Spinal Unit staff share expertise with Singapore visitors

The expertise of staff from the North West Regional Spinal Injuries Centre at Southport Hospital is set to be shared thousands of miles away.

A team of spinal injury specialists from Singapore spent three weeks with staff on the Unit to specifically learn about advanced respiratory techniques for spinal patients and will take the knowledge gained back to their home city.

The visit was arranged by Mr Bakul Soni, Clinical Director and Consultant, after a former colleague said the centre would be the ideal place for a Singapore Government-funded educational trip for a team of health workers looking to develop their skills, particularly in the ventilation of spinal patients.

He said: “We were delighted to accept the request to host a team from Singapore and share our respective expertise.

“We kept the visitors really busy and shown them a full range of what we do.

“The feedback was excellent, and they found the clinical programmes really beneficial.’’

Valerie Ng, a Consultant in Rehabilitation, Medicine and Ventilation Care from Tan Tock Seng Hospital, lead the visit with colleagues Jeena James, a Nurse Manager; Cheryl Tan, a Senior Physiotherapist and Wang Shan, a Nurse Educator.

She said: “The visit has been fantastic, and we cannot thank the staff enough for the help and support they have given us.

“We have learned a lot looking at the similarities and differences between the care provided here and in Singapore and hopefully we have been able to share our experiences together to help everyone.’’

Helen Baythorpe, Associate Director of Operations for Planned Care said: “It is fantastic to see that wonderful work the Spinal Unit does has been recognised by experts from as far afield as Singapore.

“The Unit has a wonderful reputation for its specialist work in dealing with ventilation treatments for spinal patients and if the work we do here can be used to benefit patients across the world, that is a fantastic achievement.’’