinical Director of Orthopaedics and Plastic Surgery and has been the Training Programme Director for the Percivall Pott programme for over 10 years. After finishing at Mill Hill School, Prim trained at Barts as a medical student, a house officer and as a registrar. He completed fellowships in New York and Queensland before his consultant appointment at Barts in 2005. He is the consultant lead for leadership development at the trust, has a masters from Cornell and completed the INSEAD European Healthcare leadership programme. He currently runs courses at the Kings Fund and lectures extensively on Leadership, Training as well as complex hip and knee surgery. His clinical scope of interest runs from sports injuries of the hip and knee through to complex young adult and revision arthroplasty of both the knee and hip. He has published in peer reviewed literature across this space including first in human trials, translational and basic science papers to being a principal investigator in clinical trials.
He has given international lectures at Stanford, Harvard and Duke and was a 2009 British Hip society travelling fellow, and a 2014 ABC travelling fellow. He also sits on the Trauma & Orthopaedic SAC.
Outside of work He is married with two young boys and has a passion for sport (Cricket, Golf @DenhamGC, Tennis @Hurlingham), photography, Painting, Fine dining and wine amongst other things.
MD, MSc
Miss Bijlsma joined the paediatric orthopaedic department in 2015 and she is currently the clinical lead. Her practice is mainly clinical and she is dedicated to helping children with congenital or acquired orthopaedic conditions in the best possible way. She has a special interest in the treatment of children with Cerebral Palsy and other neuromuscular conditions and she is part of the neuromuscular service which is a team with dedicated physiotherapists and occupational therapist who work closely with the local community services. In addition she has a passion in treating children with clubfeet. As part of the Major Trauma Centre at the Royal London Hospital she manages complex fractures and injuries in children of all ages.
Miss Bijlsma studied Medicine at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, prior to completing her Orthopaedic Specialist training in Amsterdam. Following being awarded the fellowship at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in the UK, she went on to complete 2 further fellowships at Great Ormond Street Hospital for children and at the Royal London Hospital. This has provided her with the opportunity to train under world class paediatric orthopaedic surgeons.
To provide patients with the most up to date care she keeps her orthopaedic knowledge up to date by regularly participating in national and international courses and conferences. She is passionate in training future orthopaedic surgeons and is much involved in education and research in the department.
Bsc Physiotherapy, MCSP
Jessica manages a team of healthcare professionals who recruit patients across Barts Health Hospitals to Orthopaedic Research trials. Jessica’s role involves the set up, coordination and management of NIHR portfolio trials across the Trust. Barts Health has one of the most active orthopaedic research teams in the country, providing patients with the opportunity to take part in wide variety of research studies.
Jessica enjoys seeing a project progress from an idea, to a study and then be implemented into clinical practice, to benefit patients with Orthopaedic conditions. Her personal passion is the rehabilitation of patients through strength and resistance training after Orthopaedic injuries. Alongside this Jessica is also very interested in how we best serve the diversity of our population of patients in East London and striving to make research as inclusive as possible. She is also very interested in tendon pathologies and the role rehabilitation has to play in recovery.
Jessica studied Physiotherapy (Bsc hons) at Birmingham University and specialised in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy before moving full time into research.
Follow Jessica on Twitter.
Bsc(Hons) Physiotherapy, PG Cert Advanced Physiotherapy, MCSP
Seyi is a physiotherapist from Newham. He grew up in the area and lives locally, and he is passionate about using his skills and experience to serve this particular community.
Seyi is an Advanced Practice Physiotherapist and the Clinical Lead for the therapy teams in Musculoskeletal Outpatients and the Barts Health Orthopaedic Centre (BHOC) Newham University Hospital. He has oversight of the teams that provide post-operative care and rehabilitation for patients within the elective orthopaedic hub. He also manages the Outpatient physiotherapy service at NUH where many of these patients continue their rehabilitation and return to function. This team also includes Pelvic Health, Paediatrics and Hand Therapy. Seyi has a clinical role as an ESP alongside T&O and within the physiotherapy service.
Seyi is particularly driven and motivated when it comes to supporting and enabling staff to provide the best care possible. He actively promotes staff well-being and is part of the Trust’s Diversity & Inclusion Working Group. Seyi has a passion for teaching and bringing high quality healthcare provision to this part of East London.
Follow Seyi on Twitter.
Melissa has over 25 years of clinical practice in Trauma Physiotherapy at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne, Victoria Australia, where she currently works as the Allied Health Team Leader in Trauma and Orthopaedics overseeing the development and co-ordination of a specialised allied health workforce providing an intensive therapy model of care for acute trauma and orthopaedic patients.
Melissa has completed a Masters in Health Science, Graduate Certificate in Burn and Trauma Rehabilitation and a number of dedicated trauma professional development courses. She has also completed a clinical fellowship analysing the practice of physiotherapists in major trauma centres in the US, Germany and Switzerland. Her special interests include chest trauma management, trauma models of care and the role of physiotherapy and allied health within the acute trauma multidisciplinary team and how this impacts on patient outcomes and survivorship.
Professor Xavier Griffin spearheads academic orthopaedics at QMUL and Barts Health, having joined in August 2020 as the inaugural chair of Bone & Joint Health. Xavier’s vision is for worldclass excellence in research and clinical academic training; providing opportunity for the next generation of clinician scientists to realise their aspirations.
Xavier is a NIHR Clinician Scientist and has been awarded over £10m of research funding. His research interest is in clinical and cost effectiveness of musculoskeletal trauma interventions.
I work clinically in the Northern General Major Trauma Centre Emergency Department. Academically I have a diverse range of research interests in emergency and critical care, including major trauma, traumatic brain injury and sports related concussion. Previous collaborators include TARN and the Victoria State Trauma Registry. Major trauma projects have included clinical trials (Packman) and observational studies (MATTS, TARN/VSTR, HTA studies).
Fiona Lecky is Clinical Professor in Emergency Medicine at CURE (the Centre for Urgent and Emergency Care Research) in the School of Health and Related Research at the University of Sheffield, Honorary Consultant in Emergency Medicine at Salford Royal Hospital and holds an Honorary Chair as Research Director of the Trauma Audit and Research Network (TARN) at the University of Manchester and Research Professor of the Humanitarian Conflict Response Institute (HCRI). She chaired the 2014 update of the NICE Head Injury Guideline and has been a member of the International Federation for Emergency Medicine Research Committee since 2010.
Fiona has a 60/40 commitment to her University and clinical roles. She supervises under and postgraduate research students and is a lead investigator in international multicentre trauma research initiatives which are her major research interest.
Dr Elaine Cole is the Director of Research and Innovation for the London Major Trauma System and a Senior Lecturer in Trauma Sciences at Queen Mary University, London. Her research interests include the pathophysiology of organ dysfunction and adverse outcome in severely injured patients, predictors of recovery in older major trauma and trauma systems. As a Chief Investigator she has led the design, delivery and dissemination of multisite studies, is a member of the Data Monitoring Committee of the CRASH4 Trial and is the co-chair of the UK National Major Trauma Nursing group.
Mr Edward Caruana is a Consultant in Thoracic Surgery at the Glenfield Hospital in Leicester. He undertook his cardiothoracic specialist training in the United Kingdom and China, alongside additional postgraduate qualifications in surgical innovation and medical education. His clinical and academic interests include chest trauma and pain management.
David is an academic orthopaedic trauma fellow at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, Maryland. David completed orthopaedic residency at the University of British Columbia and concurrently received a Master of Biomedical Engineering during that time.
David has an interest in orthopaedic clinical and basic science research particularly with regards to challenging fractures of the proximal and distal femur. He is committed to the improvement of musculoskeletal care in low- and middle-income countries and has led a randomized trial for the treatment of open tibia fractures in rural Uganda.
Dr. van Embden in a consultant trauma surgeon, trained in The Netherlands. She finalized her PhD in hip fracture surgery. After her specialist training she did a fellowship at the Royal London Hospital. Currently she works as a consultant trauma surgeon at the major trauma center in Amsterdam. Her special fields of interest are pelvic and acetabular surgery and complex fractures in severely injured trauma patients. Daphne is a honorary clinical lecturer at the Queen Mary University of London. She is involved in several research projects of Global Surgery Amsterdam and her special research interest is pelvic fractures.
My name is Daniel Axelrod, and I’m a senior resident at McMaster University, in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
I am interested in functional outcomes following major trauma, and have completed a masters in clinical epidemiology during my residency training. I will be completing fellowships in both trauma and lower extremity reconstruction.
Ceri is a Consultant Physiotherapist in Morriston Hospital and an Honorary Associate Professor in Emergency Medicine Research at Swansea University Medical School. She is co-speciality lead for Trauma and Emergency Care Research in Wales, and the AHP representative on the NIHR Incubator for Emergency Care Research. Her main research interest is management of blunt chest wall trauma and she is the chief investigator of the Health and Care Research Wales funded STUMBL and ELECT trials. She is currently completing a Health Research Fellowship, developing co-produced guidance for patients with blunt chest wall trauma discharged home directly from the Emergency Department.
Claire Jackson is a Trauma Nurse Coordinator at Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and is also the Deputy Clinical Lead and Governance Lead for the Wessex Trauma Network. Prior to starting her current role in 2013 Claire worked as an Emergency Department nurse for 15 years, working her way up to Matron level.
Coming from a Bangladeshi background and living in the East End of London it gives me the opportunity to project the voices of the BAME Community to make research more diverse and inclusive. I am a member of various Community Groups including The UCL Co-Production Team, Katies Team, East London NHS Foundation Trust, NIHR Academy PPI Member and more. I am a PPI Co Applicant member on grant applications for Frozen Shoulder, Brain Fog, Bone Health and Long COVID. I possess plenty of traumatic life experiences to share and develop medical research.
Sithombo is an Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Cape Town. His main clinical and academic interests include the care of polytraumatised patients, high energy trauma, treatment of gunshot injuries as well as pelvis/acetabulum surgery. He has a passion for advocacy and social determinants of injury in his role as the clinical lead for Trauma Care and Injury Prevention within the Division of Global Surgery, University of Cape Town.
With over 30 year’s corporate experience, operating as HR Director at Executive level, my career has spanned many different industry sectors, including manufacturing, financial services, defence, science and nuclear, technology and services.
Following a serious accident in January 2015, my recovery has been achieved through the expert medical care within the NHS, my own self-belief and determination and the amazing support from my family and friends. I play an active role in support of the continuing development of major trauma rehabilitation and represent patients on various national and local NHS England forums, as well as presenting my story at various conferences.
I am a Peer Supporter for Day One – which involves talking to trauma patients to give support and encouragement in their recovery journey.
I am an ex-patient who experienced a shattered pelvis and multiple rib fractures after a fall from height and so can offer some personal insight into the thoughts and worries of trauma patients.
I live in Leeds and spent a career in IT Project Management – though have now given up full time work
Sarah is a PhD candidate through Ohio University where she also obtained her Master of Education in Counseling degree. Her research is focused on optimizing patient recovery after traumatic injury and associated psychological/moral trauma. She designed a foundational framework for trauma recovery services that coordinates, tracks and measures peer mentorship, functional recovery, quality of life, and health resilience. She has contributed to evidenced-based discoveries and implementation of practices, while managing a multi-disciplinary Trauma Recovery Center program grant. Sarah is a member of multiple associations including the American Trauma Society’s National Trauma Survivors Network Advisory Committee and the Orthopeadic Trauma Association.
I am the current Trainee Emergency Research Network (TERN) Fellow with the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, a Visiting Fellow at the University of West England (UWE) and an emergency medicine trainee. I have experience in collaborative research, research prioritisation exercises and patient and public involvement with the network.
I hope the JLA Major Trauma PSP will set out the key research priorities and help drive innovative research for the future.
Rayner is a consultant surgeon and specializes in general trauma and orthopaedic trauma. He finished surgical training in Leiden and subsequently completed a trauma and orthopaedic fellowship in London.
He currently works as a general and orthopaedic trauma surgeon at Medical Spectrum Twente, a major trauma centre in The Netherlands.
Rayner is the trauma surgery training programme director and also employed as a military surgeon.
Naomi is a children’s orthopaedic surgeon at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital. She is co-lead for the North West Children’s Major Trauma ODN and chairs the Northern and National Children’s Rehabilitation Boards. She sits on the TARNlet Board and represents children’s care on the Disability and Rehabilitation CRG and JSC for Rehabilitation, having previously been in a similar role for the Major Trauma CRG. She advises on planning for mass casualty care for children. Her research includes the identification and management of children’s needs for rehabilitation and return to school after traumatic injury.
Mary received her Master in Public Health degree from Baldwin Wallace University. She has collaborated on dozens of multi-institution and interdisciplinary research projects at a level I trauma center. Her research focus has been primarily in orthopaedic trauma patient outcomes and psychosocial recovery after physical injury. Currently, she leads the research and evaluation efforts of the Centers for Health Resilience and Trauma Recovery to include designing, facilitating, and overseeing projects as well as writing, presenting, and publishing their work. She is a member of the Orthopeadic Trauma Association and the American Public Health Association.
Dr Johnson completed her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at the University of Leeds in 2015. She is a senior clinical psychologist at Leeds General Infirmary. Dr Johnson provides clinical psychology input to the Leeds Major Trauma Centre, Orthopaedics and Plastic surgery departments. Dr Johnson’s specialist interests are trauma, limb reconstruction and paediatric orthopaedics. Her current research interests include quality of life and psychological functioning following limb reconstruction, the psychological impact of major trauma, and emotional wellbeing in major trauma clinicians. She is a member of the National Major Trauma Centre Psychology Network and a committee member of Day One major trauma charity. Dr Johnson is the British Psychology Society representative for the British Orthopaedic Association Standards for Trauma.
Consultant Trauma and Vascular Surgeon at Barts Health NHS Trust, and Professor of Trauma Sciences at Queen Mary University of London, and the Director of the Centre for Trauma Sciences. Director of the London Major Trauma System for NHS England, and a Non-Executive Director of the London Ambulance Service NHS Trust.
I am now semi-retired after a career as a military consultant in the British Army, but continue to work part time at the Regional Major Trauma Centre, James Cook University Hospital Middlesbrough. I hold a personal chair from the University of Teesside and my interests lie in the areas of prehospital care, major trauma, blast and ballistic injury and major incident management. I was head of the Emergency Medicine Cadre across the three Armed services for most of the war in Afghanistan and edited the official history of the Defence Medical services in the Iraq and Afghan conflicts. I have published widely in my areas of interest and am currently chairman of Trauma Care UK and responsible for their published trauma management guidelines. I examine for the Faculty of Pre-Hospital Care and the Royal College of Emergency Medicine.
Dr. Heather Vallier is Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Case Western Reserve University and the inaugural C. L. Nash M.D. Professor of Orthopaedic Education. She was awarded Orthopaedic Educator of the Year in 2020 by Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Vallier has received many research grants and is a member of the Executive Committee of the Major Extremity Trauma Research Consortium. She is the Past-President of the Orthopaedic Trauma Association and is a Deputy Editor for the Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma. In 2013 she founded the Trauma Recovery Services program at the MetroHealth System and has served as the Medical Director since that time.
Hamez is a Dunhill Medical Trust (DMT) Research Training Fellow and a Junior Doctor in Trauma and Orthopaedics. He studied Medicine at Leiden University in the Netherlands and is currently a PhD student in Musculoskeletal Sciences at the University of Oxford. After finishing his PhD, he plans to enter Trauma and Orthopaedic training in the Netherlands.
In addition to his PhD duties and clinical work, he has co-led several collaborative Trauma projects within the Oxford University Hospitals Trust as part of the Oxford Surgical Collaborative for Audit and Research (OxSCAR) committee.
I am a Trauma and Orthopaedic Registrar and PhD student. I have enthusiasm and experience in collaborative research, leading projects including multi-centre audit, randomised controlled trials and priority setting partnerships. I am the past British Orthopaedic Trainees Association (BOTA) Academic Representative and the current chair of the Oxford Surgical Collaborative for Audit and Research (OxSCAR).
I am hoping the JLA Major Trauma PSP will build research networks to improve Trauma care for patients globally.
Akshay is a specialist registrar in thoracic surgery and clinical lecturer at the University of Birmingham. He is one of the Royal College of Surgeons Associate Surgical Specialty Leads (aSSL) in thoracic surgical research. Most recently he has completed his CRUK clinical training research fellowship in lab-based research exploring the immunobiology of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.
Lee Parker specialises in treating disorders of the adult foot and ankle including trauma and sports injuries. His practice prioritises patient responsiveness and integrated care. He works collaboratively within a multi-disciplinary team, often finding non-surgical solutions to the management of common foot and ankle conditions.
Lee is the sub-specialty lead for foot and ankle surgery and runs a fellowship programme. Lee trained on the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital rotation before undertaking an advanced fellowship training in foot and ankle surgery focusing on arthroscopic ankle and hindfoot surgery.
He has been a European Foot and Ankle Society travelling fellow and reviews manuscripts for publication in their journal. Lee has also been a recipient of the W.J. Little medal for foot and ankle research from Stanmore’s Seddon Society and regularly collaborate and publish research into foot and ankle disorders from our foot and ankle unit at Barts Health NHS Trust.
Lee is passionate about teaching foot and ankle surgery and regularly participate as faculty on foot and ankle courses. Lee is a member of the British and European Foot and Ankle Societies as well as the British Orthopaedic Association.
MB BCh, MA, MRCS (London), FRCS (Tr & Ortho)
Paul Lee was appointed Consultant Trauma and orthopaedic Surgeon at the Royal London Hospital, Barts Health NHS Trust in 2011, specialising in Hip and Knee Joint Reconstruction and Young Adult Hip Preservation Surgery.
Paul is the clinical lead for the Barts Young Adult Hip Service for North East London and he provides all aspects of joint preservation and reconstruction options for young adults with hip problems. This ranges from hip arthroscopy for femoral acetabular impingement, to peri-acetabular and proximal femoral osteotomy for correction of underlying structural abnormalities, as well as primary hip replacement for joints that cannot be feasibly preserved and revision hip replacement for replacement failures.
After medical school at Trinity College Dublin, and basic surgical/specialist orthopaedic training in the UK (Luton, Cambridge, Leicester), Paul undertook subspecialist fellowship training in complex Hip and Knee Joint Reconstruction in Canada (Toronto) and Young Adult Hip Preservation Surgery in the UK (Birmingham, Stanmore), Switzerland (Bern, Lucerne, Zurich) and Denmark (Aarhus).
Paul enjoys supervising clinical training for specialist orthopaedic registrars, senior fellows and medical students. His research interests, publications and speaking engagements are focussed on hip and knee joint reconstruction and young adult hip surgery. He is passionate on developing ways to improve patient safety and clinical outcomes and engages with innovations in surgical techniques and medical equipment.
Paul lives with his wife and 5 children in north London. He enjoys sports, cooking, problem solving and travelling with the family.
MD (Res), MFST (Ed), FACS, FRCS (Tr&Orth)
Sammy Hanna is a fellowship-trained consultant orthopaedic surgeon with a specialist interest in hip and knee disorders, sports injuries, and lower limb trauma. He is a fellow of both the Royal College of Surgeons of England (FRCS) and the American College of Surgeons (FACS). His clinical practice encompasses all aspects of hip and knee surgery, including primary joint replacements, revision (re-do) joint replacements for failure or infection, arthroscopic (keyhole) knee surgery for cartilage and ligament injuries, and the surgical management of lower limb fractures. His NHS practice is based at the Royal London Hospital, one of the busiest major trauma centres in Europe, and at the Barts Health Elective Orthopaedic Centre (BHOC). In addition to his clinical commitments, Mr Hanna is an honorary senior clinical lecturer at Queen Mary University of London, where he is actively involved in the teaching and training of the next generation of surgeons. He is a member of the Faculty of Surgical Trainers at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and serves as the lead consultant for orthopaedic education at the Royal London Hospital.
Academically, Mr Hanna has more than 10 years’ experience conducting clinical research in the UK and Canada. His research endeavours have centred primarily around hip and knee reconstruction. He has successfully completed a doctor of medicine (MD Res) research doctorate at University College London studying the biological effects of wear particles generated from total hip replacements. He has presented and published widely on key aspects of hip and knee surgery, and continues to conduct research looking at implant design, performance, wear patterns and outcomes of total hip and knee arthroplasty.
Follow Sammy on LinkedIn
MBBS, FRCSOrth
Ramesh is an experienced Adult and Paediatric Spinal Surgeon specialising in Complex Spinal Reconstruction. His area of interest primarily focuses on spinal deformity especially early onset scoliosis, neuromuscular spinal conditions and growth modulation surgery.
Ramesh qualified from University of London (The Royal London Hospital and St Bartholomew’s Medical School) and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons. He currently practises part time at Barts Health having previously held joint consultant appointments at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children and The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery.
Ramesh continues to provide a dedicated tertiary spinal deformity service to patients from South East of England and from other spinal units for patients with complex spinal disorders. The focus of his work is to improve the diagnosis, management and long-term outcomes for patients with a spinal disorder for patients of all ages.
At Barts Bone and Joint Health Unit, Ramesh works with colleagues with a similar focus on spinal disorders providing collective expertise through teaching, training and research for advancements in spinal surgery.
MA, MSc, LLM, FRCS(Tr&Orth)
Sebastian Dawson-Bowling specialises in all aspects of lower limb surgery, especially primary and revision hip and knee replacement, and sports injuries. He also works within the Royal London Hospital major trauma service.
As Barts clinical network director since 2017, he has led development of subspecialist centres of excellence at the Royal London (trauma and complex surgery), Newham (Barts Health Orthopaedic Centre) and Whipps (fragility fractures). In 2020 he was appointed Chair of the North East London Orthopaedic Network. He was voted 2018 regional Orthopaedic Trainer of the Year.
Following undergraduate studies at Cambridge University, he undertook specialist training at Guy’s and St. Thomas’, the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital (Stanmore) and Hospital for Special Surgery (New York). He commenced his current post in 2014.
He has authored 3 textbooks, over 20 papers and numerous book chapters on orthopaedics, trauma and medical law. He holds Master’s degrees in Orthopaedic Science and Law, frequently acting as an expert witness in litigation cases.
A keen innovator, he collaborated with fellow experts across Europe on designing the new DREAM hip implant now manufactured in Milan, Italy.
He sits on editorial boards for Bone and Joint 360, and the National Joint Registry (monitoring implants, surgeons and hospitals).
Mr Dawson-Bowling is married to a psychiatrist, has two children and lives in Sussex. Pastimes outside work centre largely around food, wine, opera and spending time with his family and their two Yorkshire terriers. A former Cambridge University and GB oarsman, he maintains an interest in exercise and training.
FRCS (Orth)
For over twenty years, primarily based at Whipps Cross University Hospital, Mr Robbins has been involved in developing hip and knee replacement services for the population of North East London.
His orthopaedic training was on the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital and University College London/Middlesex Hospital rotations. Following extensive training at centres in the UK and the Vancouver Joint Reconstruction Fellowship in Canada, he developed an interest in complex primary and revision joint replacement (arthroplasty).
He has been responsible for the introduction of new surgical techniques and modern revision arthroplasty systems at Whipps Cross, as well as developing enhanced recovery protocols to facilitate faster recovery after surgery.
With research interests in optimising patient outcomes in joint replacement surgery and the treatment of orthopaedic infections, he has written peer reviewed publications in the UK and North America.
His strong commitment to training the joint replacement surgeons of the future, helps them to develop the skills to achieve consistently good outcomes.
He has been heavily involved in the integration of orthopaedic services across the different hospitals of Barts health, particularly the development of the centralised hip fracture service at Whipps Cross to improve patients experience and outcome.
When not at work he is likely to be found fixing things or out walking his dog.
Swee Chai Ang, Consultant trauma and orthopaedic surgeon, is a passionate advocate of humanitarian medicine and has worked for the UN and WHO in addition to founding a charity providing medical aid. Born in Penang, Malaysia Swee grew up and studied in Singapore. In 1973 she obtained her medical degree with silver medal, and in 1976 her master’s in occupational medicine with gold medal, at the University of Singapore. She joined her husband in exile in London in 1977, and became a refugee herself.
She obtained her FRCS (Eng), and completed her orthopaedic surgical training in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Northeast England. She is the first woman orthopaedic consultant appointed to the St Bartholomew’s Hospital since its foundation in 1123.
In the eighties and early nineties, she took time out to work as trauma and orthopaedics consultant in the refugee camps of Lebanon and later for the United Nations and World Health Organisation in Gaza and the West Bank. She is Co-Founder and Patron of British Charity Medical Aid for Palestinians.
She also treated the victims of the Pakistan (Kashmir) earthquake, and as consultant trauma and orthopaedic surgeon operated on the victims of the 7 July 2005 suicide bomb victims in the Royal London Hospital.
Swee is co-author of War Surgery Field Manual, Acute Care of the War Wounded, Hamilton Bailey’s Emergency Surgery, in addition to other orthopaedic publications, also wrote From Beirut to Jerusalem documenting her experience in the Palestinian Refugee Camps in Lebanon and Gaza. She spoke world-wide and told her personal story on Making a small difference | Ang Swee Chai | TEDxUCLWomen.
BSc(Hons) MBBS(Hons) MRCS(Eng) FRCS(Tr&Orth)
Manoj is Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon in Paediatric Orthopaedics and Trauma (appointed in 2007), Honorary Professor and Director of Innovation for Barts Orthopaedics at the Royal London Hospital, Barts Health NHS Trust, London, UK. Manoj’s clinical practice is in paediatric orthopaedics and trauma, especially of the lower limb (hip, knee and foot/ankle), including specialized areas such as clubfeet, DDH, SCFE, hip preservation and sports.
Manoj has founded and advised multiple healthcare-related start-ups in diverse areas such as medical education, digital health and medical devices. He has raised more than £100 million in venture funding and is interested in bringing novel healthcare-focused ideas through proof-of-concept and validation to market. One of his beacon project’s is a co-founder of Viz.ai, a global artificial intelligence in medical imaging company bringing intelligent care coordination to acute disease states.
His non-clinical interests include clinical trials, proof-of-concept projects and charitable work. He has raised over £6 million in research grant funding for research projects and programs at Barts Orthopaedics and has been PI on multiple NIHR-funded trials run successfully at Barts.
He is also Honorary Reader at the Institute of Bioengineering, Queen Mary, University of London. He qualified with a double honours degree from King’s College School of Medicine, London (proxime accessit to the University of London Gold Medal) and trained in London, Los Angeles and Sydney. He has published more than 110 papers in peer-reviewed journals (including the BMJ, Lancet, JBJS(Am), JBJS/BJJ and Journal of Bone and Mineral Research) and written 18 books.
BSc (Hons), MBBS, FRCS (Tr &Orth)
Jonathan has particular interest in complex trauma and reconstruction around the pelvis, hip and knee and lower limb fragility fractures. He has a keen interest in education and training and is a regular faculty member with Orthopaedic Research UK and the QMUL Trauma Sciences programme.
Jonathan has more than 10 years’ experience conducting clinical research and his research endeavours have centred primarily around hip reconstruction and the management of fractures around the hip socket and pelvis.
Jonathan graduated from Imperial College London and trained on the Birmingham Orthopaedic Training Programme based at the specialist Royal Orthopaedic Hospital. Following completion of his orthopaedic training he continued as a fellow at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital working with pioneering experts focusing on hip and knee joint reconstruction prior to completing a year as the Pelvic & Acetabular and Complex Arthroplasty Fellow at the Royal London Hospital. This sub-speciality training has enhanced his ability to deal with the crossover between joint reconstruction for arthritis and trauma, and the challenges relating to fractures around previous implants.
Jonathan was born and raised in London where he continues to live with his young family. He is a keen rugby and motorsports fan, and can often be seen being taken for a walk by his two large dogs!
Follow Jonathan on Twitter.
MD
Alex is a passionate advocate of technological innovation. When safe, preferring to treat his complex patients with all-internal methods, avoiding the discomfort of external frames.
In his daily practice Alex deals with complex injuries and post traumatic complications such as bone infection, deformity and non-union. He is an expert in the application of the Ilizarov technique, the use of hexapod software assisted fixators and limb lengthening and bone transport with magnetic telescopic internal devices.
His vision is to establish and publish treatment protocols for these difficult conditions that would help less experienced surgeons deliver high standard quality of care.
Alex is passionate about humanitarian medical aid and provides teaching to surgical teams working in countries that have been affected by conflict. Alex through his charitable work, leads surgical teams treating patients in emergency settings and those that have no access to functioning healthcare as a result of conflict.
He enjoys teaching and is faculty in AO UK and AO international, as well as honorary lecturer in the QMUL.
Alex qualified in Greece and completed limb reconstruction fellowships in Kurgan, Russia, the Royal London Hospital, the Oxford Bone Infection Unit and the Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals. He has also completed a post CCT foot and ankle and diabetic foot fellowship in King’s College Hospital in London.
He is a member of the British Limb Reconstruction Society, the British Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society, the European Bone and Joint Infection Society and AO Trauma.
Dip HE Registered Nurse, Postgraduate Certificate in Surgical Care Practice
Liz Dunn manages a team of specialist orthopaedic and plastics specialist nurses, trauma co-ordinators and allied health professionals. Her main passion and focus is to facilitate excellent patient care and enhanced recovery to reduce length of stay. Liz was awarded a certificate and badge of recognition on International Nurses Day 2021 for her extraordinary service and dedication to her profession.
Liz started her career in 1997 and qualified as a nurse in 2000. She received a postgraduate certificate in Surgical Care Practice in 2016. Most of her career has been in orthopaedic trauma, working as a ward staff nurse and sister until 2013.
During 2013, Liz was seconded into a role to support a failing trust put into special measures following a CQC inspection. This 12-month post involved working on wards to improve patient care, staff education and training. One of the most challenging aspects of this role was to support the ward teams who were inevitably experiencing tremendous low morale.
Liz has been actively involved in many improvement projects, one of which was to reduce the incidence of hospital acquired pressure sores, supported by McKinsey. She developed and implemented individual care plans which addressed nutrition and mobility and measured a 60 percent reduction on completion of the 3-month project.
Liz took up the post of trauma Co-ordinator at the Royal London in 2016, was promoted to lead nurse in 2019. She has developed a dedicated and highly skilled team providing specialist care to orthopaedic and plastics patients and is particularly proud of their response to redeployment during the COVID pandemic.
MBBS BSc MRCS MEd MD FRSA FRCS (Tr & Orth)
Kash specialises in sports knee injuries and treatments. He also holds several educational leadership roles, with a focus on optimising patient safety and outcomes through effective surgical education and training.
Kash studied medicine at Imperial College, graduating with a Distinction in Surgery. He also completed an intercalated BSc in Exercise Physiology and Applied Biophysics. He was awarded Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons (MRCS) of England in 2005 and the FRCS (Tr&Orth) in 2011.
Awarded a distinction in a Masters in Medical Education, and a Doctor of Medicine (MD) research degree, Kash has given over 100 international presentations and received multiple prizes and awards. He completed his fellowship in all aspects of knee surgery (sports injuries, trauma and joint replacement) at the renowned Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Oxford.
He received the prestigious Winston Churchill Fellowship in 2014 and spent 6 months in international centres of orthopaedic excellence across the USA.
Appointed to Barts in 2014 as a Consultant Trauma & Orthopaedic Surgeon specialising in knees, he has a particular expertise in sports injuries, arthroscopic knee surgery, meniscal surgery and repair, cartilage injuries, knee ligament reconstruction (including multiligament injuries), patella dislocations and stabilisation, realignment surgery and unicompartmental (partial) knee replacement.
He holds several educational leadership positions and his academic research focuses on medical education. He has a particular interest in achieving the best patient outcomes through evidence-based practice and optimising patient safety through surgical education and training using innovative techniques.
Lucky is passionate about helping patients suffering with pain and disability caused by foot and ankle (F&A) conditions. He specialises in all aspects of F&A care including complex trauma, deformity correction, minimally invasive surgery and sports injuries. He has a particular interest in ankle arthritis and total ankle replacement.
As an Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer at QMUL and Orthopaedic Surgical Tutor at Barts Health Orthopaedic Centre, Lucky enjoys training and mentoring future generations of orthopaedic surgeons. He maintains a keen research interest with numerous peer-reviewed publications, international lectures and presentations.
Having completed his training on the Percivall Pott Rotation in London, Lucky undertook a specialist fellowship at The University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. He has been awarded The Singhal Travelling Fellowship by the British Orthopaedic Association, an AO specialist trauma fellowship in Ohio and multiple travelling fellowship awards from the British Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (BOFAS), visiting centres of excellence including The Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, Massachusetts General Hospital (Harvard) in Boston and units across Europe.
Nima Heidari established and leads the Bone Infection and Orthoplastics Unit at the Royal London Hospital. His areas of expertise are treating the injured foot and leg, non-healing bones, deformities of the lower limb and bone infection as a result of complication or injury. He also has extensive experience in treating all conditions of the foot and ankle.
Author of over 70 scientific papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals and several book chapters, Nima has written about techniques for limb reconstruction, bone biologics, minimally invasive techniques of fracture fixation and response of the growing bone to injury. He has also been the Principal Investigator for a number of National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) studies at The Royal London Hospital.
His research and academic profiles can be seen here:
Researchgate
Google Scholar
ORCID
Follow Nima on LinkedIn.
MB ChB MSc(SurgSci) PgD(Orth) FRCS(Tr&Orth)
Adrian is a fellowship-trained Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon specialising in all aspects of the treatment of shoulder and upper limb disorders. Adrian consistently achieves excellent surgical outcomes using evidence-based treatments and minimally invasive (keyhole) surgery that allows patients to be safely treated as day cases. He believes in good communication, helping his patients to understand their condition and involving them in decisions regarding their treatment.
Adrian has a strong commitment to surgical training and has held the role of Royal College Surgical Tutor and is currently an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the University of London. Adrian is a faculty member for national and international courses in shoulder and upper limb surgery, as well as the FRCS exam. He is a regular guest speaker and an examiner for an MSc programme. His research interests are in shoulder and acromioclavicular joint surgery and he has published in several peer-reviewed journals and popular orthopaedic textbooks.
A North Londoner, he graduated from medical school at the University of Manchester in 1996. He completed his surgical training in London. He was appointed as a Research Fellow in 2001 at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital. His research grant-funded study on nerve injury and pain culminated in an MSc degree from the University of London (UCL).
Adrian was trained in the London Orthopaedic surgical training programme and gained experience working in London’s top teaching hospitals. He has completed two years of specialist fellowship training in upper limb surgery and a prestigious travelling fellowship in advanced arthroscopic shoulder surgery.
Adrian has been a substantive Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon since 2011. He was first appointed in Manchester and took up his post as Lead for Upper Limb Surgery at Barts Health Orthopaedic Centre in 2014.
Follow Adrian on LinkedIn.
MBBCh, MSc Orth, MD, EBOT, FRCS (Tr&Orth)
Fady Sedra has a special interest in spinal deformity surgery both in adult and paediatric age groups. Fady completed his basic orthopaedic training in Cairo University Egypt and the royal national orthopaedic hospital Stanmore. He has been awarded the doctorate degree in research in the field of scoliosis surgery.
Fady finished two prestigious fellowships at Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital and The Royal London Hospital. He practices spine surgery at a consultant level at the Royal London hospital, managing complex spine trauma cases including craniocervical, cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine. He treats lumbar and cervical disc disease in adult patients.
Follow Fady on LinkedIn.
MBBS BSc(Hons) FHEA FRCS(Tr&Orth)
Nick is a consultant upper limb surgeon with a varied elective and complex trauma practice. He is the Whipps Cross Clinical Lead and Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer at QMUL. His academic interests are based around the biopsychosocial model and how outcomes from orthopaedic care can be improved by focusing on the psychological and social needs of patients. His contribution to teaching has led to the award of Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
Nick trained on the Percivall Pott rotation, during which time he was awarded several prizes. He undertook a clinical fellowship at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge and was awarded a BOA travelling fellowship to North America to visit some of the world’s most pioneering surgeons including Steve Burkhart and David Ring.
Nick previously worked as a Clinical Fellow to the National Medical Director, during which time he worked on healthcare policy and regulation. He was predominantly based at the CQC where he focussed on independent and mental health sector regulation. Nick sits on various national and regional committees including the BOA Orthopaedic committee. He continues to be involved in various streams of work with NHS England and has been engaged by large media organisations for opinions and his expertise.
Nick has written three textbooks, numerous book chapters and has published multiple peer-reviewed articles.Nick was born and raised in London where he continues to live with his young family and goldfish. He is an avid cyclist and when not at work, can be often spotted cycling somewhere around Hertfordshire.
FRCS (Tr & Orth), PhD (Medicine), BA (Hons) First Class
Professor Xavier Griffin spearheads academic orthopaedics at QMUL and Barts Health, having joined in August 2020 as the inaugural chair of Bone & Joint Health. Xavier’s vision is for worldclass excellence in research and clinical academic training; providing opportunity for the next generation of clinician scientists to realise their aspirations.
Xavier is a NIHR Clinician Scientist and has been awarded over £10m of research funding. He has over 80 peer reviewed publications including in the New England Journal of Medicine, He is a recognised research leader in the management of hip fracture and is excited to have just launched the WHiTE PLATFORM study with colleagues at University of Oxford. Xavier is Chief Investigator for a number of National Institute Health Research funded clinical trials, having led 8 in the last 5 years and supported a further 5.
Xavier is driven by having meaningful impact on patient care; his research is focused on the clinical and cost effectiveness of new and existing treatments to improve bone and joint health and has been cited by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence.
Xavier’s clinical expertise is orthopaedic trauma surgery specialising in pelvic and acetabular fractures. He enjoys working as part of the team at the busiest orthopaedic trauma hospital in Europe – The Royal London. Having graduated from the University of Cambridge in 1999 before attending medical school at the University of Oxford, Xavier trained in orthopaedic surgery as a National Institute of Health Research integrated clinical academic fellow. Xavier completed a world-renowned clinical fellowship in Melbourne, Australia specialising in complex fractures of the pelvis and hip. Prior to joining Bone & Joint Health Xavier was Associate Professor of Trauma Surgery at the University of Oxford and Honorary Consultant Trauma Surgeon at the John Radcliffe Hospital major trauma centre.
Having realised that boxing may not be the best sport to combine with a surgical career, outside of work Xavier can be found mountain biking or rock climbing usually with his young son in tow!
BSc. (Physiology), MBBS (London), FRCS (Tr&Orth), MD, DMCC
Dafydd “Taff” has an extensive experience in numerous local and international hospitals. Furthermore, he has deployed 4 times on operational duties to Iraq and Afghanistan working on the front line as a medic and within the Field Hospital.
Taff has undertaken the yearlong prestigious British Society of Surgery to the Hand Advanced Training Fellowship at Wrightington hospital where he specialised in wrist/hand surgery, sports injuries, complex elbow reconstruction and peripheral nerve injury.
Taff enjoys involvement in clinically driven research as well as research into the basic sciences of disease and injury. He is currently the Principal Investigator for the SOFFT Trial at Barts Health.
He studied for his research Doctorate at Imperial College London from 2014 to 2016, looking into the outcome of military amputees from the conflict in Afghanistan, for which he was awarded the Alexander Medal, the premier award of the Royal Army Medical Corps.
His professional knowledge and skills are constantly kept up to date and is reflected in his recent publications and book contribution, notably an author for the 2019 edition of Grays Anatomy.
Aside from medicine Taff enjoys reading Science Fiction and exploring medieval castles with his young family. He has competed at national level in rowing and selected to represent the Army at Skeleton Bobsleigh.
FRCS (Ortho) and BSc (Ortho Science)
Pete is an orthopaedic trauma surgeon, subspecialising in pelvic, acetabular and lower limb long-bone/periarticular fractures. His practice is entirely trauma (with a bit of non-union) and his passion is around educating current and aspiring surgeons in fracture care.
Pete loves teaching the technicalities of fracture fixation but he also strongly encourages discussions around indications, pre-op planning and post-op management. These latter points are the core of our specialty. Pete loves polytrauma and the complex melange of decision-making that goes on around it. He is a mentor, an encourager of progression and an enabler of growth and development.
Pete is an honorary senior lecturer at QMUL and lead faculty for the, ‘Orthopaedic Trauma Sciences’ MSc, providing online, distance learning to budding trauma specialists. Pete’s passion is teaching, enthusing the next generation of trauma & orthopaedic surgeons. Outside of work Pete is most likely to be found building something, doing DIY, mountain biking or unwinding whilst eating a pie!
Follow Peter on Twitter.
MBBS (London), FRCS Eng
Livio was the lead of the Upper Limb Orthopaedic Department at the Royal London Hospital for ten years and is a respected expert in upper limb and hand disorders within the UK. He has a particular interest in shoulder and wrist traumatic conditions and considerable expertise in their management and well as upper limb joint replacement surgery. Livio is currently the clinical director of orthopaedics.
Livio also has an interest in treating sporting injuries of the upper limb and continues to treat patients from the amateur to the elite athlete. He has a keen interest in research and is the co-investigator in national and internationally funded research. He is an invited reviewer for the Bone & Joint Journal and SICOT-J; and is a regular invited faculty on a number of national and international courses. He remains heavily involved in higher surgical training of his subspecialty areas and indeed has received multiple awards in recognition of his contribution to this.
MBChB MSc FRCS (Tr&Orth)
Joshua Lee has an interest in training future surgeons and is currently Lead for Simulation training having been instrumental in setting up and developing simulation training in Orthopaedics at Barts Health.
Joshua’s clinical practice encompasses all aspects of hip and knee problems, from sports injuries to hip and knee replacements. He also manages complex fractures and injuries as part of the Major Trauma Centre at The Royal London Hospital. Josh enjoys supporting trainees and has taken on an active role in mentoring more junior members of the team.
Joshua has led the delivery of NIHR trials in the department and has been Co-Investigator for Health, a multi-national, multi-centre, hip fracture trial. He has also been involved in first in human trials and post market research.
Joshua is driven by providing the most up-to-date and best care for all our patients. He enjoys combining clinical practice, education and research together in our department.
MB BChir, MA, FRCS
Homa has an interest in unusual or challenging hip and knee replacement surgery and arthroplasty as an immediate solution for traumatic injuries and fractures. Homa is also our wellbeing lead and has a strong interest in promoting diversity and inclusion.
She graduated from Cambridge University and was home-grown on the prestigious Percivall Pott Rotation. Medical student experience includes New York, California and Salvador in Brazil. She completed her revision hip fellowship in Norfolk, working with John Nolan, then a recent past president of the British Hip Society. She also completed fellowships in Germany with Professor Michael Raschke, Head of AO and in Denmark with Professor Kjeld Sobelle who pioneered minimally invasive periacetabular osteotomy. Her research interests include patient outcomes, pelvic and acetabular trauma and enhanced recovery. Training as the pelvic and acetabular fellow at Barts Health has facilitated enhanced abilities in acetabular reconstruction for arthroplasty as well as trauma.
She is a current ATLS instructor, teaching also on the national instructor’s faculty course and also teach as faculty for AO, the Orthopaedic Trauma Society and the London Pelvic Course. She is an Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer and tutor for the International Orthopaedic Trauma Sciences MSc at Queen Mary University of London and a reviewer for BJJ.
MBBCh, FCS (Orth), MMed (Orth)
Gregory qualified as a consultant in South Africa in 2009 and did two international fellowships in Paediatric Orthopaedics in Canada (2010) and Australia (2011). His passion has always been for paediatric orthopaedics. Between 2011 and 2018 he developed and expanded the paediatric orthopaedic service at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in South Africa, the third largest hospital in the world. He has been working at Bart’s Health NHS Trust since 2018 in the paediatric orthopaedic unit and is aiming to develop the deformity service as well as continue working with children affected by trauma, clubfoot, DDH and infections amongst others.
Greg recognises the need to be actively involved in research and teaching as reflected in the awards he has received. He completed a Masters project in hip dysplasia in 2008 and has since mentored, supervised and marked many Masters projects. He has published over 50 peer reviewed articles and has been the local principal investigator for four multicentre randomised controlled trials. He has given multiple presentations and enjoys teaching.
Greg was secretary of the South African Paediatric Orthopaedic Society (2014 to 2018) and a committee member for clinical heads and managers. He is currently the joint sectional editor at the South African Orthopaedic Journal for paediatric orthopaedics, an invited reviewer for 12 peer reviewed Journals and a reviewer for NIHR Health Services. He was an ABC travelling fellow in 2014. He is currently involved in developing QI projects at Barts Health (Signapps, mini-C arm in ED and parent participation in the clubfoot clinic).
MD, FEBOT, PhD
Francesc’s practice is mainly clinical, dedicated to helping patients who have sustained injuries and enabling them to return to an active, pain-free lifestyle. To provide patients with the best possible experience, he keeps his orthopaedic knowledge up to date by regularly participating as faculty in national and international courses and conferences, which frequently promote medical innovation and advances.
Francesc’s clinical interest is in complex trauma, sports injuries, bunions and keyhole surgery. He also continues to study the main problems affecting the field of foot & ankle orthopaedics by actively participating in research which can drive the progress of foot & ankle care to help patients in his practice. He is passionate about the study of human anatomy and its application in the safe development of keyhole surgical techniques that preserve the tissues and result in smaller scars and faster recovery. Many musculoskeletal conditions can be treated with nonsurgical techniques and he works closely with a team of doctors, podiatrists, physiotherapists and orthotists at Barts to achieve the best outcomes.
His PhD studies focusing on aspects of minimally invasive (keyhole) surgery of the foot earned him the highest “cum laude” distinction.
Seeing patients make a full recovery is the most rewarding aspect of his practice. Sharing this experience with medical students, junior doctors and fellows is a particularly enjoyable part of his duties as a consultant, serving in leadership roles at the hospital and the Queen Mary University of London.
MBChB BSc (Hons) FRCS (Tr&Orth)
Daniel is passionate about offering high class and personalised care for his patients. He is highly trained and skilled in all aspects of upper limb surgery including trauma, arthroscopic procedures on the wrist and shoulder, microsurgery and joint replacements (shoulder and hand). He also has a professional interest in complex trauma, minimally invasive wrist surgery and small joint arthroplasty.
Teaching and research are an important part of Daniel’s work. He is regularly invited faculty on national courses and teaches on the QMUL Trauma Sciences MSC Programme. He is actively involved in both basic science and clinical research which has been published in International peer reviewed journals, specialist textbooks and presented at National and International conferences. Daniel uses an evidence-based approach in his clinical practice alongside clear communication to offer excellent patient care.
Daniel studied Medicine at the University of Bristol Medical School prior to completing his Orthopaedic specialist training in London on the prestigious Percivall Pott Rotation. Following being awarded his Fellowship of The Royal College of Surgeons in 2017, he went on to complete a 2 year internationally renowned fellowship with the Brisbane Hand and Upper Limb Unit, Australia. This provided him with the opportunity to train under a team of world class surgeons and develop a number of advanced surgical skills.
Facharzt fuer Orthopaedie, MD
Ms. Claudia Maizen trained in Austria and the UK. Her special interest in the treatment of children with cerebral palsy brought her to The Royal London Hospital as part of her training.
She joined the orthopaedic team as a consultant in 2010 and has led the neuromuscular service since 2012. Since then, the service has developed into a multidisciplinary team with two consultants, three dedicated senior physiotherapists with hand therapy/ Occupational Therapy support. It also offers a neuromuscular outreach service.
In addition to her interest in orthopaedic management of neuromuscular conditions, Claudia has a passion for Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip (DDH) DDH-ultrasound screening and treatment and is board member of the International Interdisciplinary Consensus Committee for DDH Evaluation (ICODE), chair of their educational subcommittee and member of the research and audit committee. She is regular faculty on many international DDH (Graf) Ultrasound courses, has written several book chapters, invited speaker at international meetings, reviewer for orthopaedic journals and member of the British Society for Children’s Orthopaedic Surgery DDH steering group. She is actively involved in research in the department, as CI and PI for national and international studies and supervising clinical research projects.
In addition to her NHS work, Claudia enjoys being involved in charity work in Ghana with Motec Life, and has recently joined the Swiss-Mongolian Paediatric Project (SMOPP).
MBBS, MRCS, PGDip (Orth Engin), DM, FRCS (TrandOrth)
Arun is a firm believer in the value of adopting a multi-disciplinary team approach and, with providing holistic care for all spinal problems. Qualified in both orthopedic surgery and neurosurgery of the spine, Arun trained under leading global spinal consultants. Following this he was selected to set up the pediatric and the new adult spinal service at Barts Health NHS Trust.
Following surgical training in Nottingham, London, Leeds and Newcastle, Arun was chosen for the prestigious adult and paediatric spinal fellowship in University of Toronto and at the Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto, Canada.
Arun is a naturally an analytical and conservative practitioner who specialises in minimal access and keyhole surgery as it offers the best chance of quick and effective recovery. He has performed surgery across Asia on a charitable basis and helped bring the latest technological developments to India, Nepal, Vietnam and other parts of South-East Asia. He is a sought-after international speaker and teacher, appearing at conferences and teaching junior consultants worldwide.
His research work at the Sir Peter Mansfield Centre was rewarded with a doctorate degree in spinal surgery from the University of Nottingham in 2008.
Arun’s team were the recipients of a National Institute of Health Research grant and he was the chief investigator of PRESTO (Pragmatic Randomised Evaluation of Stable Thoracolumbar fracture treatment Outcomes,) a multicentre national trial looking into the treatment of thoracolumbar spine fractures.
He is a former national standard tennis player, enjoys running, keeping fit and mountaineering.
Specialist interests include Spinal surgery and Degenerative spinal conditions, spinal deformity, infections and cancers of the spine.
In both 2004 and 2009 Arun became the youngest winner of the ISSLS (formerly Volvo) prize twice for the best spinal research work worldwide.
In 2004 he was awarded the Britspine Award for Best Spinal Research Work in UK.
In 2009 he was awarded by the Spine Society of Australia for best international research work.
Alexander is the Clinical Lead for Spinal Surgery at the Barts Health, Alexander oversees a large multidisciplinary team treating major trauma, acute and degenerative conditions, complex deformities, tumours and tuberculosis. The Spinal Unit is now the largest trauma unit in the UK and serves a population of more than 5 million people.
With a keen interest in innovation within spinal surgery, Alexander and his team use minimally invasive procedures and techniques, such as robotics, and are involved in developing future technology for transforming spinal surgery. In 2019 the team were the first to perform Robotic-assisted spine surgery in the UK.
Alexander is an honorary senior lecturer at Queen Mary University and has presented across the globe from the USA to Europe and Australasia. He has been regular faculty for AO Spine Middle East and has chaired conferences on minimal access surgery in the region. A winner of the best presentation poster award at the International Society for Study of the Lumbar Spine (ISSLS) and has featured in both Spine News International and the London Evening Standard on a number of occasions.
He was invited to present at a global symposium in Philadelphia (Rothman Institute) and has published a systematic review in the highest-profile orthopaedic journal in the world (JBJS America). He has also presented at The North American Spine Society, Global Spine Congress, and British Spine Societies.