It has been a challenging year, overshadowed by the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on the health service, cancer services, clinical practice and professional education. It will take some time before the true effect of the pandemic on cancer and healthcare is really understood, but we can all be proud of maintaining the delivery of care, meeting the complex needs of our patient groups and supporting our colleagues.

We have a new Committee in place and we are developing a strategy for the year ahead and beyond. We are proud to sit on the AUGIS Council and are keen to raise the profile of Nursing and AHPs within AUGIS. There are many challenges ahead, which require a high level of commitment within our own busy working and personal lives.

Pictured from left to right: Reena Mair, Gail Goddard, Louise Jones, Fiona Huddy, Anne Phillips, Hafsa Farah, Gillian Troy
On Screen: Susan Graham, Fiona MacLeod and Carolynne Hardy

One of the more pressing issues is to look at ways to improve overall membership of Nurses and AHPs to AUGIS.  How do we engage new members? How can we be more inclusive and how can we look at ways to improve AUGIS so that everyone wants to join?

Regional representatives need to be appointed to vacancies on the Sub-Committee to represent our professions in the regions and nationally.   We would like to see an emphasis on collaboration of AUGIS members at local and national level, whereby the Regional Specialist Nurse and AHP representatives work closely together with the Regional Council representatives and the Roux (surgical trainee) representatives. We share a common interest in improving patient services and providing professional support across all members of AUGIS with the very clear aim of promoting excellence in our field through collaboration and education.

Identifying the educational needs of nurses and AHPs is vital, so that the Committee can provide an Educational Calendar, provide opportunities for networking, mentorship and peer support. We welcome ideas for webinars and courses, a programme of educational events and also for the Annual Scientific Meeting.

A successful UGI Congress was held in Belfast 2021 and the affiliate programme enjoyed fantastic presentations on the value of the Specialist Nurse role in a referring centre, and the Northern Ireland experience of prehabilitation, amongst others. Bernie and the Birmingham team stepped in at the last moment with an inspired presentation on “The Third Space”!

This year, the AUGIS Annual Scientific Meeting will be held in Aberdeen and the Affiliate Programme will feature excellent presentations ranging from the key messages of immunotherapy, failure to thrive and to the importance of informed consent. The programme will compliment the main programme nicely and will allow opportunities for networking academically and socially.

A review of the web-site is planned so that it can provide an up to date forum to disseminate information and to share best practice. The aim is to include an Educational Calendar and a Webinar Platform with an archive of presentations with links to other educational establishments, other societies and patient groups.

It is a great honour for us to represent the interests of the nursing profession and the allied health professions within AUGIS .

Anne-Margrethe Phillips, Bernadette Fairley and Liz Ward                                                                   

Leads for the Allied Health Professionals and Specialist Nurses Committee                          

Please contact the AUGIS office if you would like to be involved with the AHP and CNS Committee by emailing: info@augis.org

Membership of AUGIS is an opportunity to enhance knowledge, skills and expertise through continuing education, collaboration and networking.

Being a member of AUGIS supports the management of patients undergoing Oesophagogastric (OG) and Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic (HPB) surgery and treatments for cancer.

Education

• Provision of national educational events to enhance specialist knowledge and keep abreast of new developments
• Annual Scientific Meeting     

.               Discounted preferential rates.

.               Opportunity for abstract submission for formal and poster presentations.

.               Prize for best poster or formal presentation.

• Annual training event (on-line or collaborative event with surgical trainees)

.                 Free or discounted registration fee

• Free access to on-line multi-disciplinary webinars and lectures, which are recorded in a closed members archive.

Bursaries/Fellowships

• Eligibility to apply for research fellowships or travel bursaries.

Clinical Experts/Mentorship

• Access to clinical experts for each Region, who contribute to clinical guidelines, local and national educational events, participate in national audits and nutrition consensus groups.
• Opportunities for mentorship, peer support, networking and collaboration with each other and our medical colleagues.
• Regional members represent the interests of its members at AUGIS

If you would like to join as an AUGIS Allied Health Professional/CNS Member, the annual subsciption rate ....and the membership year runs from the 1st June to the 31st May. If you join AUGIS within the annual subscription year period you will pay the pro-rata membership rate until the next annual renewal date.

Click here to join AUGIS

The AUGIS AHP and Specialist Nurse Sub-Committee is made up of Specialist Nurses and Specialist Dietitians (or other AHPs), who act as regional representatives. The Lead Specialist Nurses and AHPs also sit on the AUGIS Council. The Sub-Committee represents Nurses and AHPs, who share a common interest mainly in UGI Surgery and Oncology but also benign diseases.

The overall goal is to promote evidence-based care in the management of patients, including nutrition, with UGI conditions through collaborative practice, research and education.

We share a common interest in improving patient services and in providing professional support through national collaboration. Importantly, AUGIS wishes to raise the professional profile for all nurses and AHPs within UGI surgery and oncology.

Aims of the group:

• Raise the professional profile for all nurses and AHPs within surgery and oncology.
• Encourage nurses and AHPs to enhance their personal profile and commitment to their professional development.
• Provide national guidance on CNS and Dietetic standards and staffing.
• Promote collaborative practice with medical clinicians/scientists, nurses and other AHPs at local, national and international levels through shared education, audit and research.
• Provide an expert resource on clinical issues and patient experience.
• Develop and share best practice guide-lines and patient information.
• Emphasise the requirement for professional training and development in a specialist field and for revalidation.
• Establish a programme of Specialist Nurse and AHP educational events to support the training and development of Specialist Nurses, other nurses and AHPs new to the area and refresher courses for experienced members of the team.
• Provide an educational programme with high quality presentations and speakers at the annual AUGIS scientific meeting. Nurses and AHPs are encouraged to support this conference.
• Represent AHPs and Specialist Nurses on the AUGIS Council.

Anne-Margrethe Phillips: Senior Specialist UGI Nurse

Liz Ward, Senior Specialist UGI Dietitian

January 2023