First class care for women recognised at The Royal Oldham Hospital

Mr Olubusola Amu, consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist and clinical director, with Dr Gaity Ahmad, consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist, at The Royal Oldham Hospital

Women who suffer with a painful gynaecological condition can now be assured that they can get first class care from an accredited treatment centre.

The Royal Oldham Hospital has been registered as a British Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy (BSGE) endometriosis centre, following a stringent audit of work carried out at the centre.

Endometriosis is a common condition where the lining of the womb grows outside the womb. It is usually diagnosed in women between the ages of 20 to 40 years and effects up to two million women in the UK.

The Royal Oldham Hospital has been accredited as one of the recognised centres for 2014 and this means that women in the area covered by The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust are now able to access a local highly specialised, nationally accredited service for endometriosis and pelvic pain.

Dr Gaity Ahmad, consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist, and lead in minimal access surgery, said: “The centre at The Royal Oldham Hospital has been open since January 2013. We provide weekly dedicated pelvic pain/endometriosis clinics, where if necessary, medical and surgical treatment options are discussed with our female patients.

“The BSGE has set a number of standards for recognised endometriosis centres to attain and these clinics form a part of this. There also has to be evidence of a multidisciplinary team such as a gynaecologist, colorectal surgeon, urologist and pain team consultant working together, and all surgical treatment of severe cases have to be recorded on the BSGE database (with the woman’s consent and anonimised). These details are input in the national BSGE database and audited every year.”

There are various stages of the disease from mild to severe and women usually present with pelvic pain, painful periods, pain during sex and sometimes painful bowel movements. The symptoms can often be managed with painkillers or hormone medication, and surgery to remove patches of endometriosis tissue can sometimes be used to improve symptoms and fertility, by keyhole surgery.

Severe endometriosis can be challenging to treat medically or surgically and so the British Society of Gynaecological Endoscopy/ Royal College of Obstetrician and Gynaecologists recommend that all cases of severe endometriosis should be treated at certified endometriosis centres.

Mr Olubusola Amu, consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist and clinical director at The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, added: “To achieve BSGE accreditation and be among the best in the country within the given time frame is quite an achievement. We are delighted to be able to offer the highest standards of care to our patients. Historically, there has always been considerable expertise in laparoscopic surgery within The Royal Oldham Hospital. There has also been excellent support from all gynaecological colleagues, the colorectal team, urologists, anaesthetists, ITU and the pain service.

“This development will surely drive improvements in patient care, establish the benefits and the risks of treatment, illustrate costs of these services and inform commissioners of what standard of treatment they should expect for their patients.

“Patient referrals will be direct to a dedicated specialist service, reducing delay and improving quality. It will also improve patient care through efficient and consistent care pathways and consistently adopt a multidisciplinary team approach to ultimate care delivery, reflecting the Trust’s commitment to quality of care. The number of cases is expected to rise as women will no longer need to travel far and sometimes out of region for the procedure.”