Royal Papworth Hospital

28/10/2026

Leading internationally in cystic fibrosis care 🫁

It's not just in Cambridge, the east of England or the UK where our teams make a difference.

Representatives from our cystic fibrosis (CF) team recently visited North Macedonia as part of the European Cystic Fibrosis Society twinning programme.

For several years, our CF service has supported a small joint paediatric and adult CF centre in Kočani, in the east of the country.

This year's visit marked an important step forward, bringing together colleagues from medicine, nursing, dietetics and physiotherapy to support both centres that share the care of people living with cystic fibrosis.

Cystic fibrosis is an inherited, genetic condition that causes sticky mucus to build up in the lungs and digestive system. Our hospital looks after more than 450 adults with CF from across the East of England and beyond.

This overseas visit, which included meeting the North Macedonian health minister, strengthened relationships between services, provided opportunities to exchange clinical expertise and supported more equitable access to high-quality CF care.

Sam Henman, our Lead Nurse for Cystic Fibrosis, said, “By bringing together professionals from different disciplines, the team were able to share knowledge, experience and practical approaches that contribute to improved patient outcomes, while also learning from the experiences of our North Macedonian colleagues.

“Thank you to everyone involved in the visit and to our colleagues in Kočani for their warm welcome and shared ongoing commitment to improving care for people living with cystic fibrosis.” 💙

ECFS

27/10/2026

Technology helping patients with heart failure avoid hospital admission 🫀

We’ve spoken before how advanced remote monitoring technology is helping to detect early warning signs of deteriorating health in patients with severe heart failure, enabling clinicians to intervene before symptoms worse.

Here at Royal Papworth, we currently care for 8,000 patients living across the East of England who have a remote monitoring cardiac device, which is up from 1,500 patients back in 2020.

Now, our specialist teams have collaborated with the West Essex Community Cardiac Team at Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT), with the technology allowing both teams to intervene early, so that patients in West Essex can be treated before symptoms get worse.

Philip, 77, who lives near Braintree in Essex, is one patient who is benefitting from this technology.

He was fitted with an advanced cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT) pacemaker last year, which collects information on his heart health, such as the rhythm and pace of his heartbeat and fluid retention. It also monitors physical activity.

A small monitor collects data from his pacemaker and special technology analyses the information before calculating the risk of Philip requiring hospital treatment and admission due to heart failure in the next 30 days.

Should clinicians receive an alert, they would get in touch with Philip to discuss and review his symptoms, before planning any treatment required. For the community team, this could include reviewing medication, treating fluid retention and advising on physical activity. Meanwhile our hospital team provides advice and treatment for heart rhythm and pace as needed.

Philip said: “The monitor sits on my bedroom windowsill and downloads information from my pacemaker device.

“The Royal Papworth staff are a wonderful team and I see them every six months and they check it’s all working properly,” he continued, while also praising his care from our West Essex colleagues.

Sandra Silva, Highly Specialised Cardiac Physiologist at Royal Papworth, added: “Providing care closer to home is a key priority across the NHS. As the east of England’s regional specialist heart hospital, it’s really important to us that patients don’t travel hundreds of miles to access specialist care that they could get remotely.

“Combining remote monitoring with this co-management technology allows us to identify patients who are at risk of a possible hospital admission for heart failure.

“It has been a pleasure to develop our co-management pathway with the West Essex Community Cardiac Team and seeing the benefits of better, safer and faster care for heart failure patients across Essex.”

Thank you to everyone involved in this collaboration, which is helping patients to avoid hospital admission. 💙

26/10/2026

24/10/2026

When a patient in our day ward praised Valentina’s calm and professional approach, it didn’t go unnoticed.

Inspired by Valentina’s excellent and compassionate patient care, her colleague Tabby sent her a Laudit via our positive incident reporting system.

Valentina, a registered nurse, said, “I’m very thankful to work with people who care so much about each other and about our patients. Together, we provide the best care we can and I’m proud to be part of the team.

“I like being part of such an amazing and supportive team. From my very first day, my colleagues have been incredibly helpful, friendly and supportive.

“What makes me feel that I’m doing a good job is seeing the difference we make to our patients. At the end of the day, when a patient gives me a hug and says thank you, it reminds me why I love what I do.”

The Laudit that Valentina received was one of 263 sent by staff to each other in August, celebrating the everyday achievements of colleagues. She was then selected as one of five monthly winners.

Thank you, Valentina. for your continued excellence and for displaying such compassionate patient care. 💙

📸 Valentina receiving a Laudit certificate from our chief executive, Eilish Midlane

22/10/2026

A challenging surgical case on BBC Two at 21:00 🫁🏥

In tonight’s episode of ‘Surgeons: At the Edge of Life’, consultant thoracic surgeon Mr Aman Coonar takes on a challenging case which tests his team’s skill and expertise to the limit.

The patient, 30-year old Dannee, has a rare type of tumour in her right bronchus, the airway that leads to her lung. The blockage has already caused serious infection and if it is not removed, it would be life-threatening.

Mr Coonar and the surgical team needs to do a sleeve resection, taking out the tumour, part of the airway and the upper lobe of Dannee’s right lung. But then they face the complex task of reattaching the lung to the remaining airway.

Tune in to BBC Two at 21:00 tonight to see some of the incredible teamwork that takes place behind our theatre doors.

Originally filmed in 2021, series 4 of this highly-acclaimed medical documentary reveals some of the extraordinary and pioneering surgery here at our hospital and also at Addenbrooke’s. 💙

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

21/10/2026

Protecting our staff to protect our heart and lung patients 💉🫀🫁

We’re a few weeks into our annual staff vaccination clinic which has currently seen 1,054 Royal Papworth staff vaccinated against the flu – that’s 39.3% of our frontline workforce.

We’re already starting to see flu circulating in the community, earlier than usual, so thank you to everyone who has had their vaccines so far, helping to protect yourself, our patients and each other this autumn and winter.

Here is Sam, Georgia, Eleanora, Raych and Mark to explain their reasons for coming forward and having the flu vaccine. 💙

Thank you also to our fabulous team of vaccinators who continue to do a superb job.

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Elsewhere across the NHS, flu vaccines are now available ahead of winter for eligible people.

Eligible people include everyone aged 65 and over, people with long-term health conditions, close contacts of those who are immunosuppressed, pregnant women, care home residents and carers, frontline health and social care workers, as well as children.

Learn more about eligibility and book online: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/seasonal-health/keep-warm-keep-well/

You can also book via the NHS app, by contacting your local GP practice or find a pharmacy that offers free NHS vaccination.

20/10/2026

“Everyone tells me how well I look...I’m a different person” 🫁💙

That’s the reaction of Joseph (62), the first person to receive a lung transplant through a new national NHS pilot involving Royal Papworth.

Back in August we revealed that the first lung transplant had been successfully completed earlier this year using the UK’s landmark new Assessment and Recovery Centres (ARCs) pilot programme, marking a major milestone in efforts to increase the number of life-saving organ transplants.

Now we can reveal that carpenter Joseph, from Newport, South Wales, was the recipient of those lungs.

Previously, Joseph was permanently reliant on oxygen due to a condition called idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis which causes scarring on the lungs.

Having been grey and blue from the lack of oxygen, he’s now been given a new lease of life. Several weeks on from his transplant, he’s now back to walking his rescued greyhound, returning to the rugby touchline and making plans for the future.

The ARCs programme introduces a new model of transplantation in which an organ is donated at one hospital, taken to a second hospital to be placed on a perfusion machine where its function is carefully assessed, and then transplanted at a third hospital.

Joseph’s ‘new’ lungs were donated in the north of England, before being retrieved and brought back to Cambridge by Royal Papworth’s organ retrieval team.

The lungs were assessed and perfused using ex-vivo lung perfusion at our hospital, before being transported to Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham to be transplanted.

Joseph said “I haven’t got to walk around with an oxygen tank anymore. Everyone tells me how well I look. They say, ‘Look how pink you are. You’re not blue, you’re not grey and you’re not gasping for air.’

“In comparison with 10 weeks ago, I’m a different person.”

Thank you to all our teams across the NHS who played a part in this remarkable transplant journey. Most importantly, thank you to the donor and their family, whose decision gave Joseph the chance to create many more precious memories with his loved ones. 💙

NHS | NHS Organ Donation | NHS Blood and Transplant

19/10/2026

One of our strengths at Royal Papworth, and indeed the NHS, are the diverse experiences, perspectives and talents our staff bring to work every day.

Someone who brings leadership and dedication is Sodrudeen, known as Surd, a deputy charge nurse on 5 South.

Surd joined Royal Papworth in November 2023, having previously worked as a nurse in Nigeria.

He joined our trust because of our reputation for specialist cardiothoracic care and the opportunity to continue developing his career, while making a meaningful difference to patients and their families.

“Leadership is not about having a title or being the person who gives instructions,” said Surd.

“It is about being willing to support others, listen to them and help them become the best version of themselves."

“Black history is not only about the major events or famous names we read about in history books. It is also about ordinary people doing meaningful things every day”

Outside work, Surd enjoys spending time with family and friends, watching films, playing football and travelling.

His advice to his younger self is one he continues to live by: “Keep learning. Keep working. Keep believing in yourself.”

Thank you, Surd, for sharing your reflections and to all our staff for the difference they make to patients and families every day. 💙

17/10/2026

A five star rating for our patient catering team ⭐️

We recently received an unannounced visit by Cambridge City Council’s environmental health officers.

They inspected all of our regeneration kitchens where patient meals are prepared and cooked before being served to our patients in their rooms.

Thanks to the combined effort of 47 patient catering assistants and managers we have retained our 5* rating, which is the highest available.

Well done to our fabulous patient catering team, we are very proud of you all! 💙

📸 The team on level 4, from left to right: Vikki, Milena, Jai, Julie, Andy, Sudheesh, Vinny, Aleksandra, Simeon, Ginto Sherree, Beata, Susannah, Amparo, Imelda (and Adrian, centre)

16/10/2026

Busting myths around CPR on women 🫀

Women are often less likely to receive CPR from bystanders compared to men, often because of uncertainty or concerns around providing treatment on a female chest.

Today, we joined forces with local partners to provide free CPR training at the Grand Arcade for Restart a Heart Day, providing members of the public with the skills and confidence to act fast in an emergency, while also combatting those myths.

Here's Sara, our lead resuscitation officer, to explain more. 💙

Thank you to everyone who came to visit our teams today and helped to learn how you could be the first link in the chain of survival, before the emergency services arrives.

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust | East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust | Magpas Air Ambulance | East Anglian Air Ambulance Charity | NHS