A portrait of a winning team

Following King Edward VII’s Hospital’s win in the management excellence category at the LaingBuisson awards, where judges praised the team’s values and diversification, its chief executive Lindsey Condron outlines what has been behind the success.

Our management approach has always been informed by our commitment to providing safe and compassionate care to every patient. 

We aim to attract the best in the field and our specialists are known for setting industry standards worldwide. 

Our organisational culture has been developed, ensuring that the voices of our patients and staff are heard and acted upon through the fearless learning culture we have embedded. 

At King Edward VII’s, we aim to be collaborative in the way that we deliver care. We bring specialists together in multidisciplinary teams of consultants, specialist nurses and other healthcare professionals to give patients access to an entire team of experts to assess, plan and manage care jointly. 

As such, we can offer the best treatment options and manage patients efficiently. This is one of the elements that allow us to remain innovative, drawing from the team’s expertise in collaboration with myself and the rest of the leadership team to drive the hospital forward.

The values of our organisation are embedded throughout and this is underpinned by a commitment to be kind to each other. 

We also strive to provide a personalised service to each patient that visits the hospital and to ensure that our staff retention, well-being and recognition are at the heart of our decision-making. 

What is the hospital proud of in terms of treatment and technology?

One of the most notable successes of the last year has been our pioneering approach to cancer surgery. 

Our dual surgery DIEP flap reconstruction, with a lymphatic microsurgical healing approach, has reduced the risk of secondary breast cancer-related lymphedema. 

Without the procedure, patients risk excess fluid collecting in the tissue, but our cancer team’s ground-breaking approach, born from a dedication to improve outcomes, is able to redirect waste from the lymphatic system into the veins. 

We’ve also adopted technologies to improve treatment. Already having a well-established robotics programme in the urology department, the team identified an opportunity to use the hospital’s expertise in colorectal surgery. 

Utilising technology and drawing on our excellent clinicians allows procedures to be precise and less invasive. So far, the team has carried out 500 major procedures, which have seen patients’ pain reduced and faster recovery times. 

And finally, our work with the clinical informatics company, Copeland Clinical AI lets us analyse data to provide specialists with  risk-adjusted, benchmarked outcome data about mortality and avoidable harm rates in inpatient care to identify patterns, triggers and discover any areas that could be improved. 

This has already improved productivity and efficiency and we’re looking forward to continuing to advance in this area in 2022. 

How is the hospital giving back to society? 

Outside of transforming patient management, our longstanding charitable status means we are committed to supporting the Armed Forces. 

Beyond providing medical grants, our team has set up a pain management programme to support veterans. Our hospital-based service exclusively for veterans has delivered, to date, 33 programmes and provided 450 veterans with life-changing treatment to reduce dependence on medication and manage pain. 

The success of the programme speaks for itself, 100% of veterans attending the programme would recommend the service.

We have also worked with the NHS throughout the pandemic, with a particular focus on providing treatment to cancer patients. We are proud to have treated more than 1,200 NHS patients in 2020. 

Consultant colorectal surgeon Mr James Kinross:

‘As surgeons, we are always striving for the best outcomes for our patients, and we strongly believe that this means using a digital, data-driven approach, as well as the best in surgical expertise and robotic technologies. 

‘Working with a hospital that treats innovation as paramount allows us to prioritise our patients and provide them with the best care 

Kate Farrow, director of operations: 

‘Having an empowered and cohesive team is paramount to the success of our organisation. 

‘Clinical and non-clinical teams across the hospital understand the connective role we play in a patient’s pathway and journey through the hospital. 

‘We are there to support the patients, our clinicians and each other to deliver outstanding healthcare and foster a supportive and fun place to work while always looking at ways to improve our productivity and efficiency.  

‘We have created a culture which allows us to make decisions quickly and drive innovation across the organisation at pace. 

‘I think this is hugely appealing to our consultants and patients and makes for a great place to work.’

• See ‘Breast cancer repair innovation offered by King Edward VII unit’ 

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