St George's Alumni Newsletter

ISSUE 16 Spring 2013 The magazine for Alumni and friends of St George’s, University of London

‘Madness’ of King GeorgeCareer profilee: : Patrick Vallance

An interview with Miles Scott

St George’s and the First World War

Sadly we have lost some great figures this year and our condolences go to their families, friends and colleagues. Most notably we have had to say goodbye to Hamid Ghodse, St George’s professor of psychiatry and international drug policy; Aubrey Leatham, a leading light in cardiology in the UK who is noted for his expertise in auscultation and pioneering inventions; and most recently, Chrissie Fenske, manager of St George’s clinical developmental sciences division and project planning officer.

As we look to the future, we meet Miles Scott, chief executive of St George’s Healthcare NHS Trust, who tells us about our hospital partner’s exciting plans for the future, including an all important bid for foundation trust status and the development of a new women and children’s health centre.

Finally, included in this magazine is our annual roll of donors, in which we acknowledge the support of our donors who continue to make a great contribution to the life of St George’s. If you are interested in joining our growing group of supporters please get in touch.

I hope you enjoy this magazine and welcome any thoughts or comments you may have. My new colleague, Victoria Ebo, has joined us as alumni engagement officer and will be in touch very soon with more news and features in our e-newsletter, The Dragon.

Best wishes

Chris ConneelyHead of Alumni Relations and Development

OVER 270 ALUMNI AND GUESTS CAME BACK TO THE SU BAR FOR A NIGHT OF DINING, DRINKING, DANCING… AND MUCH REMINISCING. SUCH EVENTS TAKE A FAIR BIT OF PLANNING AND EFFORT TO ARRANGE BUT THE BUZZ ON THE NIGHT ALWAYS MAKES IT WORTHWHILE.

We are planning a similar reunion for the second half of the nineties decade, and will make sure that all alumni have opportunities to attend events either at St George’s or around the country. For those of you overseas, our international development team have recently held alumni gatherings in Singapore and Canada, and our colleagues look forward to meeting with friends from St George’s at similar events in the near future.

In keeping with previous issues of George’s, this edition is a mixture of recent news, alumni profiles and a look back at our past. As we approach the centenary of the start of the Great War, Hugh Thomas, clinical teaching fellow in our division of population health sciences and education, has unearthed some fantastic stories of bravery among George’s men and women.

Our alumni profiles focus on two quite different but both equally impressive graduates: Patrick Vallance, who had an outstanding career in academic medicine and has moved across to the pharmaceutical industry to head up R&D at GlaxoSmithKline, and Nora Shrestha, a much more recent graduate who is a fantastic ambassador for the relatively new healthcare profession of physician associate (previously known as physician assistant).

I’M DELIGHTED TO WELCOME YOU TO THE LATEST ISSUE OF GEORGE’S MAGAZINE. ONE OF MY PERSONAL HIGHLIGHTS OF LAST YEAR WAS THE REUNION FOR GRADUATES OF YEARS 1990 TO 1995.

WelcomeWELCOME

GEORGE’S ISSUE 16

St George’s and the First World War 10

Madness of King George7

Career profile: Patrick Vallance 18

Being a Physician Associate 20

CONTENTS

An interview with Miles Scott 14

Contact Us:Alumni & Development OfficeSt George’s, University of LondonCranmer TerraceLondonSW17 0RE

Tel: +44 (0)20 8266 6816Email: [email protected]/alumniFacebook: St George’s, University of London AlumniTwitter: @mysgul

THIS ISSUE: Principal’s welcome 2

George’s News 4

Research News 7

‘Madness’ of King George 7

Stroke research 8

Students’ Union round-up 9

St George’s and the First World War 10

Built on strong foundations 14

Focus on MMI interview 17

Career profile: Patrick Vallance 18

Being a Physician Associate 20

Events round-up & upcoming events 22

Roll of donors 23

Here & Now 26

Lost Alumni 29

Obituaries 32

GEORGE’S ISSUE 16 1

They chose Lanesborough House at Hyde Park Corner – the name Constitution Hill reflects the health benefit to be gained through progressing from the Mall to Hyde Park Corner. The new hospital opened in 1733 with medical apprenticeships being established in 1752.

Despite the medical school having separate premises when formally in Kinnerton Street in 1834, there has always been a close relationship between school and hospital. Indeed the move of the hospital from SW1 to Tooting that began in 1951 was accompanied by student clinical placements – the new hospital and medical school were officially opened in 1980 by the Queen. Many of today’s alumni will have fond memories of the close proximity between the hospital and the university. St George’s, University of London (SGUL) has changed considerably over the years and is now more than a medical school, providing programmes through its joint faculty with Kingston University that address the broad spectrum of health care needs and biomedical sciences.

So what continues to make George’s different?As you may have seen in the recent alumni e-newsletter we are looking at this question in order to ensure we are making the most of the great opportunities we offer our students and staff – as well as the wider community here in London, and internationally. I would like to thank those of you who are sharing views to feed into that piece of work.

My personal view of what makes us different is threefold.

NHS Trust shares our vision in research and education – a desire to be recognised for world class research in focused areas, and an ambition to make our education and training second to none with a seamless continuum from undergraduate to postgraduate training, through to continuing professional development (CPD).

The strengthening of these partnerships has come at a time of considerable change within higher education and the NHS but some things stay the same. I re-read recently the St George’s Hospital Medical School annual report for 1990. The Dean’s introduction was strangely familiar – financial challenges, the perceived smallness of St George’s compared to competitors in London and a north-south Thames health services divide. We are working hard to ensure we are well positioned in this new landscape that has seen the establishment of Local Education Training Boards (LETB) and Academic Health Science Networks (AHSN). There is insufficient space in my column to do justice to the meaning of LETBs and AHSNs.In summary, the south London LETB will hold the education and training budget for South London’s health professional training for everything apart from undergraduate medical training, whilst the South London AHSN has an ambition to encourage innovation and create wealth across the NHS. St George’s (both university and trust) have been instrumental in driving forward these two new bodies working with colleagues from the Academic Health Science Centre (AHSC) that forms King’s Health Partners (KHP).

Firstly, as an independent medical and healthcare university we are uniquely placed to offer our students the very best opportunities to work alongside other related professions – something that can only improve multi-disciplinary team working and the quality of patient care.

Secondly, sharing as we do a site and close working relationships with St George’s Healthcare NHS Trust, our staff, students and researchers are only minutes away from the frontline of clinical care – something that I think adds to the incredible sense of purpose that everyone has here at George’s.

Thirdly, the illness and diseases experienced by the local population mirror those endemic in the rest of the UK, including long term conditions that now afflict the world. Those who graduate from St George’s are well-equipped to serve in health services in the UK and across the world to make a difference where it is most needed. This additionally benefits research – especially in relation to infection, stroke, cardiovascular disease and epidemiology where our researchers are addressing problems with far reaching impact.

IN TRUTH, THERE IS NO BETTER PLACE TO STUDY MEDICINE IN A GLOBAL CONTEXT.

St George’s in a changing external environmentReflected in these strengths is a close relationship with our NHS and university partners. I am particularly delighted that these are so strong today. St George’s Healthcare

2013 CELEBRATES THE 280TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FOUNDING OF ST GEORGE’S HOSPITAL. IT WAS 1732 WHEN THE PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS OF THE WESTMINSTER INFIRMARY DECIDED THAT THERE WAS A NEED FOR ANOTHER HOSPITAL IN LONDON ON THE FRINGES OF THE CAPITAL, WHERE THE AIR WOULD BE MORE CONDUCIVE FOR HEALTH.

MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

2 GEORGE’S ISSUE 16

and then undertake the final two years of clinical placements in North America graduating with both a SGUL degree and the US medical licensing requirements. Again, the programmes are being quality assured by the GMC.

WE ARE ALSO LOOKING TO PROVIDE BENEFIT TO OUR HOME STUDENTS THROUGH GREATER OPPORTUNITIES TO SPEND PART OF THEIR UNDERGRADUATE TRAINING ABROAD.

We additionally plan that our curricula reflect the importance of the increasing globalisation of healthcare and health challenges faced by the world.

I hope that you enjoy reading this year’s alumni magazine and that it affirms your continuing association with St George’s. We are proud of our alumni and their loyalty to SGUL; I draw your attention to Chris Conneely’s article in the ‘Here and Now’ section of this magazine about developments in alumni relations. We warmly welcome any thoughts you may have about these.

Peter KopelmanPrincipalSt George’s, University of London

There are three AHSCs in London – Imperial, UCL Partners and KHP and they are increasingly seen as the strategic drivers for London’s health service following the demise of the Strategic Health Authority. Unsurprisingly, we have been discussing with KHP a strategic alliance to us to be included when KHP is required to reapply for accreditation as an AHSC in 2014.

I SUSPECT THE PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS OF WESTMINSTER NEVER ENVISIONED SO MUCH CONTINUING CHANGE AFTER 280 YEARS!

Changes in the university There have been important changes within the university. The library has at last been refurbished. Some of you will remember the joy of having a ‘modern’ library when the Grosvenor Wing opened in the 1970s; during the past 30 years such joy has dwindled somewhat due to crowded desks amongst dingy journal stacks, limited IT access and noise. A comprehensive modernisation of a large segment of the library during last summer has brought the library into the 21st century – a modernisation much appreciated by our students. As alumni you are of course most welcome to see these changes for yourselves and you can access the library for reference purposes should you wish (contact the Alumni Office for further information).

Our international workWe are now implementing our international strategy with the franchise of our graduate entry MBBS degree to the University of Nicosia in Cyprus. The first cohort of students began the programme in 2011; they will qualify with a SGUL degree quality assured by the GMC and are expected to pursue their medical careers outside the United Kingdom.

In anticipation of the significant health service changes occurring in the USA as a result of President Obama’s reforms, we have also entered into an agreement with INTO University Partners. The basis for the agreement is for international students to begin their medical training for two years in Tooting

ST GEORGE’S AT A GLANCE

YEARS OF ST GEORGE’S

17331752

1834

195119801995

2011

WE SERVE A DIVERSE POPULATION OF OVER 2 MILLION PEOPLE IN SOUTH WEST LONDON.

THE NEW HOSPITAL OPENS IN HYDE PARK CORNER

MEDICAL APPRENTICESHIPS ARE INTRODUCED

MEDICAL SCHOOL IN KINNERTON STREET

THE MOVE FROM SW1 TO TOOTING BEGAN

NEW HOSPITAL AND MEDICAL SCHOOL OPENED BY THE QUEEN

FACULTY OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE SCIENCES ESTABLISHED WITH KINGSTON UNIVERSITY

2011 GRADUATE ENTRY MBBS OPENED AT UNIVERSITY OF NICOSIA

2 8 0


THE NEW HORTON HALLS

Students enjoy new greener halls

GEORGE’S NEWS

AN £8MILLION HALLS OF RESIDENCE EXTENSION PROVIDING AN EXTRA 154 ROOMS FOR STUDENTS HAS OPENED AT ST GEORGE’S, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON.

Students have now moved into the new block at the Horton Halls development in Tooting. The development brings overall capacity to 486.

The new five-storey building was developed using feedback from residents of the first block, which opened in 2008 to replace the old halls of residence. Students’ input has been integral to the design and many of the new features, such as more spacious rooms, wider beds, larger en-suite bathrooms, softer carpets and redesigned desk spaces, are a result of their comments. Students also have access to a 300-square-metre common room.

HORTON HALLS IN NUMBERS

£8mTO BUILD

468OVERALL NEW CAPACITY

154EXTRA ROOMS

300SQUARE-METRE COMMON ROOM

The project was designed with environmental sustainability in mind, and includes energy-efficient heating and electrical systems as well as improved levels of insulation. This means it will achieve Excellent status by BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method), the global environmental assessment and rating system for buildings.

The development was designed by architecture and building firm Hunters, and built by construction company Willmott Dixon.

Ian Spires, assistant director of estates and facilities at St George’s, said: “When we started planning the development, as well as ensuring we met the needs of the students, it was important to make it sustainable for the future. We included features such as high-quality insulation and a combined heat and power plant that will minimise future energy use and bills without having a major effect on cost or space.

“It was certainly a challenging project, particularly with the timeframe. Construction started last July, so it’s been a fantastic effort from everyone involved to have it ready in time for all our new students. We’re delighted with the end result and we’re confident the students will be too.”


INDEPENDENT CONSUMER WATCHDOG WHICH? HAS NAMED ST GEORGE’S AS THE THIRD BEST UNIVERSITY IN THE UKFOR GRADUATE STARTING SALARIES.

Universities were ranked by the average annual salary of graduates six months after completing their course, based on information submitted by universities and colleges to the government between 2005/6-2009/10. St George’s, University of London graduates earned an average salary of £27,015.

As a specialist provider of medical and healthcare education, SGUL’s undergraduate courses are focused on training professionals for specific roles within healthcare provision, including doctors, radiotherapists, paramedics, biomedical and healthcare scientists and physiotherapists. Careers advice is embedded into the university’s teaching and its co-location with St George’s Hospital, one of the UK’s largest teaching hospitals, enables students to learn alongside professionals in a real healthcare environment from day one.

Sophie Bowen, secretary and academic registrar says of the report: “The financial rewards for many of our graduates reflect the hard work that starts on day one and the excellent career routes our education offers them. Whilst we are proud of our place in this survey, we must bear in mind the huge financial commitment our students make and the fact that graduates from courses other than medicine are unlikely to benefit from such high starting salaries.

“This is a growing issue since the introduction of higher fees and we are committed to continue to offer a full range of support to those who need it in the form of scholarships, bursaries and hardship funding.”

The top 10 universities for graduate starting salaries are published on the Which? University website.

Further information: university.which.co.uk

Starting salaries for St George’s graduates named third best in the UK

Top 250 World University ranking for St George’s

GEORGE’S NEWS

ST GEORGE’S IS PLACED IN THE VERY BEST 1.5% UNIVERSITIES IN THE WORLD.

The Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2012/13, released 3 October 2012, placed St George’s 201-225 globally and 33rd in the UK. The top 300 positions represent 1.5 per cent of universities in the world.

The Times Higher Education table is based on 13 separate performance indicators grouped under the core missions of a leading university — teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international outlook.

With a score of 89.7, St George’s scores particularly highly for its research influence in the Citations category. It is also rated highly for its international outlook, scoring 57.9.

This year is the first time that St George’s has appeared in the THE World rankings.

Principal Professor Peter Kopelman said: “Our position in the World University Rankings recognises the global influence of our institution in our key areas of teaching, research, sharing knowledge and international outlook. This year’s position particularly highlights the impact of St George’s research among the scientific community. Staff, students and alumni can all be justifiably proud of this achievement.”

Further information: http://tinyurl.com/9l3m5ho

33rd IS WHERE ST GEORGE’S PLACED IN THE UK RANKINGS FOR 2012/13

ST GEORGE’S, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON GRADUATES EARNED AN AVERAGE SALARY OF

£27,015


GEORGE’S NEWS

Innovations in nursing recruitment get seal of approvalTHE DIRECTOR OF NURSING OF HEALTH EDUCATION ENGLAND HAS VISITED THE FACULTY OF HEALTH,SOCIAL CARE AND EDUCATION TO SEE SOME OF THE PIONEERING WORK BEING UNDERTAKEN TO RECRUIT HIGH-CALIBRE NURSING STUDENTS.

The director of nursing of Health Education England – the new national organisation leading education, training and workforce development across the healthcare system – has visited the Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education to see some of the pioneering work being undertaken to recruit high-calibre nursing students.

In his recent report into failings of care at the Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust, Robert Francis QC emphasised the need for universities to select nursing students who were intelligent, caring and had a strong desire to care for others. Dr Lisa Bayliss-Pratt visited the faculty, run jointly by Kingston University and St George’s, University of London, last month to see how its new approach to interviewing potential students was helping identify those with the empathy, honesty and integrity needed to enter the caring profession.

Dr Bayliss-Pratt heard how candidates applying to study nursing at Kingston and St George’s were invited to take part in a series of role plays as part of the application process. Called multiple mini-interviews, the six scenarios are designed to enable recruiting lecturers to see how potential students respond in different situations. The role plays allow candidates to exhibit their communication skills, team working ability and their potential for leadership, as well as empathy, ethical insights and integrity.

Dr Bayliss-Pratt watched a mock interview, and even had a go at assessing the potential student’s performance.

“I found it very helpful to learn more about how Kingston and St George’s are focusing on recruiting students with the right values,” she said. “This is something Health Education England will be looking to do at all levels of our own organisation, alongside developing processes for NHS employers to use to test the values and behaviours of potential employees.”

As well as taking part in the mock interview, Dr Bayliss-Pratt also visited the nursing skills lab where she met first-year nursing students working with lecturers and volunteer service users. This simulated learning environment gives trainee nurses the chance to put what they learn into practice and get feedback.

Dr Julia Gale, head of the School of Nursing at the faculty, said Dr Bayliss-Pratt’s visit had given staff and students real confidence in the work they were doing.

“This was a great opportunity to showcase our growing expertise in values-based recruitment and Dr Bayliss-Pratt seemed to be really impressed with what she saw,” Dr Gale said. “We have used multiple mini-interviews as part of the selection process for pre-registration nursing since 2011, so it’s really reassuring for staff to hear that these types of tools are increasingly being adopted as best practice across the sector.”

GEORGE’S ISSUE 166

RESEARCH NEWS

New methods to unveil the truth about the madness of King George INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE NATURE OF KING GEORGE III’S ILLNESS HAVE REOPENED THIS YEAR. NEUROSCIENTISTS WILL PORE OVER THOUSANDS OF 18TH CENTURY LETTERS TO AND FROM THE MONARCH, WELL KNOWN FOR HIS BIZARRE BEHAVIOUR AND WILD OUTBURSTS, SEARCHING FOR CLUES TO HIS MENTAL STATE.

The question of whether King George III, who reigned in Britain between 1760 and 1820, was mad or misunderstood has been mused about since his outbursts were first documented in the late 18th century. In King George’s time, his ravings were treated as insanity; to control his outbursts the King was bound in a straitjacket and chained to a chair. Conclusions from more recent reappraisals of the historical evidence have included the inherited metabolic disorder porphyria and the psychiatric condition mania.

RESEARCHERS FROM ST GEORGE’S, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON HOPE TO SHED MORE LIGHT ON THE CONUNDRUM BY GETTING INSIDE THE MIND OF THE TROUBLED KING, THROUGH AN ANALYSIS OF HIS WRITTEN WORD.

Lead researcher Dr Peter Garrard said: “Language is seen and heard everywhere, as people communicate with one another in spoken and written format, apparently without effort. Ease of use, however, belies the complexity of the tasks of combining letters or sounds into words, words into grammatical sentences, and sentences into coherent discourse.

“Because using language involves so many interacting aspects of brain function, the study of spoken or written language has shown it to be a reliable marker of brain malfunction.”

This year the researchers began the task of trawling through 10,000 letters between the King and the prime ministers of the time. By contrasting letters penned before and after known periods of mood derangement, the researchers will identify textual characteristics associated with mental ill health, such as abnormalities of structure, organisation or coherence in language. These characteristics will be measured using a specially designed computer programme that creates a statistical model of word and sentence meaning.

Dr Garrard said: “Gaps in the King’s correspondence correlate with known periods of mental derangement, but letters immediately before and after these intervals may shed light on the occurrence, and perhaps eventually the nature, of the King’s mental ill health.”

In a preliminary analysis, Dr Garrard and colleagues compared the coherence of sequential series of letters, written before and after a well-documented period of illness in 1788-89. Early results suggested that the King’s letters became less similar in the months before the onset of psychiatric symptoms, while those of his correspondent remained thematically consistent.

To create a more accurate picture of how language was used in the 18th century, as well as a benchmark for the analysis of the King’s writings, the research

team will construct a database from samples of English written during this period. This database will be publically available and will help historians shed light on the mental processes of other figures from the same period.

The study, funded by the Leverhulme Trust, will be the first time a computer-based technique has been used to analyse words from the 18th century with a view to providing insight into the writer’s mental health.

Dr Garrard explains that analysing the written word is, however, more than a tool for historical analysis: “A similar use of words has been seen in patients with severe mental illness, and could have practical applications for patient monitoring or as an early warning signal of relapse.”

Dr Garrard’s research was recently featured in a BBC documentary ‘Fit to Rule’ which can be viewed on BBC iPlayer: http://tinyurl.com/c5pbpr6

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STROKE IS THE THIRD LARGEST CAUSE OF DEATH IN THE UK AND THE BIGGEST SINGLE CAUSE OF VASCULAR DEMENTIA.

Finding the gene that increases stroke risk

RESEARCH NEWS

Stroke accounts for 5% of hospital costs and up to 12% of the health and social care budget when including long term care post stroke, and the prevalence of the condition is likely to increase with an aging population. Despite this, there is no treatment for stroke outside of acute anti-platelet therapy for a small subset of patients, with management of stroke recovery being the main clinical care. To date, relatively little is understood about how strokes manifest. It is known that conventional risk factors such as obesity, hypertension, smoking and high cholesterol increase the likelihood of stroke, but together these factors only add up to between 50 – 60% of stroke risk. The remainder is thought to be encoded in our genes, although until recently the identity of these genes was unknown.

Research at St George’s, University of London has recently begun to shed some light on the genetic component of stroke risk. Professor Hugh Markus and Dr Steve Bevan from the Stroke and Dementia Research Centre at the University have recently led a worldwide effort to identify genes that contribute to stroke risk. Using over 3,500 cases and almost 6,000 controls, the research team compared genetic differences between the two groups and identified changes around one gene that increased the chance of developing a particular type of stroke known as large vessel disease ischaemic stroke. This gene, known as histone deacetylase 9 (HDAC9), acts as a molecular switch, controlling the expression of other genes. This same research, published in Nature Genetics1 also identified other genes important in stroke that had previously been shown to be important in related cardiovascular disorders. Two genes underlying atrial fibrillation (abnormal beating of the heart) were shown to increase the risk

of cardioembolic stroke, while a genetic region on chromosome 9 was shown to confer risk of large vessel disease stroke. A follow-up study led by the same researchers, published in Lancet Neurology2 used over 12,000 cases and 55,000 controls to confirm these regions were

important and identified additional gene targets which are currently the focus of ongoing investigation.

While researchers are not yet able to take these genetic risks and use them as the

basis of clinical care, the identification of these genes will have important

translational benefit in the future. There are already drugs available that modulate the activity of HDAC9 for example, and these could be investigated for understanding how HDAC9 increases stroke risk. Dr Steve Bevan comments: “As we understand more about the genetic basis of disease, the more rapidly we can translate scientific research into patient benefit in this manner.”

The availability of a Hyper-Acute Stroke Unit (HASU) within St George’s

Healthcare NHS Trust has made this type of research possible. Through access

to patient samples from this specialised clinical centre, researchers have been able

to exploit the co-location of the Trust and the University to further medical research in a way that

would not have been possible otherwise. Integration of scientific research and clinical care, as well as collaboration between scientists and medics, is leading to advances in scientific research that it is hoped will result ultimately in benefit for stroke patients through new treatments and risk reduction of this often debilitating condition.

1 Nature Genetics 44, 328–333 (2012) 2 The Lancet Neurology, Volume 11, Issue 11, Pages 951–962, November 2012



THE STUDENTS AT ST GEORGE’S HAVE HAD AN EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL YEAR ACROSS A WHOLE RANGE OF ACTIVITIES AND HAVE CONTINUED TO REPRESENT THE UNIVERSITY BOTH LOCALLY AND NATIONALLY.

To give just a few examples, our Bhangra dance team performed at a packed out Hammersmith Apollo and fought off competition from several national university teams, including those from King’s College London and Imperial College London, to finish second in the acclaimed Bhangra Showdown Competition. The men’s rugby team managed to overcome Imperial Medics (England international and all!) to reach the final of the UH rugby cup for the second time in three years. Sadly, they lost to Barts in the final in March missing out on a prize that’s eluded us since 1882.

Off the pitch and on the stage the standard of shows put on this year by the students has been nothing short of incredible. We have already been amazed by the casts of Revue, Diwali Show and The Fashion Show and now eagerly await the musical society’s interpretation of ‘The Producers’ and The Tooting Show following that; a veritable smorgasbord of talent across a wide range of performances!

Hopefully you’ve been following our University Challenge team, who did amazingly well to reach the quarter finals. They got off to a great start by beating Pembroke College, Cambridge in the first of their quarter final matches but missed out on a semi-final spot when they faced Manchester University. As if contending against their peers wasn’t enough, they also managed to topple the carefully selected staff team as part of our RAG week charity events.

RAG week has recently come to a close and the current total stands at over £20,000. We hope to reach £25,000 with a sponsored abseil off the top of the hospital and a LaserQuest day comprising the whole of the second floor!

In the SU offices we have been working closely with the university to prevent a large increase in university accommodation costs for students, we have put together an institution-wide feedback policy to standardise student feedback following assessment and we continue to work hard to enable our students to be successful in their studies and achieve beyond the curriculum too.

SU President Matt Owen reflects on a busy year for students

STUDENTS’ UNION ROUND-UP

THE STUDENTS’ UNION WELCOMES ALUMNI BACK TO THE SU BAR ANY TIME YOU WISH AND OUR SPORTS TEAMS ARE ALSO KEEN TO HAVE THE SUPPORT AND INVOLVEMENT OF GRADUATES. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE PLEASE GET IN TOUCH:

[email protected]

BHANGRA DANCE TEAM IN ACTION

LASERQUEST DAY

MATT OWEN

St George’s and the First World War

NEXT YEAR WILL SEE THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE OUTBREAK OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR. DR HUGH THOMAS, CLINICAL TEACHING FELLOW (PUBLIC HEALTH) AT SGUL DOCUMENTS THE BRAVE SACRIFICES OF ST GEORGE’S DOCTORS, NURSES AND OTHERS TO THE WAR EFFORT.

BY HUGH THOMAS

FEATURE


St George’s and the warDuring the 1914-18 war some 450 St George’s medical graduates, 125 nurses and 30 non-medical staff served in uniform. The St George’s Hospital Gazette, the British Medical Journal and the Lancet provide interesting historical information.

The majority of doctors, over 300, served in the Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) with 50 others in the Royal Navy, 28 in the Indian Medical Service and 49 in other colonial medical services. Thirteen men served in the British and French Red Crosses. Only six women appear to have been trained or were undergoing medical training at St George’s when hostilities broke out. Five of them served with the French Red Cross with the sixth, Helen Ingleby, serving in the Anglo-French Hospital near the French coast. There does not appear to have been the opportunity for female doctors to serve as military medical officers.

Eighteen St George’s medical men perished during the war and a further 16 were wounded. With medical teams serving close to the action in the trenches it is perhaps surprising that fatalities only numbered four per cent of those who served. A look at the 18 deaths shows that they died in a variety of places and from a variety of causes.

Originally described as ‘the war to end all wars’, the carnage that took place between 1914 and 1918 affected the lives of millions of people around the world. It is estimated that up to 10 million troops lost their lives on the battle fields, including as many as 700,000 Britons, and another 20 million wounded worldwide.

Initially a Europe-wide conflict, young men across many continents volunteered or were conscripted as the great powers battled for supremacy. The dominant image of the First World War is that of the trenches of Northern France where so many young men perished but battles also took place at sea and across Asia and Africa, making it a truly global war.

Numerous medical advances were made as a consequence of war, including early reconstructive plastic surgery and use of X-rays for diagnosis. Meanwhile, the term ‘triage’ was invented by the French to describe the practice of prioritising patients according to the severity of their wounds.

Doctors and nurses from St George’s were actively involved in the war effort, treating the sick and wounded, whilst some also fought courageously in battle and a good number were officially recognised for their efforts.

Five doctors died in action in France and Belgium and are buried there. Captain Charles McKerrow died of wounds on 20 December 1916, aged 33.

He was serving as a regimental medical officer in the Northumberland Fusiliers. Earlier that year he had read a paper at the divisional medical society describing 350 cases of trench foot. He left a wife and a son. His diaries, describing 18 months

in the trenches, survived, and are now in the Imperial War Museum.

Another casualty was 42 year old Captain Walter Armstrong who had returned to join the RAMC after being a surgeon in St John’s, Newfoundland for a decade. Captains Randall, aged 28, and Kellie, aged 41, were killed in action while Lieutenant Dandridge, aged 26, died of wounds.

Captain Maurice Burnett was killed in action at Shaiba, Persia in April 1915 at the age of 26. He was the son of the retired Surgeon-General of the Royal Army Medical Corps. In the dispatches after the battle he was mentioned ‘for conspicuous courage attending the wounded in the open in the firing line under very heavy fire, where his work necessitated his being very exposed. He lost his life in the firing line doing so, and his work was beyond praise’. He is buried near Basra in modern day Iraq.

Captain Charles McKerrow


Nine doctors died from illnesses contracted in service. Colonel John Austin died in London at the age of 53 after being invalided back from Egypt. Captain James Pettinger died from pneumonia at the age of 43 after developing

a septic wrist while serving on a hospital ship. Lieutenant Arthur Codd died of pneumonia, aged 59. Lieutenant Herbert Ransome died, aged 48, at a military hospital in Lancashire where he was serving as a surgeon. Captain

Wallace Hillbrook died of meningitis in Nairobi at the age of 26. He had joined the British East African Expeditionary Force which recruited him from the Mengo Hospital, at which he had been doing missionary medicine. The other fatalities appear to have occurred in the military hospitals in which the officers were serving.

RecognitionIt is not surprising that the contribution of St George’s medical personnel received official recognition. Forty men were mentioned in dispatches, 21 were awarded the Military Cross (four with a bar) and 17 received the Distinguished Service Order. One naval officer received the Distinguished Service Cross.

Other honours included 23 Orders of the British Empire and seven Commanders of the British Empire. Within the higher echelons of the medical establishment four knights were appointed.

The volunteering spirit that today thrives among our students and staff was alive and well during the war. It is interesting to note that many of the medical volunteers were well established in medical practice. Half of those who died were over 40 years of age. For those who survived many had gained valuable medical experience. Medicine makes important advances in wartime. Important lessons included the value

Perished at seaThree doctors lost their lives at sea. Captain Godfrey Hawes went down with His Majesty’s Hospital Ship ‘Salta’ in April, 1917 when it was sunk by a mine in the English Channel. All five medical officers perished. Hawes is buried at a cemetery in Le Havre.

Surgeon Lieutenant Septimus Hibbert went down with HMS Formidable when she was torpedoed in the Channel on New Year’s Day in 1915. He is remembered on the naval war memorial at Chatham.

The most well documented fatality is that of Captain Lewis Moysey, who qualified at St George’s in 1894. He was a medical officer on the Glenart Castle which was torpedoed near Lundy Island on 26 February 1918. The hospital ship had left Newport, South Wales, bound for Brest in France to pick up casualties. The U boat attack was at 4am and the ship sank in around seven minutes. There were only 29 survivors out of the 182 persons on board. All the medical staff – three doctors and eight nurses – perished. Other ships had reported that the hospital ship had been well illuminated with prominent red crosses. After the war the U boat commander was arrested and placed in the Tower of London charged with a war crime. He produced a letter issued by the French authorities guaranteeing safe passage and returned to Germany. Attempts to trace him there failed and he did not come to public attention until 1939 when, at the age of 62, he was appointed the oldest U boat commander in Hitler’s navy.

Lewis Moysey had been a keen naturalist and geologist. Shortly before his fateful last trip he donated his geological collections to museums at Cambridge and London where they can still be seen. In 2002 a memorial was unveiled at Hartland Point, Devon, commemorating the loss of the Glenart Castle. Throughout the war the Germans claimed that allied hospital ships also carried troops and armaments although this was strongly denied.

of transfusions for the treatment of haemorrhage and shock, the importance of wound cleansing and delayed primary suture, the effectiveness of the Thomas splint for femoral fractures and the effectiveness of plastic surgery for treating the facial gunshot injuries commonly encountered in trench warfare.

The ‘Home Front’ and the role of womenBut what happened back at Hyde Park Corner during the war? The House Committee made 100 beds available to the War office and Admiralty and these were well used throughout the conflict. By rearranging the wards the number of civilian patients did not diminish from previous years. Many of the older visiting staff came back to take up residential posts vacated by the younger men who had joined up. A new development, however, was the employment of women doctors. A report in the gazette observed ‘It will probably be a severe shock to the uninitiated to learn that the House Officers now include two ladies and three unqualified House Surgeons. But needs must when the devil drives… in spite of the unwillingness of some, the eagerness of others has led at last to the admittance of women to our midst’. But this development appears to have been short lived as inter war medical students seemed to have included few women.

A lasting memorial?Next year, as we remember the sacrifice of St George’s alumni, consideration could be given to a permanent memorial. This could be in the medical school and perhaps supplemented by an on-line memorial giving more details and illustrations of the alumni, and other staff, who served in the Great War and the Second World War.

AcknowledgementsI am grateful for the help received from the staff of the SGUL Medical Library and also the Royal Army Medical Corps Museum, Aldershot.

Colonel John Austin

Pictures courtesy of Imperial War Museum

FEATURE


GEORGE’SGEORGE’S ISSUE 16 13

MILES SCOTT, CHIEFMILES SCOTT, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF ST GEORGE’SEXECUTIVE OF ST GEORGE’SHEALTHCARE NHS TRUST,HEALTHCARE NHS TRUST,IS LEADING THE TRUST INIS LEADING THE TRUST INITS BID FOR FOUNDATIONITS BID FOR FOUNDATIONSTATUS.STATUS. HE TELLS US WHYHE TELLS US WHY HE’S SO PROUD OF THEHE’S SO PROUD OF THEHOSPITAL AND HOW ITS CLOSEHOSPITAL AND HOW ITS CLOSEWORKING RELATIONSHIP WITHWORKING RELATIONSHIP WITHITS UNIVERSITY PARTNER ISITS UNIVERSITY PARTNER ISCRUCIAL TO FUTURE SUCCESS.CRUCIAL TO FUTURE SUCCESS.

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FEATUREFEATURE

14 GEORGE’SGEORGE’S ISSUE 16

Tell us a bit about your path into NHS managementAfter doing a degree in history I joined the NHS graduate management scheme in 1988. My first job was at Queen Mary’s Hospital in Roehampton – I chose this scheme for the quality of the management training and because I was keen to work in the public sector, and I’ve been happy to stay in the NHS ever since. After Queen Mary’s I was at the King’s Fund for two years where I worked on setting up the first hospital accreditation programme in the UK, a voluntary programme based on regulatory systems in place in Australia and the US. Then I headed up North to work at NHS trusts in Nottinghamshire and South Yorkshire in various clinical and general management roles.

I worked as a director at Northern General Hospital in Sheffield and took up my first chief executive role in Harrogate in 2001, taking it through the process of becoming one of the first wave of foundation trusts. I took over as chief executive at Bradford Teaching Hospitals, where I was brought in to help deal with their financial difficulties and subsequently develop the services, in particular the academic profile of the organisation.

The opportunity then arose just over a year ago to come to St George’s Healthcare NHS Trust.

You have been at St George’s for just over a year now. How does it differ from other NHS trusts you’ve worked at?St George’s is a long standing teaching hospital and that brings with it the specialist services, the education and the research that is on a scale that you wouldn’t often find elsewhere. It’s also one of the leading healthcare institutions within London, with a profile and a level of responsibility that is of a different order to what you might expect at a hospital outside the capital.

We’re the leading healthcare institution for South West London, Surrey and into Sussex. I’m proud that we’re able to provide really good local health services, particularly in Merton and Wandsworth, as well as more regional specialist services and educational research. We are known nationally as the main centre for treatment of penile cancer; we also work in partnership with the Royal Marsden Hospital on cancer in children, and we are the main provider of surgical services for children’s cancer in South East England south of the Thames.

What do you see as the Trust’s main achievements in recent years?Without doubt it’s the quality of the services we provide here. Our mortality rates have been consistently low; our heart attack centre has the best results in London; our stroke service has some of the best results in the country. Even where there have been issues around patient experience, we’ve really worked hard to turn that around.

ONE OF OUR MAIN ACHIEVEMENTS IS THAT ST GEORGE’S HAS BECOME THE CENTRE FOR STROKE, VASCULAR, CORONARY HEART DISEASE AND TRAUMA FOR SOUTH WEST LONDON AND BEYOND, CEMENTING OUR REPUTATION AS ONE OF THE CAPITAL’S MAJOR HOSPITALS.

In 2010 we successfully bid for the community services for the borough of Wandsworth. We now have responsibility for Queen Mary’s Hospital in Roehampton and St John’s Therapy Centre in Battersea, as well as a range of community services.

Many people remember that around 10 years ago the Trust got into very serious debt and we were held back for a number of years as we paid off our debt. However, the staff here have worked extremely hard to turn St George’s around and we are now operating with an underlying surplus. We can invest in our facilities and equipment, and as a consequence we are now performing very well against all the national indicators. This has a huge impact on patient experience and outcomes.

Tell us about the Trust’s priorities for the medium to long term and how you plan to address them.Our strategy is really clear – we will continue developing our specialist services and the range of services on offer. We will support this with major investment in our facilities, the most high profile and most exciting project being the redevelopment of the Lanesborough Wing as a specialist women’s and children’s hospital. This will take place over a number of years; it is our highest priority for redevelopment and will, I think, do justice to the services that are provided here.

Beyond clinical services, we have a fantastic reputation as a teaching centre and we want to build on that, with the trust and the university working together as one.

With regard to research, I think there’s a big opportunity for the university and the Trust to support each other so that the greater St George’s punches its weight. The NHS and the Trust can support those centres of excellence. We can also promote clinical research across a much wider footprint, in particular giving patients access to clinical studies.

We’ve recently appointed a new professor of interventional cardiology, St George’s alumnus Abhiram Prasad, who’s coming from the US, and that results from a shared desire between me and Peter Kopelman, Principal of SGUL, to develop that service clinically and academically.

ST GEORGE’S STAFF ENJOYING THE AREA


St George’s is applying for Foundation Trust status – what does this actually mean for St George’s and what benefits will it bring to patients?I’ve worked in NHS management for 25 years now and I would say foundation trust status is one of the most profound changes to have occurred during my career. What it means is that you take real responsibility for your organisation, not looking for other people to bail you out or solve your problems, or indeed to hold you back.

YOU GET TO MAKE THE DECISIONS AND YOU EITHER SURVIVE OR FAIL BASED ON YOUR OWN MERITS. AT A PLACE LIKE ST GEORGE’S, WHERE WE HAVE SUCH FANTASTIC STAFF, WHY WOULD WE BE ANYTHING OTHER THAN SUCCESSFUL?

It will mean we’ll be much more accountable to our patients, our staff and to local people. We already have a membership programme and indeed alumni are most welcome to join it. You don’t have to be local to St George’s, you can join even if all you’re interested in is receiving news and updates from us as a member. By signing up you are demonstrating an underlying support for the organisation.

Becoming a member enables you both to stand as a governor and to vote in our elections. We’ll have a council of governors, largely elected by members. It will consist of both staff and members of the public, as well as stakeholder organisations such as SGUL. The council of governors has the right to be consulted and to comment on all our plans; it is also responsible for appointing the trust board and holding it to account.

We often refer to ‘the greater St George’s’ when speaking about the university and the hospital; two separate institutions that are closely linked and have a shared history. What do you see as the main benefits of this joint approach and are there any challenges?The academic opportunities for the university and the Trust come about because of our co-location, our partnership and our place in the community both locally and regionally – a classic case of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. There are very few academic medical centres that are as integrated as we are. We’re on the same site and you move between the hospital and university without really knowing the difference. This means it’s much easier for us to integrate education with clinical practice, and research with clinical practice, whilst ensuring that research is for patient benefit.

But of course like all opportunities in life you have to seize it. You won’t derive the benefit by sitting back and doing nothing.

One great example of this would be our joint work on stroke. Professor Hugh Markus’s research team in the university has absolutely driven the standards of care in the hospital and people come from all over the country to learn from us. Patients of course benefit from this. Furthermore, the best trainees want to come and work here and the opportunity to be a stroke fellow at St George’s is hotly contested; that then is an environment in which research can be successful.

Further information:For information on how to become a member of St George’s Foundation Trust visit www.stgeorges.nhs.uk

ST GEORGE’S HOSPITAL TODAY


FEATURE

Judy Kane (MBBS 1968)“I find the MMI process very interesting and I think appropriately challenging and fair for interviewees. So many students are equally

well qualified on paper so there needs to be a process that weeds out the best from the merely good!

Its advantage over traditional interviews is that seven people independently make a decision about the student, thus avoiding the possibility of a dominant interviewer persuading his or her colleagues on the panel of the merits, or otherwise, of a particular candidate. The other advantage of the MMI is that if the student ‘cocks up’ in one station they get the chance to redeem themselves in the next station without the previous question hanging over them.

I studied at St George’s when it was located at Hyde Park Corner and I recall my interview as a rather friendly chat with the secretary to the medical school and the Dean. There were absolutely no challenging questions and no time constraints!

I think it’s great to give something back to the place that gave me a wonderful career and would encourage other alumni to do the same.”

David Cohen (3rd year MBBS4)“The MMI process is very intense. Every question is a fresh start - with a new interviewer - so you need to do well in all of them.

The process forces you to be concise and to the point, and I think this really tests the candidates’ communication skills. In my opinion it’s also a much fairer process.”

The success of multiple mini interviews (MMIs) at St George’s as a way of identifying the best medical candidates has now led other institutions to look at using the model for their own selection processes.

The Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and the University of Nottingham’s medical schools have recently sent delegations to St George’s to see first-hand how MMIs are conducted. Imperial College London’s School of Medicine came in 2011 and visits from other higher education institutions are being planned.

Since introducing MMIs in 2009, St George’s has developed an excellent reputation for its MMI provision, borne out by other medical schools’ enthusiasm to borrow ideas from SGUL’s good practice.

The MBBS5 at St George’s was one of the first UK medical programmes to introduce MMIs as an alternative to interviews. The scheme has proven an effective way of allowing candidates to demonstrate essential competencies outlined by the General Medical Council’s Tomorrow’s Doctors document.

MMIS COMBINE TRADITIONAL-STYLE QUESTIONS WITH TASK-BASED ACTIVITIES, WHICH ARE INTERACTIVE AND PROVIDE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DISPLAY KEY ATTRIBUTES ASSOCIATED WITH GOOD DOCTORS, RATHER THAN ACADEMIC ABILITY ALONE.

They are designed to demonstrate: intellect; empathy; initiative and resilience; communication skills; organisation and problem solving; teamwork; insight and integrity; and effective learning style.

MMIs involve seven stations and eight tasks in total, with candidates spending five minutes at each station before moving on to the next. A station might involve role play with an actor, answering questions or solving a problem, and may or may not involve a medical aspect, depending on the competency being tested.

Admissions tutor and St George’s alumna Dr Aileen O’Brien, senior lecturer in psychiatry at St George’s, works closely with the admissions team to administer MMIs.

She said: “Since we introduced MMIs they’ve been very well received. The feedback we get is that interviewers actually quite enjoy the process, and it helps them really see the difference between candidates.

“This is the way medical students are assessed, so it makes sense to do it earlier on with applicants.”

Aileen, fellow admissions tutor Dr Muriel Shannon and colleagues including admissions officer Micki Regan are also looking at ways to innovate and improve MMIs.

They are investigating a pilot scheme whereby candidates can do MMIs online through Jabber (a similar service to Skype) if it is impractical to come to St George’s. The Paramedic Science and Nursing courses taught through our joint Faculty with Kingston University have also introduced MMIs.

The team is always looking for more people to act as MMI interviewers and join the 200 or so currently on the books.

Aileen said: “Alumni come back to St George’s from all over the country to take part, so it’s a really good way of building links with them.”

Further information: If you would like to find out more about becoming an MMI interviewer contact Micki Regan, Admissions Officer: [email protected]

St George’s model identifies best medical candidates

TWO MMI INTERVIEWERS, AN ALUMNA AND A CURRENT STUDENT WHO SUCCESSFULLY NAVIGATED THE PROCESS, TELL US WHAT THEY THINK OF PROCESS

GEORGE’S ISSUE 16

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ST GEORGE’S ALUMNUS PATRICK VALLANCE IS PRESIDENT OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT (R&D) AT GLAXOSMITHKLINE (GSK). HE TELLS US HOW AND WHY HE MOVED FROM A HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL 20-YEAR CAREER IN CLINICAL ACADEMIA TO A SENIOR ROLE IN DRUG DISCOVERY WITH ONE OF THE WORLD’S LEADING PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES.

Describe the path that led you to become president of R&D at GSKI came to St George’s to study medicine in 1978 and was one of the early graduates from the Tooting site. When I was a student there were a number of highly talented teaching and research staff here. One area that was really strong was pharmacology and that was something I became interested in because medicines can teach you how the body works and also of course I wanted to know how you can use them therapeutically.

When I qualified from St George’s one of my house jobs was with Professor Tom Pilkington who was a huge inspiration to me. Professor Joe Collier also inspired me a great deal because of his approach to teaching and because he cared so much about his students.

Then I did senior house officer jobs around London before returning to St George’s to be a lecturer in clinical pharmacology with Joe Collier – a move which was seen as quite unusual at the time. Almost every clinician I knew back then was saying ‘come and do cardiology or nephrology’ or whatever but I wanted to teach, do research and do clinical work. I continued lecturing, became a member of the Royal College of Physicians, and was ultimately appointed a senior lecturer and consultant in clinical pharmacology in 1990.

I stayed at George’s for ten years in total and then moved to University College London (UCL) in 1995 to take up a chair in clinical pharmacology. In joining UCL I was also contributing to a big experiment that was under way to see how we could bring together different disciplines in order to create a new therapeutic research institute. Then in 2000 I became head of medicine at UCL.

Up to that point in my career I had very little to do with the pharmaceutical industry. Although Joe Collier is seen as very anti industry, he had a balanced view and was actually very insightful as to the need for certain aspects of that industry. But really, I had very little contact with industry; most of my funding came from the MRC, Wellcome Trust and the like. I’d learnt from Joe about use of medicines, formularies and assessing data; my own research was a mix of basic science, molecular and cellular chemistry and large electronic databases.

In 2002 I was invited to become a member of the research advisory board for GSK and a couple of years later the then head of R&D asked me if I’d like to work for the company. I initially said no because my career was in clinical academia and I had no intention of changing. But then he asked if I was interested in heading up drug discovery and this did appeal to me scientifically because it’s such a difficult thing to do. I went home that night and thought

to myself am I going to spend the rest of my career being critical of the pharmaceutical industry, still working in academia trying to invent a medicine, or am I going to do it properly and at least attempt to discover new drugs in such a way that is good for society? So overnight I decided to go, surprising myself and a number of other people when I joined GSK in 2006 as head of drug discovery.

How did your peers at UCL react when you told them you were leaving?There was no doubt that it would’ve been a surprise because I had at times been openly critical of some aspects of the pharmaceutical industry. I was also leading a successful department of medicine and a very good research team; we were expected to do very well in our next research assessment exercise and most people, myself included, expected me to stay in academia.

Many people were very complementary and encouraging but of course there were a few who said I’d ‘gone over to the dark side’. The person I was most worried about telling was my mentor, Joe Collier. I asked his advice and his initial reaction was ‘no, don’t do it’, but by then I think I had all but made up my mind. Luckily he called me up the next day after a conversation with his wife and said actually I should take the job and it was a fantastic opportunity for me!

Patrick Vallance

FEATURE


Do you still have any clinical/academic responsibilities?No, in fact when I was making the decision to take the job I thought about continuing my research but ultimately I decided that the new role was going to be more than enough to keep me busy. I knew very little about how to make a medicine and I had to commit to the role 100%. So I jumped in with both feet into a world I didn’t know and found it to be very invigorating and rejuvenating.

Do you still keep in touch with your colleagues at UCL?I still see some people and my old research group periodically update me on their work. I think one of the really exciting things about working in medicine or academia is seeing former students and colleagues go on to become successful. Funnily enough, the science journalist Ben Goldacre, who wrote the book ‘Bad Pharma’, was a student of mine at UCL and he has alluded to that fact in his blog.

Do you still have any connections with St George’s? Are you in touch with your classmates?I’m absolutely appalling at going to reunions! I do, however, have two very very close friends from my year that I see regularly. I remember a lecturer at St George’s saying in our induction at the start of the course that medicine was a very small world, and I remember thinking how

What do you do to unwind away from the office?I have a tennis lesson every Saturday morning without fail, even if I’ve just come back from an overnight flight. I used to play a lot of squash at St George’s but I’ve since discovered that tennis is my real passion and I regret not playing it as a student.

My wife and I go to the theatre a lot; she’s very good at booking our theatre trips in advance. I’ve spent a lot of the last few years watching my sons playing rugby for their school but that’s come to an end now since they went off to university.

is that possible? But of course they were right. I know of at least three colleagues at GSK who studied at St George’s around the same time as me.

My wife Sophie teaches at St George’s sometimes too. She was a GP in Carshalton and has done some teaching on the physician assistant course and communications skills for medical students.

What would you consider your greatest achievement?Anyone I’ve trained who’s done well. There are several people that I know of who are making huge contributions to knowledge or to clinical care, and I think anything that I might have done to help or inspire them would be what I’m most proud of.

What does the future hold?Who knows? I made the decision to join GSK overnight so anything’s possible. This sort of role where you’re heading a big organisation, with 10,500 scientists worldwide – you can’t do it forever and nor should you. It needs new brains, new ideas and new thoughts. I know for sure that it’s not forever, but I also know it’s absolutely what I want to do right now and for the foreseeable future. I’ve got lots more I want to do.


Nora Shrestha

ST GEORGE’S, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON IS ONE OF A SMALL NUMBER OF INSTITUTIONS IN THE UK THAT OFFER POSTGRADUATE TRAINING IN THE ROLE OF PHYSICIAN ASSOCIATE (FORMERLY KNOWN AS PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT). ONE OF OUR EARLIEST GRADUATES OF THE PROGRAMME, NORA SHRESTHA, TELLS US ABOUT THE COURSE AND HER NEW PROFESSION.

Being a Physician Associate

How would you describe the role of a physician associate (PA)?Physician associates are a new innovative group of healthcare professionals in the UK. The PA role originated in the USA over 40 years ago and due to its success over there, the concept has been implemented here in recent years in an effort to promote the development of the PA profession in the UK.

Following the PA training and successful completion of the PA National Examinations, qualified PAs are equipped with the skills and knowledge base to work either in primary or secondary care alongside doctors, delivering holistic care to patients as part of the clinical team and under the supervision of a consultant/senior doctor.

Our role can be seen as complementary to, or an extension of, the work of doctors. If we work in a particular area for a longer period of time, we can maintain good continuity of care for patients in that setting, especially when junior doctors rotate. Currently PAs in the UK are working in hospitals (various medical and surgical specialty areas), GP surgeries and walk-in-centres. Some are also working as academic staff members of universities’ PA programmes. Overall though, we remain generalists and so have to undertake national recertification examinations every five to six years to ensure that we maintain general competence in all areas of medicine and continue to practise safely.

What attracted you to this career in particular? What were you doing previously?My first degree was a Masters in Biomedical Science at the University of Hull, including a one year placement in a hospital biochemistry laboratory. Although I enjoyed my placement year it made me realise that I was more of a people person, so a career working in a lab didn’t really appeal. Instead, I had a strong desire to work in clinical patient care where I could apply my knowledge to help make a difference to patients’ lives. Therefore following graduation, I took a year out and did some voluntary work in my local hospital, which gave me a valuable insight into hospital work and reinforced my eagerness to work in clinical medicine to help improve patients’ quality of life.

I found out about the physician associate programme, which was based on a medical model curriculum, incorporating many elements from the medical degree. This appealed to me as a possible route into clinical medicine.

This course is available at a select number of institutions in the UK – why did you choose to come to St George’s?I was aware that St George’s had a very good reputation as a medical school and that the campus shared its site with a hospital, making it an ideal learning environment. During my time at St George’s I saw patients, relatives and healthcare professionals on site almost every day and it made me realise that I was studying exactly what I loved in a fantastic setting and one day soon would be working on “the other side” as a clinician myself!

FEATURE


Tell us about your current role and what you’ve been doing since graduation.I qualified as a PA from St George’s, University of London in October 2010 and have been working in geriatric medicine at the Leicester Royal Infirmary for just over two years. Initially I worked within orthogeriatrics, where together with the consultant orthogeriatricians I was involved in the perioperative medical care of elderly patients who had sustained a fractured neck or femur. I accompanied the consultants on ward rounds, and then conducted ward rounds on my own where I assessed our patients generally post-operatively. Working closely with the orthopaedic junior doctors on the wards I supported them with decision-making regarding patient management. I also regularly attended the city rehabilitation centre and helped clerk and manage patients there whilst learning about how their conditions were managed in a community setting.

After working within orthogeriatrics for eight months I decided I wanted to learn more about general geriatric medicine and see a wider array of patient presentations.

I HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THE GERIATRIC MEDICINE WARDS NOW FOR THE PAST 16 MONTHS AS PART OF THE MEDICAL TEAM, CARRYING OUT JOBS SIMILAR TO A JUNIOR DOCTOR ROLE.

I attend senior ward rounds, and also conduct ward rounds with junior doctors or on my own a few times a week, formulating patient problem lists and differential diagnoses and then deciding on appropriate treatment and management plans. I enjoy conducting my own ward rounds as it enables me to get to know the patients better, enhances my communication and organisational skills, as well as enabling me to utilise my clinical judgement. Working within geriatrics has definitely increased my confidence when engaging with relatives and discussing sensitive issues.

The greatest benefit I feel I offer as a PA working on a ward is the continuity of patient care. Being a regular fixture has enabled me to develop strong working relationships with my supervising consultants and the nurses.

I have also trained to become an Older People’s Champion, which means that I look out for the needs of elderly patients and continually strive to improve the care that they receive.

I regularly perform clinical skills such as venepuncture, venous cannulation, arterial blood gas sampling and interpretation, urinary catheterisation, and nasogastric tube insertion on a regular basis in order to maintain my skills and competencies. I have also given case presentations at departmental meetings to educate junior doctors.

Lastly, I have also assisted in the educational development of PA students and medical students by having them shadow me on the ward and providing them with brief teaching. I have also recently begun examining in medical student OSCEs, and am planning to help with medical student clinical skills teaching sessions and at the local medical school.

What advice would you offer anyone considering a career as a physician associate?Research the role and make sure it is what you want to do. If you have a real ambition to work within clinical medicine as part of a multidisciplinary team, and are keen to join a pioneering profession aiming to help achieve an excellent standard of patient care, then this may be the career for you.

The PA programme involves several elements of the medical degree condensed into two years; the workload throughout is challenging and the standard expected is high. You will need to have excellent communication and teamwork skills, be able to work efficiently, prioritise your workload and be extremely motivated to enhance your learning.

Further information:Postgraduate courses at St George’s: http://www.sgul.ac.uk/courses/postgraduateUKAPA (UK Association of Physician Assistants): www.ukapa.co.uk

DURING MY TIME AT ST GEORGE’S I SAW PATIENTS, RELATIVES AND HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS ON SITE ALMOST EVERY DAY AND IT MADE ME REALISE THAT I WAS STUDYING EXACTLY WHAT I LOVED IN A FANTASTIC SETTING AND ONE DAY SOON WOULD BE WORKING ON “THE OTHER SIDE” AS A CLINICIAN MYSELF!


Class of 1972reunion, October 20121972 St George’s graduates enjoyed a 40 year reunion weekend in Worcestershire last autumn.

Arranged by alumnus Roger Harrington, 23 alumni attended, accompanied by spouses and partners, and included Jim Thurley and his wife Jennie and John Harper who came all the way from Australia. Over a convivial dinner, old times were discussed and reminiscences shared and it was generally agreed that the “1972 lot” had seen the best years of the NHS. The majority of graduates were retired and enjoying a well-earned rest, with everyone still retaining fond memories of ‘The Corner’ and Tooting.

1990–95 ReunionOver 200 graduates from the early to mid-nineties enjoyed a fantastic evening back in the SU bar last November, reliving their student days and catching up on old times.

In between dinner and dancing the night away, a succession of alumni took to the floor to regale us with their recollections of St George’s and lead a rousing rendition of the George’s song. Chief among them was guest speaker Paul Sinha (MBBS 1995) whose unique take on student life had the crowd in hysterics.

Our thanks to Shuman Hussein, Rashid Khan and others whose support and advice helped to ensure the night was one to treasure for many years to come.

Upcoming EventsProfessorial inaugural lecture, 5.30pm Thursday 27 June 2013

Come along and hear two newly appointed professors presenting on their respective fields of expertise and enjoy a reception afterwards among colleagues, students and friends.

Chipping away at Archie Cochrane’s wooden spoonProfessor Isaac Manyonda, Honorary Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology

How long have I got, doc? – Predicting survival in patients with advanced cancerProfessor Patrick Stone, Professor of Palliative Medicine

If you wish to attend RSVP to Tadhg Caffrey by email to: [email protected]

Coming soon… Reunion for late nineties graduatesGraduates from the years 1996 through to 1999 will have the chance to reunite in autumn 2013, just like their nineties ‘elders’ did last November. If you would like to help in the planning of this event get in touch to register your interest. If you are planning to move house, remember to update us or ensure that we at least have an email address for you so we can let you know once a date is set.

St George’s Community Open Day, October 2012Students and staff of the university and hospital joined forces once again to welcome the local community in a day of fun, learning and face paints. Visitors were able to take part in behind the scenes tours, find out about our shared history, or even learn how to bandage a poorly teddy bear. A particular favourite on the day was the alumni and heritage stand where the alumni team and the Students’ Union’s heritage officers displayed archive materials and old medical equipment.

EVENTS

Events round-up


Principal’s ForewordIt is my great pleasure to thank the alumni and friends of St George’s who have supported us so generously in the past year.

Last November I hosted a reunion for graduates of the 1990s and was struck by the warmth and goodwill of those present. Many of those I spoke to had achieved great things in their working lives and told me they had St George’s to thank for their success. It is therefore heart-warming that alumni choose to demonstrate their gratitude by supporting future generations of students.

THE ANNUAL FUND, THE MAIN METHOD BY WHICH MANY OF OUR ALUMNI DEMONSTRATE THEIR COMMITMENT TO ST GEORGE’S, SUPPORTS THREE MAIN AREAS: STUDENT HARDSHIP, STUDENT EXPERIENCE AND SPORTS BURSARIES.

The Student Experience Fund is your opportunity to encourage and celebrate all that is great about St George’s and its students. The fund supports projects that fall outside core funding but nonetheless play an important part in student life. You can read about just some of these projects in this publication.

Roll of Donors

ST GEORGE’S WOULD LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE GENEROSITY OF ITS DONORS. THE ROLL OF DONORS LISTS THOSE WHO HAVE MADE GIFTS BETWEEN 1 AUGUST 2011 AND 31 JULY 2012. ALUMNI ARE LISTED ALPHABETICALLY BY YEAR OF GRADUATION, EXCEPT IN CASES WHERE INDIVIDUALS WISH TO REMAIN ANONYMOUS.

As tuition fees increase it is essential that we continue to offer a full package of support not only to encourage the best students to apply to St George’s but also to ensure they can successfully complete their studies without onerous financial burden. Contributions to the Hardship Fund are therefore of growing importance.

Meanwhile, donors to the Alastair Hunter Fund will be pleased to hear that your contributions will be helping more promising young sports men and women to excel in their chosen field this year and you will no doubt hear more about their progress from the Alumni and Development Office in due course.

Thank you once again to all our supporters who have generously contributed to St George’s. We will tell you more throughout the year about how your gifts are making a difference and give you more opportunities to see at first-hand what your support helps us to achieve.

With all best wishes

Professor Peter KopelmanPrincipal


ROLL OF DONORS

GIFTS FROM ALUMNI1950s Kenneth Aberdour 1950Kenneth Biss 1951Peter Chapman 1951Derek Walker 1951Brian Wright 1951John Jepps 1952Peter Smart 1953Hugh Bailey 1958

1960sJudith Hart (née Walker) 1960Bryan Radford 1961Elizabeth Wilson 1961Peter Ager 1962Anthony Smith 1962Peter Millard 1963Terence Brown 1965Michael Townsend 1965

1970sAntony Green 1970David Spencer 1971Peter Trewby 1971 and Catherine Trewby

(née Falconer) 1973Charles Headley 1973Julian Fasler 1974Steven Gillam 1975Robert Hornung 1975Bhasker Mehta 1975Philip Gilbert 1977Louisa Erica Teare 1977Helen Tebbutt 1977Elfy Chevretton 1978Peter Dunlop 1978 and Patricia Dunlop

(née Williams) 1978Simon Fleminger 1978David Harrison 1978Gary Rubin 1979

1980sChristopher Smith 1980Janet Bigos 1981Timothy Colbert 1981Elizabeth Jackson 1981Timothy Southwood 1981Pippa Medcalf 1982Stuart Nelson 1982William Lynn 1983Sara McCluskey (née Brownson)1983Helen Miller 1984Christopher Andrews 1985John Dillon 1986Martyn Newey 1986Sanjay Sharma 1986Adrian Thrasher 1986Simon Flack 1987Andrew Hill-Smith 1987Christopher Huckstep 1987Hilary Cramp 1988Ian Hotchin 1988

1990sJames Bolton 1990Matthew Cornish 1990Paul Forsdick 1990Nicholas Kennedy 1990Kamal Patel 1990Jeremy Mauger 1991Guy Lepski 1992Jacqueline Stevens 1992Elizabeth Househam 1993Huw Jones-Evans 1993Roseanne Whitfield 1993Matthew Butler 1994Amira Girgis 1994Kevin Ward 1994Nicholas Davies 1996Mohan Kanagasundaram 1996

2000sPeter Basford 2001Paris Ioannou 2001Jean-Xavier Clive Meguer 2001Ravi Ray 2001Eleanor Beswick 2003Sharon Fillingham 2003Hannah Bellsham-Revell 2004Michael Kipling 2005

GIFTS FROM ST GEORGE’S NURSES LEAGUEBarbara Green

OTHER GIFTSAssociation of Guyanese Nurses

and Allied Professionals James Odrowaz de LorenzziLynette Richards-Lorde


ROLL OF DONORS

COMBINING DANCE AND GYMNASTICS; INCLUDING FLEXIBILITY, FITNESS AND STUNTING, THE ST GEORGE’S CHEERLEADERSHAVE BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL OVER THE LAST YEAR.

After receiving a grant from the Student Experience Award, the squad have gone from strength to strength, entering eight teams into two national competitions and collectively winning six trophies.

We were really grateful for the Student Experience Award, as it not only helped to pay for travel accommodation and entry fees to one of the biggest national competitions held in Manchester, but more importantly it allowed us to invest in a coach. Our coach is fantastic and has been integral to our successes.

The funding gave us much more freedom to be creative and we were also able to invest in new mats. As an up and coming society, being able to compete in major competitions has meant we could establish ourselves as a fully-fledged sports team at St George’s.

Kathryn HaywardTeam Captain

The Tooting showEstablished six years ago by the St George’s African Caribbean Society (ACS), the Tooting Show is now one of the largest variety shows at the university. Written and produced on site with a cast of over 100 students, it delivers two sold out performances a year, and proceeds from ticket sales go to local charities.

The performances showcase the phenomenal acting, singing and dancing abilities of students across all fields of study at St George’s. Our motto is ‘Our City, Our Streets, Our Show,’ and last year we raised £3,000 for the charities Restless Development and Spectrum.

The Student Experience Award really helped us to make show night a success. We were able to buy props, materials for set design and also subsidise costume.

The ethos of the Tooting Show is built on coming together as a family and helping those less fortunate than ourselves. Last year, alumni helped us to achieve this and we feel honoured to have been selected.

Rhianna Spence-Poleon Tooting Show Director 2012

Hardship FundThanks to your continued support, last year your gifts also benefited a growing number of EU and international students who have experienced a change in their financial circumstances. A medical student explains how the fund has helped her:

“I rely strongly on the continued financial support of my family to help pay my fees, rent, food and any other bills that I have. When things became difficult for my family last year this had a big knock on effect for me. Unfortunately it got to a point where I had no money left and could no longer cover my rent. My studies were beginning to suffer, but receiving the grant from the hardship fund was a life saver and helped me get back on track. I’m so grateful for the generosity of St George’s alumni, who understand how difficult it is to be a student in London on such a demanding course. The gratitude I feel will remain with me for a long time.”

THE TOOTING SHOW

ST GEORGE’S CHEERLEADING SQUAD

How your gifts benefit our students


ROLL OF DONORS

FIND OUT WHAT YOUR FELLOW ALUMNI HAVE BEEN UP TO SINCE LAST YEAR.

Here & Now

LIS MILES, A NURSE WITH A WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE, TELLS US IN HER OWN WORDS ABOUT LIFE SINCE LEAVING ST GEORGE’S

Since the alumni magazine began there have been very few submissions from non-doctors, so I decided to do something about it!

I think I may be one of a now endangered species! That is, I can remember working at St George’s, Tooting, when its main corridors formed an “H” shape and orthopaedic Edward Wilson ward, at the end of one of the corridors, was a brand new experiment in ward design. I was one of the first residents of Ingleby House, the 13 storey block of nurses’ flats built opposite Edward Wilson ward, where I lived on the 11th floor overlooking the hospital and the nearby cemetery. I can also remember working at Atkinson Morley Hospital in Wimbledon in all its departments, including theatre and psychiatry (and enjoying off duty walks across the common). Finishing my training at Hyde

Park Corner, with a variety of medical and surgical ward experiences, I especially remember cardiology on Grosvenor ward, where lives were being greatly improved by pacemakers then very much in their infancy. Also, how could anyone ever forget the hand-cranked lift that took the patients to and from theatres? For a year I was a staff nurse on McCalmont which was, in theory, a male medical ward but we routinely treated patients with dermatological conditions and others requiring dental extractions. Little did I know then that my St George’s training and frequent moves would stand me in good stead for the future and find me employment in a variety of places in the UK and Germany.

As midwifery training was not then available at St George’s, and wanting to explore England a bit, I went to York. The midwifery hospital was at Fulford and a good 20 minutes cycle ride from the city and all our patients in the community. Thus I kept fit, but soon learnt to drive. To ‘complete’ my training I decided to return to London to The Westminster Hospital to do the intensive therapy course and after that

PLEASE DO KEEP SENDING IN YOUR UPDATES AND WE’D REALLY LIKE TO SEE SOME PICTURES AS WELL, EITHER OF YOUR TIME AT ST GEORGE’S OR MORE RECENTLY. YOU CAN USE THE UPDATE FORM ENCLOSED WITH THE MAGAZINE OR CONTACT US VIA THE WEBSITE: WWW.SGUL.AC.UK/ALUMNI LIS MILES – NOW AND THEN


HERE AND NOW

had a three year Short Service Commission with the Princess Mary’s Royal Air Force Nursing Service, hoping for an adventure!

After initial training at RAF Henlow, Bedfordshire, I was posted to the RAF hospital at Halton, Buckinghamshire for about seven months. Here I had my introduction to oncology and chemotherapy treatments. Some unfortunate patients had to travel in an RAF coach daily to The Westminster Hospital and back for radiotherapy treatment – not the most comfortable transport. I had often wondered, when back in Westminster, why an RAF coach had been parked outside the hospital. I spent the rest of my time as a midwifery sister at RAF Hospitals in Wegberg, West Germany and Ely, Cambridgeshire. The ‘adventure’ turned out to be enjoying learning about, and being among, a mixed group of multi-faceted hard working people who enjoyed a good social life, had a great sense of community and a willingness to go the extra mile.

On leaving the RAF I worked as a midwifery sister at The West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds. However, it was not long after starting there that I met my future husband, an Officer at RAF Hendon. We were married 11 months later and I worked as a community midwife in the Edgware and Hendon with Barnet and Finchley districts.

The RAF does not allow the grass to grow under ones feet. We have had 11 house moves to date and I could write a book about removal firms and moving, but it has enabled me to work in some interesting places. In Elgin, Morayshire, I was one of a team of nurses in a busy five-GP practice where it took a bit of time to learn the local lingo. The highland lifestyle, climate and proximity to an abundance of fresh seafood, was simply great.

In 2000, having taken time out to be a full time Mum, I decided it was time to resume my professional career and I completed a “Back to Nursing” course at Addenbrooke’s hospital whilst working on a neurosurgical ward. What a difference after Brodie ward at the Atkinson Morley Hospital in 1970! Then, it was exhausting work nursing rows of mostly unconscious patients and everyone needing everything done for them. Nearly all had heads covered in crepe bandages and needed naso/gastric tube feeding. In contrast, many of the Addenbrooke’s patients were up and about, needing constant supervision, help and

Professor Neilma Budd (1959)I’m not very serious about life – I spend the winters in Arizona near Tucson and the summers by Lake Erie. I am plagued by osteo arthritis and spinal stemosis and have a ‘conceal carry’ licence to carry a gun in the US. I’m a lousy shot so God help anyone I shoot at. It’s mainly for defence from rattlers and mountain lions in the west. How I ever managed to be a serious professor and teach med students, nurses and physios beats me!

Dr Roger Cole (1965)I attended the 50 year alumni celebration at King’s College London, 8-10th June 2012.

Mr Philip Gilbert (1977)I am still a full-time NHS consultant, on the Council of Plastic Surgery section of RSM. My main work is burns, paediatric plastics, skin cancer and vascular malformations. I remarried four years ago.

Mrs Lynette Richards-Lorde (née Murray) (Staff: 1977-1992)I left St George’s in 1992 then worked with the Department of Health and represented the UK on race issues in Strasbourg from 1993-4. I trained as a children’s advocate, working with Voice for the Child in Care until 2005. With the help of the Commonwealth Society for the Deaf, I set up a hearing service for the whole of Guyana.

For the last three years I have been working as a volunteer for Diabetes UK. I have remarried; have one daughter, Ruth, and one grandson, Jonathan.

Dr Richard Olliver (1969)I retired from general practice in Horley, Surrey in 2006. A year before I retired I led on the development of a new health centre in Horley. Since then I’ve worked as a locum in nearby practices until fully retiring a year ago. In the last six years I became involved in local politics; first as a town councillor and then, in addition, as a borough councillor in Reigate and Banstead. I am now chairman and town mayor to Horley Town Council. This is a great way to continue serving the community that I have worked in for over 30 years and a new challenge for me.

Mr Nevin Witman (2008)Immediately following the success of my MRes at St George’s, I enrolled in a 4-year PhD programme in Sweden. I heartily believe it was the positive experiences in a challenging and fun research lab at St George’s that encouraged me to pursue PhD studies. I hope to complete my degree within the next year but my future academic career path is uncertain.

encouragement, and had small dressings hiding almost invisible sutures. However, it was sad to see some of the changes that have taken place. For example, no one today seems to recognise the need to be teaching anyone exactly how to make a patient clean and comfortable in bed. What is St George’s doing about it I wonder? I just hope it has never stopped teaching essential basic nursing skills.

I have been a part time nurse at a large preparatory school in Cambridge since 2001 and have found my previous experience in the community very useful. It fits in very nicely with family life, but as our daughter’s attachment to the umbilical cord of the bank of Mum and Dad is being severed, I can start to prepare for retirement.

‘The Orchard’ at Grantchester, Cambridge, is an excellent place to meet friends. Teas and a good selection of home made foods are served and eaten among the fruit trees. For several years now, a group of ex-St George’s people have been meeting there once a year, usually from about 10.00am on a Friday in July. It is always a very informal occasion, open to anyone with any connection to St George’s (endangered species or not). If you would like to join us for our next reunion, please get in touch via the Alumni Office.

Lis Miles (née Stoneley, May 1969 set)


Alumni Engagement PlansST GEORGE’S BEGAN WORK ON ENGAGING WITH ALUMNI IN 2001WITH THE LAUNCH OF THE ALUMNI MAGAZINE AND A PROGRAMME OF EVENTS AND REUNIONS.

We are currently in contact with around 10,000 former students and have worked hard to improve our relations over the years. Alumni can now expect to be invited to a year group reunion approximately every five years; you also receive a yearly magazine and regular e-newsletters and emails, as well as access to a range of benefits and services, including logistical and communications support for smaller group events and peer to peer contacts.

Our graduates are our greatest ambassadors and friends. We are proud of the education we provide at St George’s and prouder still of what you achieve when you leave us. We acknowledge that as we have increased contact with alumni in recent years, so you have demonstrated your loyalty to St George’s in many ways: from philanthropic support, to volunteering, to sending us old photos for our archives.

St George’s is keen to increase its levels of engagement with alumni; over the course of the next 12-18 months we will be putting in place a more structured approach so that there are more opportunities for you to interact with your alma mater and so that you’re better informed about our work and our students.

The first step will be the launch of a new alumni advisory board, comprised of alumni volunteers, senior staff and students. The board will advise on the development of our alumni engagement and fundraising activities in line with SGUL’s strategic objectives and the needs and wishes of our graduates.

Alumni support in any form (philanthropic, voluntary, advocacy) is vital to enable St George’s to offer the sorts of additional support and services to meet the expectations of the St George’s student experience, and to help deliver these in as efficient and cost effective a way as possible. You are key in helping us achieve our strategic aims (include link to SGUL Strategic Plan) and we need you to play your part. We also want you to enjoy your involvement with us, and we hope that our future events programme and social networking channels will provide a platform for this.

Before we ask anything more of you please just do one thing for us. Simply complete the questionnaire included with this magazine and return it in the envelope provided. Or go to our website and fill in our online update form. And remember, we want to hear from you at all times, not just when we’re asking for donations or hosting reunions… so please keep in touch, share your views and let us know how you’re doing.

Further information:SGUL strategic plan can be viewed on our website http://tinyurl.com/bs6s269

KEY PRIORITIES FOR THE ALUMNI TEAM INCLUDE:

that we can understand more about our former students, where you are and what you’re doing – this will help us to tailor our approaches accordingly. You can help us keepup to date by filling in the enclosed questionnaire or visiting our alumni webpages to update your information.

communications, benefits/services – and enhance the current offer so that alumni have more opportunities, and greater impetus, to stay in touch.

for support so that alumni and friends are fully informed of the need for your on-going assistance and what your philanthropy can help us to achieve.

engagement opportunities for alumni – from events and regional groups to careers support and student recruitment – that will enable us to reach out to more alumni and offer meaningful ‘real life’ guidance to students and recent graduates, all the while ensuring our volunteers are well looked after and able to give of their time at a level that suits them.

HERE AND NOW


LOST ALUMNI

WE NEED YOUR HELP TO FIND ALUMNI WITH WHOM WE’VE LOST CONTACT.If you spot a friend and are able to provide a current address for them, please let us know or ask them to contact us.

Lost Alumni

1996Dr Janet A Anderson Dr Catherine J Baluch Dr Daniela Bellomo Ms Jessica C Bridges Palmer Dr Jerome T S Brooks Mr Moses Camilerri Dr Valerie M Campbell Dr Judith E Cartwright Dr Stephen C Cheung Dr Lesley Clarkson Dr Christopher J Cole Ms Sarah J Conning Ms Marian Connolly Dr Simon J Crabb Ms Jennifer A Desmond Dr William T A Fox Ms Eleanor G Garfield Ms Mary E Garry Ms Vikki Gill Dr Solomon M Goldenberg Ms Heidi T Goodden Mrs Devianee Gopaulen Dr Kapila D Gunasekera Ms Rachel Harrington Ms Hanne B Jakobsen Dr Guy M Jordan Dr Igor B Kutsenok Dr Porsotam R Leal Mr Mark J Lee Mr Luke D Leeves Dr Jonathan M Lewin Ms Jacqueline E Lind Dr Graeme Maidment Dr Jessica M Mann Mr Thedshanamoorthy Manoj Mr Douglas S Millar Dr Richard S B Milne Dr Graham J Munneke Dr Duke D H Nguyen

Dr Rowena Nicholson Ms Maria I Nunes Mr Isaac Obeng-Ansah Dr Emma L Oscroft (née Harvey) Dr Jane M Owens Dr Mukesh K Patel Dr Sarju Patel Dr Mark A Paterson Dr Rupert M Pearse Ms Jane E Peasland Dr Udeni N Premaratne Dr Frances H Quirk Dr Ruth A Ramplin (née Rowlinson)Dr Thomas M M R Raymond Dr Mary C E Rome Dr Christopher D Rook Dr Ali A Salek Haddadi Mr Raimo O Salonen Mrs Gyungyi V Saunderson Dr Thevarayapillai ShanmuganathanDr Roshan Siva Dr Shamsuzzoha B Syed Mrs Karen L Tierney Dr Maria B Veiras Dr Gerard V Walls Dr Anthony J Warren Dr David J Watkins Dr Darren G Wilbraham Mrs Julie C Williams Dr Thomas Willsher Dr Siobhan M E Wren

1997 Dr Adam S E Abdelnoor Mr Nasir Z Ahmed Dr Jean-Claude Barjolin Dr Rajia B Bibi Dr Rupert H Bird Dr Amanda J Bond (née O’Regan) Mrs Hilary J Braham Mr John D Butler Mr Peter Carter Mrs Barbara Chisem Dr Simon R Coles Mr Salvatore Corallo Mr Jonathon Darkin Dr Caroline S Dashwood Mr Richard J Davis Dr Kavita Dhingra Mr Mark Doverty Dr Emma C Frampton Ms Sarah J Fuller Ms Rachel Garrod Dr Faye S Gishen Mr Alan Glassup Dr Joanne C Glynn Dr Vanessa J Good Ms Jacquetta C M Gray Ms Joanne Greenaway Dr Juliet H Gubbins Dr Paul C Guyler Ms Janet A Gyebi Ms Catherine J Harris Ms Ruth Harvey Dr Daniel C Hazeldean Mrs Marie Henderson Dr Victoria J Henstridge Mr David E Hicks Mr David J Houghton Mr Nigel G Hoyle Mrs Gaik E Hughes Ms Christine R Jamieson

Dr Ajitha V H Jayaratnam Mr Keith D Jones Mrs Wendy G Joy Dr Suraj O Kareem Dr Claire J Keane Dr Nicholas P A Kronfeld Ms Melanie Lee Mrs Samantha Lewis Dr Rona A Lunt Dr Chrystalla Macedo Ms Joanna Maguire Dr Bashar S Majeed Dr Richard E Male Dr Sarah L Mayo Mrs Catherine A McCabe Dr Linda J McCorquodale Mr Robert J McDonald Dr Irene M Monahan Dr Sarah A Nandlal Mr James Newlands Mrs Marcia Nogueira Torres Lima Mr Patrick O’Rourke Mrs Titilola Olowokere Dr Nicholas S Oscroft Dr Jane Pallister Dr Gianni Pardhanani Mr Christopher Park Mrs Bindya Patel Dr Martin R Pattison Dr Mark G Poulson Dr Elaine E Powell Dr Lilian T Pusavat Ms Doris Quartey Dr Vasasntha Ranaweera Dr Simon T Rang Mr Edmundson Reid Dr Jennifer Rowlands (née Cork) Mr Salem A Sassi Dr Marco Satterly (née Bennett)


Mr Gregory J D Scopes Ms Delia M Seeve Mr Mohamed J Sheikh Mr Amir M Sheikh Dr Mala Singh Dr Angela M Skuce Dr Annabel M Smart Dr Li Sun Mrs Emma L Temple Dr Alexander M Terris Dr Elizabeth Thackray (née Rout)Mr Stephen Thomas Dr Noah D Thomson Dr Linda Thorpe (née Sercombe) Mrs Ruth E Townsend Dr Elizabeth C Turner Mr John P Twigger Ms Carina L Vaughan Ms Magdalena Viera-Maria Mr Jonathan Vince Dr Julie Wearmouth Mr Daniel Whibley Dr Mani Williams Ms Davina Wilson Dr Fiona Wilson (née Sinclair) Dr Yufeng Zhang Dr Musa K Zuanah

1998Dr Helen Adcock Dr Imran Ahmed Dr Adla I Al-Mekaimi Mrs Renolda M Antonyrajah Ms Trish Balfe Dr Saqib Barlas Dr Jonathan Barratt Ms Vivienne M Bell Ms Lesley Y Best Ms Diana M Bolton Ms Lucy Bowden Ms Claire J Breslin Mrs Louise Brown Ms Karen F Burgess Ms Helen J Campbell Ms Sarah J Campbell Mr Harpinder S Chauhan Ms Claire L Chazot Dr Lijia Chen Dr Jennifer J Colley Dr Matthew L Cowan Mr Dudley S P S Craig Mrs Shirley Dissanayake-CampbellMr Tony Duffy Dr Tamar A El Kholy Ms Teresa E M Elwes Ms Olga Evans Dr Mohsen Falsafi Mrs Kaarina D Forrester Ms Madaleine C Gallagher Dr Andrea C Gallagher Ms Aleksandra Gentry Mrs Ruth V Goddard (née Hatton) Ms Hazel J Goodwin Mrs Jacquetta C M Goy Mr Andrew Griffin Mr Mark E Griffith Dr Christine Halek Ms Joy Hall

Mr Christopher J Hasted Dr Corrie A Heald Ms Julie Hearn Dr Victoria J Heaton Dr Norman A Hindson Dr Sarah L Jacques Ms Nesrine Jalal Ms Sharon Y James Ms Elizabeth C Jeffery Dr Ian Jenkins Dr Rachel Joyce Ms Veena Kalia Ms Patricia Keaveney Dr Beatrice A Keller Dr Julie A Kerby Dr Khalid S Khan Ms Elizabeth C King Mr James Kirkby-Bott Dr Mark R Lambie Mr David F Land Ms Karen A Lobb Dr Zafar Maan Ms Leanne MacKenzie Dr Vinayakamoorthy Majuran Ms Suzanne Marriott Dr Nicholas P Martin Dr Jane S Martin Dr Halley Mathew Mr Paul Matthewman Mrs Kavita Maung Ms Heidi May Mrs Rachel M Mayers Dr Afshan McCarthy Ms Linda McDonald Mr Bryan D McHugh Mrs Jennifer D L McLaughlin Dr Shahram Mehdi

Zadeh Kashani Mrs Ruth K Merrifield

Mr Ian P Mew Mr Nader Moghaddam Dr Claudia R Moncada Ms Jennifer M Morcom Dr Zoe S C Morris Dr Sarah L Muddle Mr Brian M Munro Dr Bianca H Muthesius Dr Eleanor M S Ngan-Soo Dr Ashok D B Nikapota Dr Katarzyna Norman Mrs Jennifer Norrie Mrs Lola Ogunleye Dr Kehinde A Omisakin Dr Uvarajen G Paratian Dr Dhanapana Piyadasa Dr Emma H Plugge Dr Kelly D Powell Mr Salahuddin Q Qureshi Ms Tharsne Ragupathy Dr Priyan Ratnasingham Mr Philip B Rawlins Dr Leonaura U Rhodes Dr Sarah Richards

(née Lawrence)Mr Shamit Roy Ms Noreen Ryan Dr Dominic F Sacco Dr Sharvanu Saha Ms Ruth Sampson (née Bacon) Ms Lisa S Sandford Dr Penelope J Sayer Dr Ian G Sayers Dr Timothy E Scott Mrs Clodagh Shaer Dr Yera V Shah (née Patel) Dr Thomas S Smith Mr Steven Southall Dr Anthony J Spencer


LOST ALUMNI

Dr Sian M Stokes Ms Bibi R Subratty Mrs Wendy Surawy Mr Simon G C Sydserff Dr James S Tait Dr Shana C H Tam Ms Geraldine M Taylor Dr Elizabeth Tebbs Dr Daniel Thompson Dr Isabel J Titlow Ms Hilary Travis Mr Wayne Turnbull Ms Diane M Turner Ms Alison J C Turner Ms Freya C Tyrer Dr John L Usher Dr Uma S Vajpeyi Dr Helen J Vickerstaff Dr Jennifer K Waters Mr Paul Watters Rev Peter R Wells Mrs Penelope A Wells Ms Susan M Whomes Ms Lisa Wilde Mr Mark A Witchell Dr Ismail K C Wong Mrs Jennifer M Wonnacott Dr Charlotte A Wunsch Mr Dominic M Young Dr Hassan Ziaaddini

1999Dr Mohamed A Abonaji Dr Akhlaq Ahmad Dr Katherine E Ahmed Dr Mohammad A Akhavani Seyed Charandabi Dr Samih Al-Hayek Mr David R Allegranza Mr Yiorgos Anagnostou Mr Brian Anderson Dr Nicola J Attwell Ms Folashade O Badejo Ms Katherine A S Baker Mrs Clarissa L Broderick Ms Charlotte A Brodhurst Dr Matthew J Brookes Dr Claire J Brookings Dr Joanne L Brown Mr James D W Campbell Ms Jane A H Camps-Linney Ms Geraldine A Causton Ms Dawn P Chamberlain Dr Murray J Chapman Mr Kaushik Chaudhuri Dr Mei Y Choy Dr David A R Cripps Dr Tamsin E Crowley Ms Anne Cygler Dr Benjamin Q Davis Dr Vincent D J Dubois Dr Sarah L Dudley Dr Jane A Edwards Dr Wissam El-Jouzi Dr Justine K Elliott Dr Amanda E Evans (née Davey) Ms Jay J M Evans Mrs Rosalind A Fairbrass Dr Sylwia Ferguson Mr Djaki M Gbedji Dr Sarah E Hadland

Dr Quamdeen A Hakeem-Habeeb Dr Ritu Handa Dr Jennifer A Hollowell Dr Claire V Hooper Dr Sarah E Hull (née Kilbee) Ms Claire M James Mr Stephen E Jamieson Dr Ilesh V Jani Dr Riadh P E Jazrawi Ms Priti S Kadoo Mr Marc P Kay Ms Elizabeth Kayiya Dr Shailesh Kumar Dr Mustafa A Kurt Mrs Geetha Langheit Dr Peter D Leman Dr Andrew P Leonard Dr Mei Y L Lim Dr Phin Lim Dr Emma L Lines Ms Yvonne LuMsden Mr William H Majrowski Mrs Amber Mallick Dr Ahmad Matoorian-Pour Mrs Sharon M Matson Ms Lucia M McGrogan Ms Sarah J McGuire Dr Christopher G Millar Dr James E Mitchell Ms Julia S Mlambo Mr Akram F Montaser-Ragab Dr Claudia L Morley Mr Yousef Mortazavi Ms Jane L Muston Dr Elizabeth Mylott Mr Michael J Nash Dr Magnus J Nelson Ms Omolara Ogunremi Dr Rosemary Orleans-Ansah

Dr Oguz Ozcelik Dr Irumee Pai Ms Anna Parker Dr Kiran Patel Dr Svetlana Pochernina Mr Avtar S Rajbans Mrs Lineo Ramataboe-Henry Ms Lisa M Reynolds Dr Jago S Ridout Mrs Tracy J Rigo Dr John A Robertson Dr Ori Ron Mr Jonathan R Rowe Dr Malcolm P Savage Dr David Scott Mr Andrew Scott-Clark Dr David N Slack Mr Michael J Smithson Mr Abiodun Sowunmi Dr Archibald J D Speirs Mrs Katherine Strachan Mrs Catharine E Sullivan Dr Mohammad A Tahir Mr Aarun S C Taylor Dr Bryan P Togher Dr Furat N Wahab Dr Ruth H Walker Dr Saadia N Wasty Ms Lucy Watson Mr Nicholas J Watts Dr David J Whooley Dr Laura J Wollaston Mr Oliver G W Wong Mrs Sharon Wright

(née Cannadine)Dr Suhayr T Xavier Dr Shaoping Xie


Professor Hamid Ghodse (1938–2012)

PROFESSOR GHODSE DIED ON 27 DECEMBER 2012 AT HOME FOLLOWING A SHORT ILLNESS. HE IS SURVIVED BY HIS WIFE BARBARA, CHILDREN HOSSEIN, NASSRIN AND REZA, AND GRANDCHILDREN LEILA, KIYAN, JONAH AND TARANEH.

Professor Ghodse was a professor of psychiatry and international drug policy at St George’s. He was also head of the renowned International Centre for Drug Policy (ICDP), which he established at the university.

Originally from Iran, where he qualified in medicine in 1965, Professor Ghodse came to St George’s in 1978 and was appointed to the country’s first chair in addictive behaviour in 1987.

Through his work at St George’s, he established himself as a leading figure in addiction science, the development of treatment services, and the expansion of professional training. The Academic Department of Addictive Behaviour that he established comprised hospital-based out-patients clinics, in-patient assessment, detoxification, recovery and rehabilitation wards, and community-based multidisciplinary therapeutic teams.

In medical education, he led the establishment of a range of undergraduate, postgraduate and multi-professional training programmes in addiction. He was responsible for setting up the first MSc course on addictive behaviour, which led to other courses for different health disciplines and set the standard for academic addiction education and training.

A MAJOR ACHIEVEMENT WAS THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE NATIONAL SUBSTANCE MISUSE IN THE UNDERGRADUATE MEDICAL CURRICULUM PROJECT, WHICH RESULTED IN A CURRICULUM THAT HAS BEEN IMPLEMENTED BY ALL MEDICAL SCHOOLS IN ENGLAND.

During his many years working in substance misuse and addiction research, Professor Ghodse advised governments around the world on medical education and health policy issues. He was a former president of the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), the United Nations’ drug watchdog, being elected to the post 11 times. He also held many senior positions in national and international organisations.

PROFESSOR HAMID GHODSE

Professor Ghodse was editor of the journal International Psychiatry, and a member of the editorial board of several periodicals on psychiatry, substance misuse and addiction. He published extensively in his field, including Ghodse’s Drugs and Addictive Behaviour: A Guide to Treatment.

Raymond Yans, current president of the INCB, paid tribute to his predecessor, whose death he described as an “irreparable loss”: “He always showed the deepest compassion for the suffering of people affected by drug abuse and worked passionately to bring about changes to reduce such suffering worldwide. He touched the lives of many, from those being treated for drug addiction to health professionals in the field, academia and the international community.”

Mr Yans also praised Professor Ghodse’s “remarkable leadership, wisdom and elegant diplomacy”, and said his “legacy and vision in the field of international drug control will provide guidance and inspiration for generations to come.”

OBITUARIES


Aubrey Leatham (1920-2012)

DR AUBREY LEATHAM WAS A HIGHLY REGARDED CARDIOLOGIST RECOGNISED AROUND THE WORLD FOR HIS PIONEERING WORK IN CARDIAC AUSCULTATION AND PACING.

He established the cardiac unit at St George’s Hospital, Hyde Park Corner in the 1950s, and his eminence was such that many of the UK’s best cardiologists were taught by him.

Aubrey Leatham studied medicine at Cambridge and St Thomas’ in the 1940s; his career in cardiology began when he joined Sir John Parkinson as junior registrar at the National Heart Hospital in 1945. It was under Parkinson’s supervision that his interest in auscultation, the art of listening to the heart through a stethoscope, first took hold. Up to that point, listening to the heart had been a fairly inexact science but Leatham was determined to change that and set about devising new apparatus involving sound filters and multiple microphones to record heart sounds and murmurs.

In 1951 Leatham joined the eminent Australian cardiologist Paul Wood as assistant director of the Institute of Cardiology.

TOGETHER THEY ATTRACTED AN OUTSTANDING TEAM OF CARDIOLOGISTS TO MAKE LONDON A WORLD RENOWNED CENTRE FOR THE BURGEONING SPECIALTY OF CARDIAC MEDICINE.

It was Wood that encouraged Leatham to take up a new post as head of cardiology at St George’s in 1954 at a time when cardiology was rarely a department in its own right.

Leatham arrived at St George’s with the challenge of developing a department that originally consisted of one technician and an ECG machine. He set about this by recruiting over time a team that would include a bioengineer (Geoffrey Davies), physiologist/technician (Anne Ingram) medical physicist (Graham Leech) pathologist (Michael Davies), radiologist (Keith Jefferson) and surgeon (Harold Siddons and later John Parker); Leatham’s vision was a multi-disciplinary team, something well ahead of its time. Cardiac medicine flourished at St George’s during Leatham’s thirty year tenure with the department training many future eminent specialists.

Two of Leatham’s greatest achievements were a modified stethoscope that became a clinicians’ favourite for many years and the invention of the first endocardial cardiac pacemaker. Leatham’s stethoscope, devised in 1958, was a vast improvement on other devices available at the time. He adapted the bell chest piece on the stethoscope to improve acoustic efficiency and shortened the length of the tubing to enable better conduction of sound.

In 1955 Leatham worked with his technician, Geoffrey Davies, on a prototype cardiac pacemaker and by 1961, working with Harold Siddons and O’Neal Humphries, Leatham implanted the first UK ‘indwelling’ pacemaker into the heart of a 65-year-old man who had suffered repeated heart attacks. Within five years Leatham’s team had successfully treated around 1000 patients.

Aubrey is survived by his wife Judith, their son and three daughters.

DR AUBREY LEATHAM

IN MEMORIAM

The month and/or year of death are given where known.

Alumni

(March 2012)

(October 2012)

(December 2012)

(November 2012)

StaffChristiane Fenske (February 2013)


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