Lowering the Steaks

Mechanical Engineering services were approached by business development, in conjunction with dementia nurses, to create an alternative to the standard hospital over bed table.  The current design of all over… Read more »

Evolution of laser safety

As part of its role in providing support for laser safety regionally, NMPCE has produced a short video for health care professionals with any involvement in high power lasers. It does not replace existing training but shows how laser safety could be enhanced and may be useful as CPD.

8000 face shields supplied to front-line staff

Staff within NMPCE have set up an assembly line to make face shields, a part of the enhanced personal protective equipment (PPE) needed by NHS front-line staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. With the help of colleagues from other Directorates in Newcastle Hospitals, Newcastle University, Northumbria University and industry, more than 8000 face shields have been delivered to clinical staff to date.

Nuclear Medicine Trainees’ Journey

We both began our nuclear medicine careers as trainee clinical technologists in medical physics at University Hospital of Hartlepool in 2017. Having previously graduated with science degrees; Cherelle in Sport… Read more »

Results from the UK Airway Intervention Registry (AIR) published: balloon dilatation for paediatric airway stenosis

Scientists from NMPCE have led a national project to study the safety and efficacy of using endoscopic balloon dilatation to treat narrowing of airways in children. The study is reported in a recent paper, written in collaboration with clinical colleagues from Newcastle, Alder Hey, Guy’s & St Thomas’, Birmingham Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Sheffield Children’s Hospital, Great Ormond Street and the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence. It found that procedural success was achieved in 88% of patients and 6% of procedures were associated with in-hospital complications, with no long-term adverse safety concerns. The study provides important evidence that will support updates to national guidance.

Medical Physics team win at the Bright Ideas in Health Award 2019

A team from the Northern Medical Physics and Clinical Engineering Directorate has won an award at the Bright Ideas in Health Awards, sponsored by the Academic Health Science Network in the North East and North Cumbria. The NMPCE team of Alison Bray, Helen Elliott and Tim Powell are working in partnership with colleagues from the Kromek Group, the NIHR Newcastle MedTech and In-Vitro Diagnostics Cooperative and the Radiology Directorate of Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust to develop a novel imaging device for detecting breast cancer.

Tanzanian elective featured in IPEM’s Scope Magazine

In January 2019, Scientist Training Programme (STP) trainees Harry Slinger and Tom Curtis took the opportunity to travel to Tanzania to work at the Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre (KCMC) for their elective period. During their stay, they gave a series of lectures on imaging physics and radiation safety; performed quality assurance tests on KCMC X-ray equipment and completed a small patient radiation dose audit. Electives are an essential component of the STP as they provide trainees with the opportunity to expand their personal and professional horizons by working in a different healthcare setting from the one experienced day to day.

Study reports real-world evidence of a novel therapy for severe asthma

A study, led by investigators from NMPCE, has reported evidence for the efficacy of bronchial thermoplasty (BT), a novel non-pharmacological therapy intended for people with severe asthma, in routine UK clinical practice. It is the largest real-world study of BT to date, and followed 133 patients who were treated at one of the 11 UK centres which offered the procedure.