Staff and patients at a local Plymouth hospital are celebrating its 20th anniversary this week after first opening its door to patients in April 2005. Since then, the hospital has performed nearly 37,000 procedures including hip and knee replacements, cataract surgery, endoscopies and hernia operations.
Over the past two decades, the team at Practice Plus Group Hospital, Plymouth – formerly known as the Peninsula NHS Treatment Centre – has expanded and now employs nearly 300 staff, including bank staff – five of which have been there since the very first day!
Originally set up to help reduce NHS waiting lists for Plymouth residents in routine operations like hip and knee surgery, the hospital now also welcomes private patients having launched its Wellsoon private healthcare service 18 months ago. Its shorter than average waiting times for both NHS and private surgeries has encouraged patients from neighbouring county, Cornwall, to seek GP referrals to the hospital, or self-refer privately in order to be treated sooner.
The hospital now treats on average 5,000 patients a year either as day surgery patients or inpatients. Joining the team on the very first day at the hospital on 24 April 2005, was Orthopaedic Consultant, Tomasz Wudecki. Although having treated thousands of patients over the years, he often remembers particular people and recalls one lady he treated because of her excellent surgery outcome.
He says, “I treat a lot of patients very successfully but I particularly remember one patient. I did a hip replacement for her. She was a semi-professional swimmer and was very much afraid that she wouldn’t be able to return to this level of swimming after surgery. Just four weeks after the operation she went back into the pool and eight weeks after she won a prize in a competition! She was even on the BBC talking about it. It was very significant and she wrote to us with thanks and compliments about her recovery. It sticks in my mind as it was so spectacular.”
Last year, the hospital launched a weekly face to face ‘Joint School’ to help people waiting for hip or knee replacements to prepare for their operation and to increase the chance of recovering as quickly as possible. It can also help reduce delays and last minute cancellations by ensuring patients are fit for surgery.
Hospital Director, Sarah Fell, says: “We’re overwhelmingly proud of our team and celebrating this milestone together feels incredible. We always aim to create an exceptional experience for all of our NHS and private patients, and are dedicated to delivering the highest standards of quality and safety.
“Over the past 20 years we’ve been a driving force in providing the best patient experience and outcomes possible to people in our community. We simply want our patients to feel back to their best as quickly as possible. We help patients at every stage of their treatment from diagnostics and consultations through to the surgery itself – and well into their recovery! Here’s to many more years of patient care!”
Private patients can book consultations directly with Wellsoon private healthcare from Practice Plus Group, and NHS patients can ask their GP for a referral to the hospital. Wellsoon from Practice Plus Group hip and knee surgery is available from 4-6 weeks of seeing a consultant.
Practice Plus Group Hospital, Plymouth is located on Brest Rd, Plymouth (PL6 5XP) and is rated ‘Good’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Visit www.practiceplusgroup.com
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