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Chemotherapy nurses hit
the road to give patients their treatment in the comfort of their own home
HIGHLY-trained nurses from The
Clatterbridge Cancer Centre, one of the UK's largest networked cancer
centres, are taking its world class chemotherapy service to patients' homes.
Following the success of a pilot scheme, the cancer centre is set to deliver
more cancer treatments at patients' homes as it expands its pioneering 'Cancer
Treatment at Home' service to Liverpool patients on Monday, 28 September
2015.
The new service was first piloted on suitable Wirral patients receiving
Herceptin (Trastuzumab) treatment (a medicine given for the treatment of
Breast Cancer).
As part of this service, a highly-trained specialist chemotherapy nurse from
the cancer centre delivers cancer treatments to patients, in the comfort of
their own home. This service is part of the Clatterbridge in the Community
programme - a chemotherapy service which offers specialist treatment away
from a hospital setting.
Following its success the 'Cancer Treatment at Home' service has
already been rolled out to suitable patients around Halton and Chester and
on 28 September will be available to suitable Liverpool patients.
A survey was carried out in May/June 2015 of 37 patients who had received
their chemotherapy treatment at home and the feedback was exemplary. 100% of
patient said they were very satisfied with the service and would recommend
home treatment to others and 100% agreed that they were well looked after,
had confidence in the nurse's ability and felt safe receiving treatment at
home.
Joan Spencer, General Manager for Chemotherapy services at The Clatterbridge
Cancer Centre said:- "We want to make our patients treatment journey
as smooth as possible and one way of achieving this is by being able to
offer suitable patients the option to have their treatment in the comfort of
their own home. For some patients it can be a struggle and extra stress
travelling to our clinics for treatment; we want to avoid this where
possible and offer alternatives.
The project is still in the early phases so we currently only offer this
service to suitable patients receiving Herceptin (trastuzumab) treatment. In
the future we are looking at offering this service to patients receiving
different types of chemotherapy."
The Clatterbridge in the Community programme has been developed in
partnership with PharmaC – The Clatterbridge Pharmacy Ltd, an innovative and
successful service introduced by the Trust in December 2013 to provide
on-site dispensing services to the Centre's patients.
One patient who is benefitting from the new service is 76 year old Lilian
Kenrick from Heswall. Lilian was visiting the centre for her chemotherapy
treatment but for the last 6 months our specialist nurses have been treating
her in the comfort of her own home.
She said:- "If you are diagnosed with cancer you will travel anywhere
to get the best treatment but to be offered a one 2 one service in your own
home is truly fantastic. The service I have received is second to none -
having a dedicated specialist in your home to give you your treatment and
answer any questions or just have a chat makes a real difference. I would
certainly recommend the service and I believe it's definitely the way to
go."
The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre treats more than 43,000 outpatient
chemotherapy treatments every year. More than 50% of these are delivered at
our nurse-led clinics held in 8 district hospitals across Merseyside and
Cheshire, making this one of the most comprehensive networks of chemotherapy
clinics in the UK. |
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Royal Liverpool University
Hospital unveils state of the art training centre in North West
ROYAL Liverpool University Hospital has
unveiled a state of the art training laboratory and regional centre of
excellence. The site will provide training for more than 1,000 hospital and
laboratory staff a year, from across the North West.
The centre, which is part of Liverpool Clinical Laboratories, was redeveloped
following a grant from Roche Diagnostics, as part of its ongoing commitment to
training and excellence in diagnostics.
Staff will be trained on the latest diagnostic innovations and technologies that
are used at the point of care within the hospital, to provide high quality care
for patients. These tests help doctors and nurses to better care for patients,
who are often critically ill, by closely monitoring their condition and
detecting the early signs of deterioration.
The Royal Liverpool University Hospital is the largest hospital in Merseyside
and Cheshire, and provides emergency, general and specialist treatment to over
750,000 people a year across the North West.
The centre was opened by Christopher Parker, Managing Director of Roche
Diagnostics UK and Ireland, to an audience of 50 people.
Jane Mills, Chief Operating Officer, Liverpool Clinical Laboratories, said:-
"It is often the unsung hero of medicine but up to 70% of clinical decision
making is based on diagnostic testing. Ensuring doctors have access to accurate
test results is an essential component of delivering the highest quality care
for our patients."
Christopher Parker, Managing Director of Roche Diagnostics UK and Ireland,
said:- "Roche is committed to excellence in diagnostic testing no matter
where it is carried out. We are focused on going beyond the development of the
latest product innovations to also ensuring that patients have timely access to
the safest and most accurate testing possible."
Renewables generate more than a quarter of UK
electricity RENEWABLEUK
is highlighting new statistics which show the increasingly fundamental role
that renewable energy is playing in generating electricity for British homes,
offices and factories; despite mixed messages from Government on whether it
supports clean energy.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change has just published statistics
covering the second quarter of 2015, showing that from April to June renewables
generated 25.3% of UK electricity. 42% of this came from onshore and offshore
wind. Wind generated 10.7% of the country's needs.
For the first time in a quarterly period, renewables beat coal which generated
20.5%. Renewables also outperformed nuclear which provided 21.5%. DECC said this
was due to higher wind speeds and increased capacity, with generation increasing
by 61.5% onshore and 70.4% offshore compared to Q2 2014. Overall renewable
electricity generation increased by 51.4% compared to the same quarter last
year. Gas provided 30%.
RenewableUK's Chief Executive Maria McCaffery said:- "Renewables have now
become Britain's second largest source of electricity, generating more than a
quarter of our needs. The new statistics show that Britain is relying
increasingly on dependable renewable sources to keep the country powered up,
with onshore and offshore wind playing the leading roles in our clean energy
mix.
As the transition to clean electricity continues apace, we'd welcome clearer
signals from Government that it's backing the installation of vital new
projects. So far, we've had a series of disappointing announcements from
Ministers since May which unfortunately betray a lack of positive ambition at
the heart of Government. If Ministers want to see good statistics like we've had
today continuing into the years ahead, they have to knuckle down, listen to the
high level of public support we enjoy, and start making positive announcements
on wind, wave and tidal energy." |
