Dudley consultant uses Hillsborough experience to train surgeons
A Black Country consultant's first-hand experience of the Hillsborough tragedy has inspired him to help train surgeons across the world deal with critically ill patients.
Neil Molony, an ear, nose and throat consultant with the Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, has just returned from the UAE where he taught leading medics how to train their own staff.
Neil was a patient in hospital in Liverpool when critically injured football fans were brought into his ward following the FA Cup semi-final disaster back in 1989. He was in hospital recovering from life-saving neurosurgery after falling from a horse.
Many of the victims of Hillsborough did not die at the scene, but succumbed to their injuries later in hospital. As a result, a new training programme for surgical doctors was developed and Neil has been involved in delivering the training since it began in 2001.
Care of the Critically Ill Surgical Patient (CCrlSP) is now a compulsory course for all junior doctors in surgical specialities. Since 2014, Neil has 'trained the trainers' – and this year, is sharing his expertise as course co-director around the world.
He said: "I have just returned from Sharjah, Dubai, and will soon be going to Abu Dhabi. In August we are running the course in Pune, India, and hoping to also go to Norway this year.
“At Hillsborough, while the Advanced Trauma Life Support system worked very well at the stadium, that was designed for use on site, and there was a lack of systems in place at the hospital to deal with something on that scale.
“CCrISP is a very good model for junior surgeons and the principles learned can be used daily, not just in major incidents. It is improving outcomes for patients.”
The training encourages those taking part to take responsibility for critically ill patients, to predict and prevent problems that patients might encounter while in hospital, to function well within the surgical team and communicate effectively with colleagues from other disciplines.
