Pioneering hip treatment at RJAH shortlisted for national award

The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital is celebrating after being shortlisted for a prestigious national award – recognising its innovative service to treating patients with a common and painful hip condition.

Shropshire’s specialist orthopaedic hospital has been named a finalist in the Acute Sector Innovation of the Year category at the HSJ Awards for its focused shockwave therapy service for patients with Greater Trochanteric Pain Syndrome (GTPS), commonly known as hip bursitis.

The HSJ Awards recognises outstanding achievements and impactful work happening across the NHS, with the Acute Sector Innovation of the Year category celebrating organisations developing new approaches that improve patient care, experience and outcomes, while demonstrating potential to share best practice.

The focused shockwave therapy service was developed following pioneering research led by Mr Robin Banerjee, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, which compared focused shockwave therapy with ultrasound-guided steroid injections.

The study recruited more than 100 patients and followed their outcomes for 12 months. It found that 80% of patients treated with focused shockwave therapy experienced statistically significant improvement, compared with 15% of those who received steroid injections.

The findings were presented at the British Hip Society and published in the Hip International journal in 2021. Following further evaluation by the NHS and National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, focused shockwave therapy was recognised as a valid and effective treatment option for GTPS.

Funding from the League of Friends enabled the Oswestry-based hospital to purchase the specialist equipment needed to deliver the treatment, making the Trust the first and only NHS hospital in the UK to offer this NICE-recognised service.

Mr Banerjee said: “This shortlisting is fantastic recognition of what has been a long journey from research to delivering a completely new service for NHS patients.

“We identified a treatment that could offer patients better outcomes without the need for invasive injections, but the real innovation has been bringing that treatment together with specialist physiotherapy and consultant-led assessment in a much simpler pathway.

“We are incredibly proud to have treated more than 100 patients already and to see the benefits this approach is bringing to patients, while also releasing capacity elsewhere in the NHS.”

The new approach has transformed the patient journey, with diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation delivered through three consecutive weekly outpatient appointments, followed by virtual monitoring through the myrecovery app.

It has also reduced reliance on ultrasound-guided injections, theatre-based image-guided injections and associated consumables, with an average saving of £350 per patient calculated – equating to £37,800 saved across the first 108 patients treated.

Stacey Keegan, Chief Executive, said: “Being shortlisted is a fantastic achievement and recognition of the hard work, expertise and collaboration behind this pioneering service.

“The team has taken an evidence-based innovation from research through to implementation, creating a new treatment pathway that is improving outcomes for patients while making better use of NHS resources.

“I would like to congratulate everyone involved in the development and delivery of this service.”

The winner will be announced at a glittering ceremony taking place on Thursday 19 November at Evolution London.