Research and development

Here at Yeovil we have a long-established and excellent reputation for the high quality of our research activity. Our achievements in research have raised the profile of YDH, attracting both national and international interest, and have demonstrated that a district general hospital can make a major contribution to the national research agenda.

Yeovil District Hospital is the second best small acute trust in the country when it comes to its research activities and it has recently achieved the second highest uptake in the world in a stroke trial.

The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)  has published a league table detailing the research activity within each NHS Trust. For the first time, similar sized hospitals are able to compare themselves against other hospitals of a similar size. Yeovil District Hospital is currently (August 2012) placed second in the small acute trusts category, conducting 66 studies and recruiting 746 patients. Last year was a record breaking year for Yeovil District Hospital winning over £1m of research funding.

Research and Development Manager, Barbara Williams-Yesson said: “It is important to Yeovil District Hospital that we offer care of the highest quality and conduct research to the highest standards. We ensure that research is seen as a treatment option and this has led to many patients agreeing to be part of a study. Our patients are happy to be approached and have a research study discussed with them and we get a lot of positive feedback. They appreciate the opportunity to participate in high quality research because they know that they benefit from access to new treatments and medicines.”

An example of Yeovil’s research success is the ‘AVERT’ study, an international trial looking at early rehabilitation in patients admitted to the hospital following a very recent stroke. Yeovil has recruited 16 patients into this complex study and is the highest recruiting site in the UK and second in the world, only behind Australia, where the study originates from.

Yeovil District Hospital has also been awarded a series of research grants for colorectal surgery over the last ten years. The Department of Health recently awarded the Trust a prestigious £250,000 research grant aimed at improving the quality of life for patients with rectal cancer. This research is led by Consultant Colorectal Surgeon Mr Nader Francis and involves 50 patients from Yeovil District Hospital and five other hospitals aiming to identify the most beneficial time for patients to have surgery following chemo-radiotherapy for rectal cancer.

Mr Francis said: “Surgery is the mainstay of treatment for rectal cancer but when the tumour is advanced, patients may have to undergo chemo-radiotherapy in order to reduce the tumour size prior to surgery. The aim of this randomised controlled trial is to evaluate the best time for surgery after chemo-radiotherapy and its impact on complexity of surgery especially with laparoscopic (key-hole) technique.   By delaying surgery it may be possible to reduce operating risks and times which have the potential to reduce complications, enhance recovery and avoid the need to give the patient a stoma. This not only improves patient outcomes but reduces the cost to the NHS.”

Research and Development Director, Dr Steve Gore said: “The Trust is internationally recognised as a high performing research site. We are well set up to carry out quality research work offering new treatment opportunities to our patients and working to clear protocols so we can achieve the highest standards of care possible. I am delighted that the NIHR league table has highlighted our efforts.”