Polyposis syndromes: administrative care

Abstract

The Polyposis Registry team at St Mark's Hospital, London, is made up of nurses and administrators with an ex-nurse as their day-to-day manager. The team works closely with all the consultants at the hospital, but a professor of surgery and consultant gastroenterologist act as the directors of the Registry work. Polyposis syndromes are rare, so patients are referred for specialist care from all over England, as well as occasionally from Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. St Mark's Hospital cares for over 1300 patients from polyposis families whereas most general hospitals would only care for a few families. This article describes how the two administrators at St Mark's support the team and, in particular, help to care for patients who have to live with the burden of an inherited cancer syndrome. The article explains how complete integration of the administrative staff into the team enables them to relieve the nurses of many daily enquiries while reassuring patients that they will be supported.