Messages From The Chairman

MD Project proposal Mansell & Blom February 2012

G?i-coupled receptors as potential targets for securing human osteoblast maturation at orthopaedic biomaterial surfaces.

Identifying small molecules that enhance early osseointegration are especially desirable in contemporary biomaterials research. Agents which selectively secure human osteoblast (hOB) formation and maturation are particularly attractive as it is these cells that are responsible for bone matrix synthesis and subsequent mineralisation. Current research, conducted in our laboratory, has revealed that molecules which activate the extracellular signal regulated kinase (Erk) pathway, are the most likely to promote hOB maturation. It has recently emerged that small biologicals targeting certain G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) could fulfil the role in supporting hOB maturation. These molecules include ligands of the muscarinic GPCR and the N-formyl peptide receptor (FPR). The research, which will be towards an MD, will set out to ascertain the efficacy of these agents in stimulating hOB formation and maturation from committed immature cells and their stem cell progeny. Furthermore the research will extend to an assessment of these molecules to support cellular maturation at titanium and hydroxyapatite surfaces, two widely used orthopaedic implant materials. 

The successful appointee will perform routine cell culture, conduct enzyme assays, ELISAs, fluorescence microscopy and cell signalling studies. For further information please contact Dr. Jason Mansell and Prof. Ashley Blom.

Dear All

Professor Blom and the Musculoskeletal Research Unit based at the AOC, have been awarded an Academic Clinical Fellow post in Orthopaedics commencing February 2012. The post is funded by the National Institute of Health Research and is for a period of 3 years. An academic training number, NTN(a), will be awarded to the successful applicant.

The post is designed for those in the early stages of training and appointments can be made to start at ST1-4 level. Further details of the post and appointment process can be found on the deanery website at: http://www.severndeanery.nhs.uk/recruitment/vacancies/show/Academic-Clinical-Fellow-in-Orthopaedic-Surgery/.

If you are interested in the post, or know a more junior colleague who may be, the closing date for applications is the 14th November.

Best wishes

Mike

Dear All

The multistage voting process has now drawn to a close and the counts have been counted. Unlike the BBC, we seem to have managed the process without any reports of phone vote rigging!

I am delighted to announce that the winner of this year's Top TOTY award is none other than Mr Christopher Curwen.

Although a small token of our appreciation for all his hard work and the hard work of all those involved in our training, we hope this goes some small way to showing how much it is appreciated. 

Thanks to all those that voted, we had a good showing this year, even if a few people couldn't remember if they had voted yet but at least their repeat votes were consistent!

Best wishes

Mike

Dear All

For those of you that have not yet heard, I am very pleased to be able to extend the congratulations of all on the rotation and involved with it to Andrew Tasker and Verity Currall for their recent success in part two of the exam.

They survived the rigours of the exam at Stanmore and are looking forward to recovering some semblance of a life! Well done.

Mike

Dear All

Just a quick reminder that the voting for the final round of the Top TOTY award closes this coming Monday the 3rd October.

For those of you that haven't had the chance to cast your vote yet, the candidates are:

• Mr Alex Cowey
• Mr Christopher Curwen
• Mr Jason Webb

Please do take the time to cast a vote, your trainers work incredibly hard to support you throughout your training and this is just a small way we can show our appreciation for that hard work.

Best wishes

Mike

I would like to extend the thanks and gratitude of all of the registrars on the rotation to Mr Eastaugh-Waring for all his hard work as our Programme Director. His support and dedication to the role has been a huge asset to the rotation and we really do appreciate all his efforts on our behalf. I hope he enjoyed being our Programme Director as much as we enjoyed having him in that role.

Thanks also to Mr Crowther for his hard work in running the teaching programme which has continued to be a fantastic resource for the registrars of the rotation and instrumental in our continued education and preparation for the exam. We look forward to Mr Crowther taking up his new role as the TPD and hopefully we won't be causing him to much additional stress!

Welcome also to Mr Webb as our new Postgraduate Tutor, I am sure the teaching programme will continue to go from strength to strength under his guidance. We our extremely fortunate as a rotation to have such enthusiastic trainers, this is part of what makes our rotation everything that it is.

Best wishes

Mike

Dear All

The first round of voting is now closed and on to the second round. The top three trainers as voted for in the 1st round, in alphabetical order by surname, are:

• Mr Alex Cowey
• Mr Christopher Curwen
• Mr Jason Webb

I am sure you are all familiar with the drill by now but if it has slipped anyones mind - everyone now votes again for their nomination for the Top TOTY award from the list of nominees above. The closing date for votes to be cast is Monday 3rd October 2011. The victor will be notified following this date and invited to receive their award at the BORG Christmas Dinner on the 9th December.

Please do take the time to vote. This is a small way in which we, the trainees, can thank our trainers for all their hard work and dedication to our training.

Best wishes

Mike

The first round of voting will close on Monday 12th September. Please take a minute to email your selection to myself or pass your vote on to one of the committee members.

Mike

I would like to extend the congratulations of all those in BORG and I am sure the region as a whole to Koye Odutola, Adrian Hughes, Will Thomas, Steve Morris, Priyan Landham and David Thyagarajan for their recent success in the FRCS (Tr & Orth). They survived the ordeals of part 2 and even the post exam celebrations in Dublin with fortitude - I hear the latter was emotional!

Mike

I am pleased to announce some good news from Taunton. Taunton currently runs an on call rota, this came under threat recently with the expiry of funding for a registrar training post from the deanery. If this registrar post had been lost, a full shift system would have been implemented in order to keep the rota EWTD compliant. The Taunton Consultants have managed to secure funding from within the directorate in order to keep this training registrar post, which will now be funded locally but remains approved by the deanery for training. BORG as a group would like to say thank you for the efforts involved in securing this arrangement and we are grateful for the interest shown in our training and the continued support for the rotation as a whole.

Dear All,

I am pleased to announce that BORG has recruited not one, but two new Education Reps. With fellowship fast approaching, Ben Burston has decided it is time to hand on the mantle and we have two excellent successors in the form of Navraj Atwal and Luke Brunton.

There are a number of exciting developments afoot and the need for two representatives is a reflection of all that is happening with BORG on the education front. We have a number of educational courses coming up, the next of which is the next cycle of the excellent Synthes Trauma courses and the dates for these will appear on the site shortly. We will also be posting information regarding other developments as and when we have confirmation through.

Details of the mentorship groups will be posted in the downloads section of the site soon and these will be kept up to date as new registrars join the rotation

I would just like to take this opportunity to thank Ben for all his hard work on our behalf over the years and just confirm for him that it is not quite over yet!

Best wishes

Mike

Dear All,

It is with equally great pride that I am taking over the mantle from Omar Sabri. I am sure I speak for us all when I say many thanks for all your hard work with BORG over the years and the best of luck with the Fellowships. I have heard that Omar has had a somewhat busy start but is making good progress on ensuring that most of Nottinghamshire have an intramedullary device of some description in situ by the time he leaves…

I hope to be able to fill Omar’s shoes and will be doing my utmost to ensure that BORG continues to be the success that it has been to date (if it is OK with Omar, I may give the cast and MRI a miss though).

BORG is your organisation and it is only made the great success it is by your active participation in the group. If there are things that you think we need to be doing then please let us know and we will endeavour to drive these forward. Feel free to approach any of the committee directly or email us via the site with comments. In the near future we will be expanding the mentorship scheme that Ben Burston got off the ground to such great effect last year, we also hope to add this information to the website. Work continues on the new website and we will continue to add information to the site (and iron out the occasional glitch!).

May I also take this opportunity to say congratulations to my fellow examinees from the February sitting of the FRCS - Navraj Atwal, Richard Gardner, MJ Barakat, Yassir Al-Arabi and myself are now the proud bearers of the FRCS (Tr & Orth) and a rather expensive nylon tie. Congratulations also to Koye Odutola, Adrian Hughes, Will Thomas, Verity Currall, David Thyagarajan, Steve Morris, Priyan Landham and Prakash Tokala for their recent success in Part 1 of the exam and the best of luck for Dublin.

Mike Whitehouse

Dear All,

It is with great pride that I pass on the mantle of BORG Chairman to Michael Whitehouse. 

Mike was quick to step up to the plate and I'm confidant that he will take BORG to new heights. He is just as passionate about what we stand for as a group and along with the rest of the committee members, will continue to prove BORG to be the best trainee group in the country. 

I wish him the best of luck for the future. 

Omar Sabri - Past BORG Chairman

Dear All,

The time has come for me to pass on the mantle. As I finish my registrar training & head off on fellowship, my last official task as BORG Chairman is to ensure a seamless transition/ handover into the worthy capable hands that I'm sure will help take BORG to greater heights. 

I strongly believe that this is the best rotation in the country. Our training, our achievements & our general spirit is one that is hard to find elsewhere in the country. Just looking at most of our trainers one quickly realises that its been years in the making and it falls upon all of us to keep that spirit going. I am very proud to have been a registrar on this rotation & have enjoyed all my jobs on the rotation. 

Being BORG Chairman has been one of the biggest achievements of my professional career. Its all about working with a team to provide a service to your fellow trainees, I've always maintained that its not just a line on your CV. It can be demanding at times, but when you feel strongly about what this organisation represents & how big it could be, the challenges you are faced with become even more enjoyable.

Please contact me for more details & to register an interest. We need names in the next two weeks. Once again, BORG rules apply, if more than one person is keen then it goes to a public vote at the first teaching session.

As I pack up my flat to leave Bristol after 8 years, and still with no place to live in Nottingham! I will look back on lots of very special times. I've made good friends and Im hoping to be back on regular basis so it wont be easy to keep me away from here. 

Kind Regards

Omar Sabri - BORG Chairman

Kind Regards

Omar Sabri - BORG Chairman