Annual medical conference returns with a focus on a multi-disciplinary approach to hypermobility  

Newcastle-based Peacocks Medical Group has announced its annual FORTH conference will be returning in January 2022, which will highlight a multi-disciplinary approach to hypermobility and Ehlers-danlos syndrome.

Held in association with the British Association of Prosthetics and Orthotists (BAPO), the conference will take place at Newcastle-Gateshead, Hilton Hotel on 15 January, with delegates having the option of attending in-person or watching online.

The event will welcome clinical academic specialists including Victoria Harbottle, Senior Paediatric Physiotherapist at the Great North Children’s Hospital and NIHR/HEE Pre-Doctoral Clinical Academic Fellow, who will provide a paediatric overview.

Rachel Cooper, MCSP and Liz Clayton MCSP, Specialist Physiotherapists at the Great North Children’s Hospital RVI, will discuss current physiotherapy treatment. Dr Vadiveulu Saravanan, Consultant Rheumatologist at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust, will address the subject of what happens in an adult world.

Additionally, Helen McCormack, Senior Orthotist at Peacocks Medical Group, will look at orthotic options, treatment principles and options for approach. Amy Telford, Specialist Occupational Therapist at Great North Children’s Hospital RVI, will end the discussion on the topic of occupational therapy options, treatment and principles and options for approach.

Helen said: “We are looking forward to welcoming a range of speakers, all experts in their respective fields to our first live event following the pandemic. It is in a hybrid format, so those who can’t attend in-person have the option to stream the conference on the day.

“The aim is to highlight the different approaches to hypermobility spectrum disorders (HSD) and Ehlers-danlos syndrome. HSD are a group of conditions related to joint hypermobility. HSD are intended to be diagnosed after other possible answers are excluded, such as any of the Ehlers-danlos syndromes (EDS), including hypermobile EDS (hEDS). HSD, just like hEDS, can have significant effects on our health.”

As an orthotist, Helen highlighted that she first had exposure to hypermobility while undergoing university placements.

“I really recognised the stigma attached to it due to a lack of education for clinicians, patients and their families.

“There are many obvious difficulties in diagnosing patients with Hypermobile EDS. Symptoms are wide-spread and can include extreme tiredness, joint pain, digestive problems such as heartburn constipation, dizziness, and many more, which is why pinpointing a diagnosis and treatment can be difficult.

“After years of extensive research, the question still remains… How do you treat hypermobility and EDS? I have come to the conclusion that you can’t – but you can manage each case. I am looking forward to discussing the various treatment options available and to continue the conversation amongst my peers.”

Prior to COVID-19, Peacocks Medical Group had hosted an annual orthotic conference at the Centre for Life, in Newcastle, for the last 17 years. As Peacocks has grown to a national company, the conference has been rebranded as FORTH, Forward Orthotic Thinking.

Established in 1903, Peacocks Medical Group is a multi-award-winning group providing care in the delivery of both clinical services and medical equipment to the NHS and the private sector. The company has a long tradition of developing and supporting the orthotic profession and its role in treatments.

Colin Peacock, the immediate past chairman of the company, was instrumental in the development of the profession as a science and recognised allied health profession. He was also the first orthotist to chair the International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics UK.

The second orthotist to be chair was Paul Charlton, a senior orthotist at Peacocks. Paul also sits on the executive committee of the British Association of Prosthetists and Orthotists (BAPO) and plays a key role in organising the FORTH conferences.

Recently, Paul shared an exclusive article with AT Today about how the coronavirus pandemic has impacted assistive technology services and what this has meant for patients on hospital waiting lists.