Patient has gallbladder removed in the first operation to take place in new multi-million pound theatres | Latest news

The first patient to undergo surgery in the new £5.7m theatres at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH) is looking forward to a pain-free life after having his gallbladder removed.

David Bostock, from Clifton, was the first-ever patient to have a procedure in the operating theatres at QMC on Wednesday (1 May), which is now home to surgical specialities Heptopancreatobilary (HPB) and Vascular surgery, and will soon be home to Colorectal surgery and Endoscopy.

David who is aged 52, said: “I have been suffering with acid pain in my stomach for many years which have made me feel very unwell. Some days I would cough up bile and the pain has been unbearable.”

Last year, David went for an ultrasound scan and results showed that he had developed gallstones. He said: “At one point the pain got even worse and I was admitted to hospital because my condition had become septic. It is a relief to of have the surgery that will no-doubt change my life."

David is one of 2,500 patients expected to undergo gallbladder surgery each year at NUH. The opening of the four, new operating theatres at QMC means that many more patients will benefit from this surgery across the East Midlands.

Eight members of the surgical team were on-hand during David’s surgery including; three Operating Department Practitioners (ODPs), two Anaesthetists, a Scrub Nurse, a Registrar and the Surgeon.

Mr Ian Beckingham, Senior HPB Surgeon at NUH, carried out the gallbladder removal. He said: “The surgery went as we planned, taking around 30 minutes. Using the minimally-invasive key-hole technique, we were able to remove David’s entire gallbladder, as this was full of gallstones which have been causing him pain for a long time. Once recovered, the expectation is that David will be able to live without pain.”

Mr Beckingham has been a HPB surgeon at NUH for the last 20 years and during his career he has carried out around 3,000 gallbladder removal operations on patients.

He added: “It was great to be able to operate on the first patient in our brand new state-of-the-art operating theatres. The new unit is a great space for surgery; it’s bigger with great lighting and facilities for the teams working down there. It is a great privilege to work in such a modern space.”

Gallbladder disease occurs more commonly in women, with around nine females to every one male receiving treatment for gallbladder disease.

Recovery time after gallbladder surgery is around two weeks and people who have their gallbladders removed can go on to live completely normal lives.

David works as a landscape gardener and is looking forward to going back to his normal routine. He added: “The team in the new theatres are out-of-this-world-amazing! They took very good care of me and made me feel at ease before and after the operation - which is only the second operation I’ve ever had in my life - I cannot fault the staff at all.”

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH) opened its brand new £5.7m operating theatres at QMC on Monday 29 April. Read the article here.