Royal Papworth Hospital

08/12/2025

06/12/2025

Improving the experience of our heart and lung patients 🫀🫁

Meet James, a physiotherapist here at Royal Papworth.

Described as ‘passionate and innovative’ by colleagues, he has been instrumental this year in introducing two innovative airway clearance solutions for patients with lung disease and patients recovering after surgery.

He spearheaded the introduction of a new device called the Swedish nose, which replaces the traditional tracheostomy mask, and led the adoption of a new chest clearance device, significantly enhancing patient care and experience.

As a result of this fantastic work, James was recently named as one of three finalists in the Quality Improvement category at the upcoming Royal Papworth Staff Awards 2025.

Congratulations, James and thank you for identifying and delivering meaningful quality improvements, benefiting the care we can provide and the experience our patients receive. 💙

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🏆 The Royal Papworth Staff Awards take place on Thursday 18 December at Queens' College, Cambridge. We are grateful to host this annual celebration of our staff thanks to the incredible support of sponsors Skanska, Papworth Hospital Charity, Procea Limited, Cyferd, CMR Surgical and Softcat.

03/12/2025

Victor, a staff nurse in our critical care team, has been praised for his exceptional compassion. 🫶

In his role as a colleague, union rep and co-chair of our race equality network, Victor supports people through personal and professional challenges, often going the extra mile to find solutions to problems.

He is a great advocate for fairness and inclusion, especially for junior and international staff and his work has made a lasting impact.

Victor is one of three finalists in the Compassion Award (Clinical) category at the upcoming Royal Papworth Staff Awards 2025, later this month.

Thank you, Victor, for displaying such empathy, integrity and dedication each day at work. 💙

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🏆 The Royal Papworth Hospital Staff Awards take place on Thursday 18 December at Queens' College, Cambridge. We are grateful to host this annual celebration of our staff thanks to the incredible support of sponsors Skanska, Royal Papworth Hospital Charity, Procea Limited, Cyferd, CMR Surgical and Softcat.

01/12/2025

A mother’s heartfelt appeal this Christmas 💙

Four years ago, 17-year-old Ed was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition that weakens the heart muscle. His only chance of survival was a heart transplant. 🫀

Fortunately, Ed received his transplant and thanks to the outstanding NHS treatment and care he’s received since, he’s thriving today.

Ed’s mum Tandy said: “Royal Papworth Hospital is a special place, and we are incredibly grateful for the extraordinary medical care Ed received. But the months waiting in hospital will stay with us forever.

“During our stay we realised how desperately patients and families like ours need calm, uplifting spaces in the hospital. Spaces to unwind, sometimes cry and sometimes simply gather strength for the often-long days ahead.”

“That is why I am asking you to join me in supporting Royal Papworth Hospital Charity's ‘Brighter Spaces, Brighter Futures’ campaign, which aims to develop welcoming spaces for patients, families and staff.”

Discover how you can help make a difference today:
https://royalpapworthcharity.com/Brighter-Futures

29/11/2025

Celebrating our healthcare support workers 🙌

This week we have been celebrating our healthcare support workers, who play an essential role in supporting our patients in their treatment and recovery.

On Monday, a special lunch event was held to enjoy food and drinks, courtesy of Royal Papworth Hospital Charity.

Then on Wednesday, an event was held in our atrium for all to stop by, celebrate their colleagues, participate in a quiz and leave positive messages of support and appreciation for healthcare support workers and the work they do.

Thank you to the more than 250 healthcare support workers here at Royal Papworth, whose hands-on role plays an important part in patient care, every single day. 💙

28/11/2025

Making history - Sir Terence English 🫀

In this clip from BBC Look East, you can see some rare behind-the-scenes footage from Royal Papworth in 1979 as Sir Terence English undertook the UK’s first successful heart transplant operation, helping Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust to become the world-renowned hospital it is today.

Watch the full report celebrating Sir Terence's life here, which includes tributes from consultant cardiologist Dr Jayan Parameshwar and consultant surgeon Mr Frank Wells:

🔗 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaF-2Ulv3TE

⛪ Funeral details:
We have heard from Sir Terence's family that his funeral will be held on Monday 15 December at 14:00, at University Church of St Mary's in Oxford.

The family has kindly chosen Royal Papworth Hospital Charity as one of two causes if people want to make donations in Sir Terence's name. 💙

27/11/2025

Eight successive months of reducing our waiting list 📉

Back in February, we had 7,394 patients waiting for treatment at our hospital and our waiting list was growing.

But since then, we’ve reduced our waiting list and waiting times for patients every single month.

By the end of October our teams had reduced this down to 5,893 – a decrease of 20%.

That’s 1,501 fewer people waiting for our specialist care.

As well as the size of waiting lists, the NHS closely monitors the length of time people are waiting too. The standard is that patients wait no more than 18 weeks from referral to elective (planned) treatment.

Back in February, we were achieving this for just 61.8% of patients.

By the end of October, we had improved this to 73.8%.

This progress is the result of dedication, teamwork, and focused effort from every one of our teams - both on the front line and behind the scenes - as part of our elective care recovery programme.

We’ve opened extra clinics, carried out additional weekend procedures, introduced innovative technology, and reshaped how we work - all with one goal in mind: to improve the experience for the people waiting for our care.

Harvey McEnroe, our chief operating officer, said: "Thank you to all our teams - it's a fantastic achievement and one they should all be proud of. They’re making a positive difference, helping people to get treated and return to the things they love.”

We understand how difficult it can be for people to live well while they wait, and we’re committed to doing even more to bring our waiting list down. 💙

25/11/2025

Remembering Sir Terence English – a true transplant pioneer 🫀🫁

We are sad to announce that pioneering heart transplant surgeon Sir Terence English, who undertook the UK’s first successful heart transplant operation and helped Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust to become the world-renowned hospital it is today, has died at the age of 93.

Sir Terence led the operation at our old site, in Papworth Everard, in August 1979 on patient Keith Castle, paving the way for thousands more lives to be saved through transplants - this includes more than 8,500 heart transplant recipients in the UK.

He worked at Royal Papworth from 1972 to 1995 and died peacefully at his home in Oxford on Sunday night (23 November).

Sir Terence was a relative latecomer to medicine, originally studying mining engineering at university. However with him, our hospital achieved an international reputation for heart transplantation and then, later, heart-lung and lung transplants.

In 1984, alongside Professor John Wallwork, he was involved in Europe’s first heart-lung combined transplant, retrieving the donor organs. Then in 1991, for his contributions to surgery and medicine, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.

Sir Terence leaves behind his four children, eight grandchildren and his wife, Judith. The thoughts of everyone at Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust are with the family at this difficult time.

Finally, on behalf of the many thousands of patients to have benefitted from a transplant and the incredible gift of life since, thank you, Sir Terence. 🩵

Discover more about the incredible life and achievements of this pioneering surgeon:
🔗 https://royalpapworth.nhs.uk/our-hospital/latest-news/remembering-sir-terence-english

NHS England | NHS Organ Donation

24/11/2025

When teamwork saves lives and welcomes new ones 🫶🏼

Laura, aged 33, lives with pulmonary hypertension (PH) - a serious condition that makes pregnancy extremely high-risk.

When she went into labour at just 31 weeks, she was rushed by ambulance from her home in Norwich to Royal Papworth. 🚑 🏥

What followed was a meticulously coordinated operation involving dozens of skilled NHS professionals working seamlessly across our hospital and The Rosie Hospital to keep both mother and baby safe.

In an extraordinary display of rapid planning, clinical expertise and calm, coordinated action, baby Samuel was delivered by caesarean section in one of our operating theatres - the result of exceptional collaboration across multiple specialist teams. 👶🏼

Despite the urgency of the situation, Laura said she felt completely supported throughout: “Everyone knew exactly what they were doing. I remember thinking, ‘I’m definitely in the right place’. I’ve never known a hospital like this; it’s such a special place.”

A heartfelt thank you to every member of staff involved, your dedication truly saves lives 💙

🔗 Read more: https://royalpapworth.nhs.uk/our-hospital/latest-news/teamwork-saves-lives-remarkable-arrival-baby-samuel

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust | East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust | NHS England

19/11/2025

Cutting waiting times and speeding up treatment for sleep apnoea 😴

Over the past few months, our Respiratory Support and Sleep Centre (RSSC) team has transformed the experience for patients undergoing sleep studies.

Sleep studies are used to diagnose (or rule out) a condition called sleep apnoea, which is also called obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA).

Untreated sleep apnoea can cause excessive sleepiness, poor concentration and increase the risk of other health conditions - so early diagnosis and treatment are key.

Earlier this year, patients could wait up to 12 weeks for their sleep study (polysomnography) results. Now, some are receiving them within days, thanks to:

💻 New AI-powered analysis that halves the time it takes to generate sleep study reports
👨‍⚕️ More consultant sessions to review patients’ results
✔️ Smarter identification of urgent patients
🏥 Closer collaboration across our teams, from diagnosis in the sleep lab to CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) treatment

In some high-risk cases, treatment can even start the same day as the sleep study, helping patients begin their journey to better health without delay.

With more than 500 new referrals each month, our sleep service is now faster, more responsive, and equipped to meet growing demand. 📈

This progress is part of our elective care recovery programme - reducing waits, speeding up diagnosis and ensuring timely treatment for those who need it most.

A huge thank you to our sleep lab and CPAP teams for your innovation, dedication and teamwork. You’re helping our patients sleep better and live better. 💙

18/11/2025

Royal Papworth on Channel 4's Stand Up To Cancer ⬆️📺

Teams from Royal Papworth are set to feature in a live Channel 4 programme for Stand Up To Cancer 2025.

The pioneering programme, presented by Davina McCall, will highlight the expertise, innovation and dedication of Cambridge clinicians as 'Cancer Clinic: Live' broadcasts from a special one-off cancer clinic at our neighbours Addenbrooke’s on the evening of Friday 12 December.

For the first time on UK television, viewers will see clinical consultations with cancer specialists from Royal Papworth and Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust unfold in real time.

Viewers will hear from patients and their families whose cancer journeys have been followed for several weeks - from diagnosis to results - as they continue through treatment.

Thank you to all our teams who have been involved so far, including our lung cancer, day ward, outpatient and radiology teams.

Thank you also to our NHS colleagues throughout the lung cancer screening programme who have been involved, particularly North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust.

And thank you to our patients who have agreed to be filmed at such a significant time in their lives. 💙

🔗 https://royalpapworth.nhs.uk/our-hospital/latest-news/cambridge-channel-4-live-stand-up-to-cancer-2025

Photo credit: Channel 4

17/11/2025

Leaving our hospital safely following treatment 🏥➡🏡

Being discharged is an important part of a patient’s experience. After all, it’s not healthy to remain in hospital longer than you need to.

Once a patient is well enough, they will be discharged – this simply means that our doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals looking after them feel that they are ready to safely leave our hospital.

Our teams will support with this and we will always involve patients, carers and families in decisions about care, treatment and discharge.

However, there are also a few things that all patients can do to help the discharge process be as smooth as possible.

This helpful page explains more about what to expect, what you can do to help in advance (even before being admitted), more about the day of discharge itself and some commonly asked questions you may find helpful to use when discussing plans with your healthcare team. 💙

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You should start thinking about your discharge from hospital even before you are admitted for your planned procedure