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Colleagues on the Enhanced Peri-Operative Care Unit (EPOC) at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham (QEHB) have reached a huge milestone, caring for their 4,000th patient.

EPOC was established in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw increased pressures on critical care services.

The ten-bedded unit cares for high risk, complex patients, ensuring they can be safely managed away from critical care.

EPOC cares for patients coming in for procedures from a wide range of specialties and has become a crucial part of the surgical cancer pathway, ensuring patients can receive major operations sooner, without compromising the level of care they receive post-surgery. Recently, EPOC expanded its services to host an intravenous iron clinic every Monday.

This clinic supports patients with anaemia, who are due to have a surgical procedure at the hospital soon, by helping to increase their recover time and reduce the need for post-operative blood transfusion.

Katrina Shirley, Enhanced Peri-Operative Care Unit Manager at QEHB, said: “We have a wide range of colleagues, both clinical and non-clinical, who work extremely hard to keep EPOC running and are integral to the milestone of having supported 4,000 patients.

“I’m really proud to be part of such a passionate, dedicated team. We’re constantly looking to improve our patients’ experience in EPOC and this year we have received dedicated funding for therapist support, which plays a major role in our patients’ recovery.

“EPOC’s therapy team has also reintroduced ‘Surgery School’, where patients come into the hospital prior to their surgery, learn about what to expect in terms of recovery, and receive guidance on lifestyle changes that will help them feel fit and well sooner."