A new monthly clinic designed to help spot the early signs of liver disease will launch in Goole later this month.
Specialist liver scans, known as fibroscans, will be offered to people identified as being at higher risk of liver disease, and will be carried out at Goole and District Hospital starting on 27 January.
The clinic will operate ‘by appointment only’, with hospital and primary care-based health professionals working together to identify and invite those with the greatest risk factors.
The new clinic has been introduced as a result of the success of another Goole-based hospital event, the ‘Fit 4 Life’ fair.
This free health and wellbeing event, held in November, gave patients, visitors and staff the opportunity to seek professional advice on healthier lifestyles and access on-the-spot tests and screening.
The Liver Health Team was among those taking part, and it was here that Beth Featherstone, community liver nurse specialist, identified a gap in the market for targeted liver screening in the Goole area.
Beth explains:
“We know that there are certain groups of people who are more at risk of liver disease than others, this includes people living with Type 2 diabetes with a BMI of 30 or more, those with Hepatitis B or C, and those who drink more than 14 units of alcohol per week.
Faye Coite (left) and Beth Featherstone with a fibroscan machine
“The difficulty with spotting liver disease is that often there are few actual symptoms until the disease is well progressed, and for some people, the first time they know there’s a problem is when they’re admitted to hospital in an emergency.
“At the recent Fit 4 Life event, we found people were really keen to know more about their liver health as it’s not something which generally gets a lot of airtime. We carried out a good number of fibroscans at the Goole session, and while we didn’t pick up many issues on the day, it did get us thinking about the need for more targeted screening in this part of East Yorkshire.
“So, from the end of this month, we’ll be working with local GPs, hospital doctors and a range of other health professionals to identify people who are at higher risk of liver disease and then inviting them to attend one of our new monthly clinics for liver screening.”
Fibroscans use ultrasound technology to check for signs of liver stiffness and can help to identify signs of liver disease which a person wouldn’t know were there, day-to-day. Early detection allows health professionals to assess the damage and either begin treatment or offer diet and lifestyle advice which could help to reverse any damage without the need for medical intervention.
Beth continues:
“This is the first time that the liver checks have been offered at Goole Hospital, meaning people who are identified as needing the scan will be given the opportunity to be seen locally, and not asked to travel outside the immediate area as they may have been previously.
“Patients attending screening will need to be identified by the team as someone who would benefit from a fibroscan in the first instance. That said, we would encourage anyone who has concerns about their liver health or the impact which their lifestyle choices may be having on their liver, to seek advice from their GP.
“We’re pleased to be in a position where we can now reach out and offer more support to the people of Goole and surrounding areas using the local hospital facilities. Liver disease can have serious consequences, but it’s also something that can be well managed if caught early enough, and that’s what we’re here to do.”
The next Fit 4 Life event will take place at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby on Thursday 29 January, from 11am to 2pm in the main hospital restaurant – all welcome.