The launch of a ground-breaking, multi-disciplinary liver centre, pioneered by clinicians at the University of Cape Town, represents a new dawn for patients suffering from liver disease in South Africa, reports UCT News.
Established jointly at Groote Schuur Hospital, UCT Private Academic Hospital in Cape Town and Netcare Greenacres Hospital in Gqeberha, the facility leverages various disciplines in medicine – including hepatobiliary surgery, hepatology, gastroenterology, oncology and interventional radiology – to bring patients integrated, state-of-the-art care in a single, collaborative framework.
Pioneered by UCT’s Division of Radiology in partnership with the Division of General Surgery and the Division of Hepatology, the centre is the first co-ordinated liver care model of its kind in the country, and will provide comprehensive, multi-disciplinary liver care for patients and offer clinician training that’s aligned with international best practice.
By joining public and private healthcare professionals and clinicians who work in academia, the integration allows the centre to combine the high patient volumes and clinical diversity of the public health sector with advanced technology and efficiency of the private sector.
Project lead and UCT’s Dr Dale Creamer, said that many patients are poorly educated about liver disease – and the centre aims to change that, with an evidence-based approach that is not a one-size-fits-all route.
UCT News article – UCT launches world-class Liver Centre SA (Creative Commons Licence)
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