Top position to make strides in healthcare
ARESEARCHER from Edge Hill University has been appointed to a leading role with the Society of Cardiothoracic Surgery for Great Britain and Ireland to drive forward improvements in healthcare.
Dr Bhuvanaswari Bibleraaj, senior lecturer in Perioperative Studies and a key member of the University’s Health Research Institute (HRI), has been appointed to national chair for the nursing and allied health professions arm of the society.
Founded in 1934, the society was initially devoted to the practice of thoracic surgery, which at that time was mostly for tuberculosis.
Today it is the representative body for cardiothoracic surgery in Great Britain and Ireland and strives to influence the direction of education and development of surgeons-intraining and related health care professionals as well as encouraging new concepts and ideas to enhance future practice.
Speaking about her appointment, she said: “I’m delighted to be given this role, which is pivotal in shaping service delivery in cardiothoracic surgery as the speciality moves away from the traditional medical model to multi-disciplinary teams with NAHPs at the core of patient care.
“When I officially take up the post, I’ll be leading six main strategies, around educational development, research and innovation, international collaboration, national workforce planning, membership, patient experience and outcomes.
“This work will help us to continuously improve the quality of healthcare that our members deliver to patients.”
Dr Bibleraaj has 20 years’ experience as a surgical practitioner and her research focuses on training future practitioners in keyhole surgery.
She was chosen as one of the NHS North West’s research Wonder Women in 2019.
Her research interests focus on clinical outcomes and cost-effectiveness in cardiothoracic surgery patients.
She has completed ten clinical trials and published in high impact journals. She is currently working on developing a structured training programme for keyhole conduit harvesting in cardiac surgery.
The university’s Faculty of Health, Social Care and Medicine is one of the largest providers of health and social care education in the North West and home to the new Edge Hill Medical School.
To find out more about courses on offer and the work of researchers from the university’s HRI, visit www.edgehill.ac.uk