Carolyn is consultant anaesthetist with clinical sessions covering pre operative assessment, general and obstetric anaesthesia and the Associate Medical Director for transformation at St Georges, Epsom and St Helier hospital group. She is currently leading a 2-year project with THIS Institute in Cambridge University to use novel methods to improve the timeliness of emergency laparotomy, and was the QI lead of NELA for 10 years. She is an editor of ‘Raising the Standards’, the Royal College of Anaesthetists Improvement compendium. Carolyn has recently been elected to the Council of the Royal College of Anaesthetists.
David is a Consultant specialising in Upper Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Wall Surgery at the Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. He pursued his undergraduate studies at Guy’s and St. Thomas’s Hospitals Medical School in London. He undertook specialist training both in the UK and abroad including clinical attachment in Australia, a Trauma Fellowship in Cape Town, South Africa, and a Fellowship in Upper Gastrointestinal Surgery at Derriford Hospital in Plymouth.
David has been a Council member of the British Association of Day Surgery (BADS) since 2018, where he also served as the Editor of the Journal of One Day Surgery until December 2021. He was appointed as President of BADS in June 2023. In this capacity, David has collaborated closely with various national entities, including NHS England through initiatives including the Getting it Right First Time (GiRFT) programme, to promote excellence and optimise the delivery of day surgery services across the UK.
I am an Oncoplastic Breast Surgeon. I trained as a General Surgeon, and initially subspecialised in Breast & Endocrine Surgery. I have now focused on Breast Cancer/ Surgery since working at Guy's Breast Unit from November 2018.
Emma McCone is currently seconded as the national GIRFT lead for pre-operative assessment and has worked in preoperative assessment for over 20 years with her most recent clinical role as the nurse lead for preoperative assessment at Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Over the last 20 years, she has developed a passion and enthusiasm for the development of preoperative assessment services and its vital part in the safe assessment of patients as part of perioperative care.
Since starting with GIRFT, she has been able to lead national workstreams across preoperative assessment including supporting workforce development, guidance for preoperative assessment services and set up the national non-medical preoperative assessment network in England which has in excess of 400 members. It is this network which has given perioperative teams across the country the ability to connect, share innovation and adopt best practice.
Clinical lead, anaesthesia and Pain Medicine, Surrey and SUSSEX Healthcare NHS Trust. Special interest in care of patients with learning difficulties and access to healthcare.
Mr Gidon Ellis is a Consultant Urological Surgeon at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, where he leads the specialist male lower urinary tract symptoms service. He is a high-volume HoLEP surgeon working across the Royal Free and Chase Farm Hospital sites and has led the development of a successful day-case HoLEP programme.
He has extensive experience in laser prostate surgery and is actively involved in service development and innovation in day-case urology. He has a keen interest in surgical training and education, and co-directs a national HoLEP masterclass, training urologists in en bloc HoLEP techniques and strategies to optimise day-case outcomes. His clinical practice also encompasses other minimally invasive treatments for benign prostatic enlargement and the endourological management of stone disease.
Consultant and Reader in Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Medical Education. Clinical Lead for Acute Gynaecology, Early Pregnancy and Gynaecological Ultrasound
Dr Lindsay Hudman has been a Consultant Anaesthetist in Glasgow, working across Glasgow Royal Infirmary and the New Stobhill Hospital, since 2015. She has been the Anaesthetic lead for the local Arthroplasty ERAS Multidisciplinary group since 2018 and was an active contributor to the development of the Scottish ARISE (Arthroplasty Rehabilitation In Scotland Endeavour) Programme Database. She has been an ARISE steering group member since 2021. In 2020, she led the development of the successful day case and short stay arthroplasty programme at The New Stobhill Hospital in the wake of the COVID pandemic which she continues to monitor and develop. She has recently taken on the role of Anaesthetic Lead for Day Surgery and the New Stobhill Hospital with a view to continuing to broaden the opportunities for day surgery across all specialities in North Glasgow.
She has been a member of BADS council since September 2023.
Consultant Emergency General Surgeon in RUH, Bath
Dr Naz Sumbul is a Senior Oncoplastic Breast Surgery Fellow at the Royal Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, having previously worked as a Specialty Doctor in Breast Surgery at County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust. Her key clinical interest is oncoplastic breast surgery, with a strong commitment to reducing global disparities in breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. She is particularly appreciative of the role of day‑surgery pathways in improving patient experience and service efficiency.
I work in Derby and have a Lead role for Day Surgery and day surgery Pre-operative assessment there. For the last 20 years I have been interested in Day Surgery and worked as a Consultant Anaesthetist in Urology, general surgery and ENT specialties in particular. I have helped develop our day surgery unit and move pathways towards same day discharge.
I have a specific interest in pre-operative assessment for Day Surgery and have developed a virtual multidisciplinary team review clinic aimed at increasing the number and complexity of patients offered day surgery.
I like to teach Day Surgery principles to many members of the day surgery team, both locally and Nationally including HCUK/ BADS conferences. I am the author of the chapter on Day Surgery in the Textbook of Anaesthesia used by many anaesthetic trainees and the GPAS Day Surgery Chapter for 2023 2024 and 2025 with the Royal College of Anaesthetists. I am currently involved in producing the international manual for ambulatory surgery.
I sit on BADS council with the aim of expanding education and my involvement in Day Surgery further and represent BADS at the IAAS on an International level.
Ranjit Kirton, MSc, MBPsS
The Behaviour Garage Ltd is on a mission to eradicate psychological harm by behaviour at work, by altering the thinking and behaviour of humanity, to reprogramme us all to deliver and accept safe behaviours.
Mr Sanjith Gnanappiragasam is a consultant urologist and lead stone specialist at Kings College NHS Trust.
Stella brings over 30 years of NHS experience, with a career spanning clinical practice, strategic leadership, and system-wide transformation. As a consultant in vascular and general surgery at Croydon University Hospital since 2006, she has consistently driven service improvement and operational excellence.
In her national roles as Deputy National Medical Director for Secondary Care and Quality, and National Clinical Director for Elective Care at NHS England, Stella leads initiatives to improve patient safety, streamline elective care, and enhance clinical pathways through data-driven decision-making.
Most recently, Stella serves as Joint Chief Clinical Transformation Officer at Southwest London ICB, shaping long-term clinical strategy and optimising service delivery. Stella also continues to champion the Croydon Elective Centre, ensuring continuity of planned care even during peak demand.
Across all her roles, Stella is recognised for her collaborative leadership and ability to deliver scalable, impactful improvements in healthcare quality and efficiency.
Sue Blackwell has recently completed a PhD on Parastomal hernia and shared decision making at the University of Birmingham. Her research interests are PROMS, parastomal hernia, IBD and emergency surgery. She is Co-Chief Investigator on the PROPHER Study, an international cohort study looking at PROMS after parastomal hernia treatment. Sue is a member of the European Society of Coloproctology Research Committee and the Cohort Studies Working Group, and the Registry Sub-committee and Research committee for the British Hernia Society.
Dr Sulfiqdeen Kajamohideen MBBS, DNB, FRCA is a senior anaesthetic trainee in the UK with over 15 years of clinical experience. He has a specialist interest in regional anaesthesia, particularly upper limb blocks and awake shoulder surgery, where he has led service development and quality improvement initiatives to enhance patient pathways and experience.
He is actively involved in teaching at regional and national levels and serves as faculty on upper limb regional anaesthesia courses. His work includes advancing techniques in interscalene blockade and promoting awake surgical pathways as part of modern day-case practice.
Dr Kajamohideen has presented his work at national meetings and is committed to innovation, education, and improving perioperative care through regional anaesthesia.
