Celebrating GOSH’s Allied Health Professionals

Alllied Health Professionals (AHPs) play an integral role at GOSH. This group of independent practitioners contribute to multidisciplinary team (MDT) assessment and work hard to maximise the diagnosis, treatment and successful discharge of our patients. As we celebrate AHPs Day on Monday 14 October, let’s find out more about the teams and what they do…

We have 37 qualified dietitians at GOSH who work with children and their families to support patients within a wide range of medical conditions. These can include neonatal  and cardiac surgery to metabolic and renal disease. Dietitians will use evidence-based scientific research  to assess and create specific nutritional treatment plans which enable patients to grow and develop safely in line with their medical conditions.

Music therapy contributes positively to emotional wellbeing and communication through engagement in music. A therapist will use a wide range of instruments (such as piano/keyboard, guitar and percussion), as well as voice, to create improvised music. Using music in this way, patients can create their own unique, musical language in which to explore and connect with the world and express themselves. Find out more from our music therapist, Katya.

Our therapy is designed to enable children to master daily tasks and achieve personal goals, be it tying a lace, communicating their needs, or using a wheelchair independently for the first time. There are 23 occupational therapists working at GOSH across a variety of wards and outpatient settings. We aim to enhance, enable and empower young people’s participation in daily tasks by helping them adapt to the challenges they face as a result of illness, developmental delay or disability.

Operating department practitioners are a vital part of the operating theatre MDT, providing a high standard of patient-focused care during anesthesia, surgery and recovery. There are currently over 50 operating department practitioners in GOSH working alongside their nursing and medical colleagues in all areas of theatres. They are also part of the Resuscitation team.

Orthoptists assess, diagnose, treat and monitor a variety of eye disorders. They are the experts in how the eyes move and work together (orth = straight, optics = eyes) and specialise in the assessment of visual function. In addition, many orthoptists will work in multi professional health, educational or social care teams. The seven orthoptists at GOSH work autonomously and as part of the eye care team. They work very closely with other teams, particularly craniofacial, neurosurgery and oncology.

Our team of orthotists work with other members of the MDT including consultants, clinical nurse specialists, physiotherapists and occupational therapists. They provide bespoke and stock orthoses (sometimes called appliances or splints) for children of all ages from a wide range of specialities from within GOSH. These include spinal braces, leg braces, insoles and specialised footwear.

Our physiotherapists have a national and international reputation within children’s physiotherapy. Physiotherapy is an integral part of the MDT across most specialties within GOSH, managing both inpatients and outpatients, with either acute or chronic illnesses. There are currently 68 physiotherapists in our team, working with the patient and their family to optimise recovery from illness or injury, promoting normal development and aiming for a return to independence.

Almost every patient who comes to GOSH will meet one of our 59 radiographers. Radiographers work in the X-ray department, Ultrasound unit, run the CT and MRI scanners, the Interventional Radiology and Cardiac Angiography suites, and in the Nuclear Medicine department. The team can also image patients on the wards and in operating theatres. They form part of an MDT working alongside radiologists, nurses, anaesthetists, operating department practitioners and members of the Admin team to provide the best care for our patients.

Speech and language therapists work with children, their families, the local teams and other GOSH professionals to develop treatment plans and interventions that help each child overcome or adapt to disorders of speech, language communication and swallowing. There are 33 qualified speech and language therapists at GOSH, providing tertiary assessment for children with rare and unusual conditions across over 20 specialities.