Heartbeat July 2018

20
Trust allergy service is first to use hay
fever busting machine
WOMEN AND CHILD HEALTH
We have become the first NHS
Trust in the UK to introduce a new
device which can help combat the
symptoms allergic rhinitis – more
commonly known as hay fever.
The Rhinolight machine, has been
loaned to our paediatric allergy service
by the Hungarian company that first
developed it.
Dr Nick Makwana first heard of the
device during a conference and was
interested to hear that it was used in
many European countries as well as
Australia, and closer to home, in Ireland
but had not been used in the UK yet.
The device is used to direct controlled
doses of uVA, uVB and visible light up
each nostril with the aim of reducing the
symptoms. It zaps the cells that cause
hay fever and reduces the chemicals that
lead to the inflammation.
It is usually administered during the
hay fever season when symptoms have
begun. The patient would undergo six
sessions over a two week period which
should lead to symptom reduction for
the rest of the summer.
Play Specialist, Beena Parmar helped
Beena Parmar, Play Specialist, with Dr Nick
Makwana and the Rhinolight Machine
raise £1,100 towards the final purchase
of the device through organising events
through her Gujarati community.
Dr Nick Makwana, Consultant Paediatrician,
said: “We are very grateful to Beena for her
fundraising efforts.
“It means that if we can demonstrate that
the device works in our young population
then we will be leading the way in treating
young patients who suffer from hay fever
and the money raised will go towards the
purchase of the Rhinolight.
“This year in particular has seen a rise in
the number of people showing symptoms
because of the heatwave across the country,
but studies have shown that this treatment
works very well in tackling hay fever, and
the patient will most likely be cured for the
rest of the season.”
Delight as we are named a birth
centre beacon site
Earlier this month, our organisation
was named as one of three beacon
sites for midwife-led birth centres
by the Midwifery Unity Network,
a leading UK initiative committed
to women having positive birth
experiences and an optimal start in
life for babies.
We have been named as a beacon site,
alongside Lancashire Teaching Hospitals
Foundation NHS Trust and Lewisham
and Greenwich NHS Trust, with the
announcement taking place at a national
conference at City University of London.
Helen Giles, Team Leader for Serenity
and Halcyon Birth Centres attended the
conference and was presented with a
certificate by the president of the Royal
College of Midwives, our very own
Consultant Midwife, Kathryn Gutteridge.
Heartbeat caught up with Helen to find
out more about this prestigious title.
Helen said: “We are privileged to care for
around 1,500 women and families for their
births in our midwife – led centres each
year which is around 28 per cent of babies
born at SWBH – the national average for
England is 14 per cent so that figure is great
for us, and our women and reflects the
commitment of our teams.
“Our facilities are some of the best in the
country. We often have visitors from all over
the country and indeed from abroad who
visit our centres and ask for guidance to
replicate our model within their own Trust.
“Our motto is your birth in our home – we
want to make it as inviting as possible
for women and create a calm, homely
environment and as less hospitalised as we
can.
“It was particularly pleasing to talk to a few
people at the event who had visited us five
years ago who came and thanked me for
helping them to increase the amount of
midwife led births they have.”
He went on to explain how the machine
works: “The probe has a special ultra-violet
light mix which is inserted into the end
of the nose and then changes the cells in
the nose which usually trigger the allergic
reaction.
“There is no pain involved which is why it is
a great treatment for children. This will also
save money for the NHS as, if the symptoms
become controlled, then there will be less
visits to the GP and less prescriptions for
medicines to help battle the symptoms of
hay fever.”
Beena, who has worked at our organisation
for 21 years, said: “Every year my temple,
BPM Krishna Mandir in Sparkbrook, has a
chosen charity which it fundraises for.
“There are many children within the
Gujarati community who suffer from
allergies and I wanted to raise more
awareness around it, so they agreed to hold
a dinner and dance in aid of our paediatrics
department.
“Dr Makwana visited the temple and told
them that the money would go towards the
Rhinolight machine.
“We raised a total of £1,100 and I am so
pleased that we were able to fund the
purchase of this machine.
“It is going to help a lot of children coming
to use our service.”
Birth centres share a number of important
characteristics. The midwives running
them want women to feel empowered
and supported to give birth using their
own resources. They also have an in-depth
knowledge of pregnant women’s physiology
and clear understanding about identifying
what is a change from normal requiring
intervention or involvement of our obstetric
team.
Kathryn, who the Midwifery Unity Network
describe as a birth centre pioneer, said:
“Birth centre midwives have confidence in
a woman’s ability to give birth. We develop
the skills and experience of midwives to
build that confidence, to listen to women
and to work closely with medical colleagues
to ensure optimal and safe care.
“I am particularly proud of our midwifeled
care within this Trust and to be able
to present Helen with the Beacon site
certificate was a real honour for me.”