General surgery

We have general surgery services across both Sunderland Royal Hospital and South Tyneside District Hospital with a team of skilled staff including Specialist and Registered Nurses, Health Care Support Workers working alongside our Consultant Surgeons and other medical staff. We also have an excellent administration team along with support staff from domestic and portering services.

South Tyneside Pre-operative Assessment Service

The Pre-operative Assessment Service is available to all adult patients requiring day case or in-patient elective surgery. Specialities include general surgery, orthopaedics, gynaecology and urology.

The patient assessment is undertaken to ensure patients are physically fit for anaesthesia / surgery and psychologically prepared for the admission, surgery, hospital stay, discharge and rehabilitation. The assessment also incorporates elements of social care and early discharge planning.

Specific individual patient needs can be identified and an appropriate plan of care compiled, for example sensory impairment, learning disabilities, mental health, mental capacity, interpreter issues.

Emergency Surgical Assessment Unit (ESAU)

The Emergency Surgical Assessment unit (ESAU) is situated on C floor, close to C Level Theatre and next door to C32 which is the designated stepdown ward for General Surgery. Patients are referred to ESAU when they require admission for a surgical intervention, further diagnostics or close observation.

ESAU is a 25 bedded ward which is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Patients are admitted to ESAU from SDEC, GP, Clinic or ED. Depending on the management plan, they will go direct to theatre from ESAU or, if the patient is required to stay in hospital longer, they will transfer to C32 to continue with their recovery.

Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC)

General Surgery Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) is co-located with medicine in the SDEC unit and the opening hours are currently 08:00 to 20:30 seven days per week. This service is led by Surgical Nurse Practitioners and fully supported by the Surgical On-call team.

The aim of SDEC is to minimise and remove delays in the patient pathway allowing services to process emergency patients within the same day as an alternative to hospital admission. The

process includes the delivery of patient assessment, diagnostics, diagnosis and a treatment plan on the same day to ensure the pathway processes align to the NHS Long Term Plan (2019).

The team will accept clinically stable patients from ED, GP, district nurses, specialist nurses and provide same day emergency care functions to prevent admission, if possible, to an in-patient bed. Those patients requiring admission for a surgical procedure or for further diagnostics and observation are admitted to the Emergency Surgical Assessment Unit (ESAU)

Our Team

Divisional Director- Sheena Fish

Directorate Manager - Petrina Smith

Clinical Director/Consultant Surgeon - Neil Jennings

Clinical Governance Lead/Consultant Surgeon - Will Carr

Consultants - Neil Jennings, Shlok Balupuri, Will Carr, Kamal Mahawar, Norbert Schroeder, Michael Courtney, John Corson, Stephen Holtham, Michael Kipling, James Royle, Golam Farook, Rafay Siddiqui, Daya Singh, Vickram Joypaul, Kamil Wynne, Martin Walls, Aya Musbahi, Mahmoud Abuawwad and Rachael Coates

Matron - Jonathan Watters

Deputy Divisional Admin Manager - Lisa Higgins

Directorate Manager Support - Linda McFaulds