POPS

Introduction

Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust POPS (Perioperative medicine for Older People Undergoing Surgery) Visiting Professional Programme (VPP) is designed to provide international visiting professionals with the opportunity to experience and learn from the award winning service. POPS was the first such service and started in 2003. It has rapidly become an essential clinical service and is now embedded into routine care. POPS is recognised nationally and internationally as a quality, innovative and clinically effective service and is cited as providing a gold standard of care. 

Programme aims

The programme is aimed at those who wish to extend their experience within a perioperative medicine service and who wish to gain an understanding of the way this is practised and organised within the NHS and how it integrates with patient care pathways. The programme aims to include: 

• Direct experience and exposure to outpatient comprehensive geriatric assessment and optimisation of elective surgical patients 
• Direct experience and exposure to inpatient management of the older adult post operatively and pre operatively for emergency admissions 
• Observation of POPS delivered multi-disciplinary meetings and inpatient board rounds 
• Attendance at POPS in-house teaching sessions and clinical governance meetings 
• The opportunity to share knowledge and expertise with consultants, nurse specialists and allied health professionals 
• Exposure to the wider Ageing and Health department, including inpatient wards, frailty unit in the Emergency Department, speciality clinics (memory, falls, heart failure, movement disorders, bladder and bowel, oncology) and community based working (care home support team, @home, continuing care home, Amputee Rehabilitation Unit) 
• Gaining experience through observing one of the largest teaching hospitals in Central London providing invaluable insights into the workings of the NHS 

Format

The observer will be nominated a supervisor, within the team to coordinate their individual programme. The experience can be tailored to the applicants needs and can include a generic overview of our Ageing and Health service.

Who can apply

This programme is intended for non-U.K. clinicians and service providers including consultants, registrars, nurse specialists, allied health professionals and managers, who are interested in setting up or developing their own perioperative medicine programme for older adults. 

Visitors can apply primarily for an observership (with no hands-on element) or a practical attachment programme. 

Those wishing to apply for the practical attachment must have GMC registration. You can apply for GMC registration directly through the main GMC website. This is likely to take a considerable time to achieve and should be factored into an attachment application.

Programme duration

It is recommended to undertake a placement of between four weeks to three months for a typical observership.

POPS service

The POPS team co-manage older, complex patients undergoing either elective or emergency surgery across all surgical subspecialties at GSTT. 

• Preoperatively, we assess patients and optimise medical, functional, psychological and social status, with the aim of reducing risk and severity of postoperative complications and ensuring a safe and effective discharge from hospital. This input is tailored to the outpatient setting for elective patients and to the time available in emergency admissions. 
• Postoperatively, we provide a geriatric/surgical co-management service. This service is for both elective patients and also for emergency admissions. The team provide hands on medical input for acute medical complications and advise on long term conditions management, direct rehabilitation and ensure safe, effective discharge. 

The POPS team have an active national and international education and training programme for doctors at all grades and allied health professionals (including eLearning modules, annual conferences, curricula and capability frameworks). 

POPS contributes to local and national research and QI studies through collaboration across disciplines and specialties. 

Our Visiting Professional Programme is a unique development experience that allows visitors to observe our team across clinical settings. The attachment will be tailored to the learning needs of the observer and can either broad and generic or highly specific. 

• Alongside the POPS Team, we can also offer an opportunity to experience the wider Ageing and Health Service. 
• This can be provided as part of your POPS timetable, or as a separate programme. 

We are dedicated to broadening international professionals’ clinical expertise and enabling them to observe new skills that can be transferred back to their work place.

Example Timetable

Fees

A course fee per week will be applied; this fee excludes accommodation and travelling expenses. To find out the fee amount please email vpp@gstt.nhs.uk.

Please note

Clinicians are able to offer bursaries or discounted placements on an individual basis. This is at the discretion of the Directorates of GSTT and does not affect the terms and conditions of the Visiting Professional Programme agreements.