Harrogate patients benefiting from personalised post-surgery 'Cameo' videos as NHS innovation wins national recognition
Patients in Harrogate are benefiting from personalised video messages recorded by their surgeons after surgery – an innovative approach that is helping to reduce anxiety and cut the need for follow-up appointments.
The initiative, developed by Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, has been recognised nationally after winning both the Innovation in Health and Care Award and the Overall Winner title at the HTN Now 23/24 Awards.
Known as the Harrogate Post Procedure Patient Innovation (HAPPI) Project, the scheme sees surgeons record a short personalised video for patients on the day of their procedure, explaining what was done during the operation, what to expect during recovery and any important next steps.
The videos, which have been likened to personalised 'Cameo'-style messages, are designed to help patients revisit important information once they have fully recovered from the effects of anaesthetic or sedation.
Research has shown that patients can forget up to 80 per cent of the medical information they are given immediately after surgery.
Before the introduction of the HAPPI Project, around 75 per cent of day surgery patients felt they needed a further appointment to clarify information about their treatment.
Since the personalised videos were introduced, that figure has fallen dramatically, with only 15 per cent of patients saying they felt they needed a follow-up appointment.
The initiative was first launched for patients undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery but has since expanded to include hand surgery, shoulder surgery and gynaecology procedures, with plans to roll it out across more specialties in the future.
Mr David Duffy, Consultant in Trauma and Orthopaedics at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, who led the project, said: "This is a simple, hugely effective and inexpensive solution to a genuine problem all healthcare providers experience.
"Expecting a patient to remember details of surgery, recovery and important milestones after they have been anaesthetised or sedated is just not realistic.
"Providing a simple video message that can be viewed multiple times by patients or carers provides clarity and improves the quality of healthcare delivered.
"The potential benefits of this initiative are enormous when scaled across the NHS with minimal implementation cost.
Mr Duffy said the Trust had developed a blueprint to help other hospitals introduce the approach into everyday clinical practice.
Dr Jacqueline Andrews, Executive Medical Director at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, said the project demonstrated the Trust's commitment to improving patient care through innovation.
She said: “I would like to congratulate everyone who has worked on this project.
"HAPPI is helping us to further improve the healthcare we are able to provide for our patients by giving them information about their treatment in an easily accessible way.
"By reducing the number of appointments required for individuals, we can offer these to other people requiring our help, which will ultimately reduce waiting times for patients to be seen."
The Trust says the success of the project has already sparked interest from other NHS organisations looking to adopt the same approach.