St James’s Hospital is first Irish hospital to be awarded prestigious European accreditation in thoracic surgery
European Society of Thoracic Surgeons recognises high quality thoracic surgical oncology care available in St James’s Hospital through the ESTS accreditation
In a first for Ireland, St James’s Hospital’s Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery has been awarded institutional accreditation by the European Society of Thoracic Surgeons (ESTS).
St James’s Hospital is home to the largest thoracic surgical oncology programme in Ireland and the accreditation recognises the high-quality care provided by St James’s Hospital to lung cancer patients, in particular. The hospital provides surgical care to approximately 55% of the Irish population with lung cancer and the accreditation acknowledges the role that St James’s Hospital plays in improving national survival rates from the disease.
The ESTS institutional accreditation aims to standardise general thoracic surgery practice across Europe and St James’s Hospital has supplied data on surgeries performed to treat cancers in the chest to the ESTS since 2019. This data, as well as many years of multidisciplinary work at the hospital to enhance surgical programmes, led to the ESTS inviting the hospital to undertake accreditation and the ESTS selecting St James’s as its latest accredited centre in Europe.
Speaking today about the accreditation, Gerard Fitzmaurice, consultant cardiothoracic surgeon, Trinity St James’s Cancer Institute at St James’s Hospital, and accreditation team lead, said: “This accreditation is a significant achievement and marker of excellence for the hospital. St James’s Hospital has the most up to date data on lung cancer in Ireland and we are the only Irish centre which submits data to the ESTS; therefore, we have been able to benchmark our service against comparable, high-volume European centres which are managing the equivalent complexity of lung cancer care. We know that centralisation of surgical management in complex cancer care improves patient outcomes. This accreditation process underlines St. James’s vision to be a national hub for excellence in complex lung cancer surgical care helping to support the other centres in Ireland.”
Approximately 2,600 patients are diagnosed with lung cancer each year in Ireland, however, the disease is often caught too late to allow for surgical intervention. As the surgical referral unit for four of the eight rapid access lung cancer clinics in Ireland, St James’s Hospital aims to promptly diagnose and identify the best care pathway for each patient.
Professor John Kennedy, Clinical Professor of Oncology at Trinity College Dublin and Co-Director of the Trinity St James’s Cancer Institute, said: “Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer mortality in Ireland and diagnoses of lung cancer are increasing. Here at St James’s Hospital we offer surgical intervention to patients from all over Ireland. This accreditation is testament to the dedication of the multidisciplinary team and the vast array of clinical support specialities that combine to facilitate delivery of exceptional care to a complex patient cohort.”
When assessing the criteria for accreditation, the ESTS carefully examined the infrastructure of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at St James’s Hospital, the training available for staff, and the clinical facilities and breadth of specialities offered at the hospital.
Acknowledging this milestone in lung cancer care in Ireland, Professor Mary Day, Chief Executive Officer said: “St James’s has a long history in the treatment of lung cancer in Ireland and this accreditation would not have been possible without the clinical expertise that we have developed. The ESTS accreditation firmly cements St James’s position as a leader in lung cancer care in Ireland.”
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