A Good Week for Maidstone Hospital: a National Award, and Two Clinical Trials Punching Above Their Weight

It's been a strong few days for Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust (MTW): a national award for one member of staff, and recognition for two separate clinical trials the Trust has helped push forward - one on treating wrist fractures, the other on a severe form of bowel disease.

Tina Fennelly, a healthcare support worker at the Kent and Medway Orthopaedic Centre at Maidstone Hospital, has received a Chief Nursing Officer Award from NHS England - a national award recognising the contribution healthcare and maternity support workers make to patient care, with nominations reviewed by a national panel every two months. Her nomination read: “Tina ensures patients feel safe, respected, and genuinely cared for. Her compassion extends to relatives as well. A family recently described her as a 'lifeline' during a difficult admission.”

MTW has also been recognised for its recruitment to the DRAFT3 study, which is comparing casts against removable splints for treating wrist fractures in patients aged 16 and over - testing the theory that a removable splint could work as well as the traditional four-to-six-week plaster cast, without the need for follow-up hospital visits. Over 540 patients were screened locally, and 109 agreed to take part - 54 given a cast, 55 a splint, with both groups followed up for a year. MTW ranked second nationally for recruitment to the study, led at the Trust by Principal Investigator Anna Tunnicliff, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon Ranjit Sehjal, and associate principal investigators Dr Chiedozie Ikwu and Sarah de Coverley.

Separately, MTW's Digestive Diseases Unit has been commended for its contribution to the ACESO study, which is investigating whether adding a medication called upadacitinib to intravenous steroids improves outcomes for adults with acute severe ulcerative colitis - a form of inflammatory bowel disease that can require hospital admission or surgery in its worst cases. The study's Chief Investigator, Professor Shaji Sebastian of Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, praised the contribution of MTW's Associate Principal Investigator, Dr Silas Muthuchand: “MTW has made a significant contribution to the ACESO study, and the dedication of Dr Muthuchand and the team has helped ensure the trial continues to make strong progress.” MTW's own Principal Investigator for the trial, Consultant Gastroenterologist Dr Paul Blaker, said the study “could help more patients recover without needing further medication or surgery, improving both outcomes and quality of life.”

Source: Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust - Chief Nursing Officer Award, DRAFT3 wrist fracture study and ACESO bowel disease study.