March 10, 2017

SCTS Annual Conference written on a colourful background.

An unprecedented number of trainees and staff from the Golden Jubilee have been asked to share the hospital’s best practice with peers from across the globe at the Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery (SCTS) in Great Britain and Ireland’s annual conference this weekend.

The SCTS aims to continuously improve the quality of healthcare that its members deliver to patients in an open and accountable manner.

A group of Golden Jubilee trainees, medical students, medics, nurses, and allied health professionals, will present at the event in Belfast. Over the course of the weekend, the team from the UK and Ireland's busiest thoracic surgery department will be discussing:

  • the benefits of prehabilitation;
  • lower than average mortality rates after a Pneumonectomy in the regional specialist centre; and
  • the outcomes of aortic valve replacement performed by trainees.

Director of Medical Education and lung surgeon at the Golden Jubilee, Alan Kirk,  said: "The SCTS Annual Meeting acts as a forum for cardiac and thoracic multi disciplinary staff,providing excellent learning opportunities from experts in this field, as well as allowing professionals to come together to share their knowledge and ideas.

"It is a testament to the recognised good work taking place at the Golden Jubilee that so many of our staff are presenting at this internationally renowned event.  The Golden Jubilee is committed to leading quality, research and innovation for NHSScotland, and any opportunity for our team to develop new skills and share best practice will only benefit our patients and staff in the future."

The Golden Jubilee is already recognised internationally as a champion of healthcare innovation. They pioneered 3D video assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) technology, and have continued to develop minimally invasive surgery, which has reduced the length of time patients spend in hospital. The hospital recently became the first in Scotland to fit an emphysema patient with a minimally invasive implantable lung valve, as part of the groundbreaking TRANSFORM clinical study.

In addition, over the past five years, resection rates at the Golden Jubilee have increased from 10 per cent to 25 per cent, meaning more people are receiving and benefiting from this treatment than ever before.