Medico Legal Experience
RÉSUMÉ OF CURRICULUM VITAE
NAME Helen Marie FERNANDES
ADDRESS Barrington Hall
Haslingfield Road
Barrington
Cambridge
CB22 7RG
DATE OF BIRTH 06 December 1966
CIVIL STATUS Married
DEGREES & DIPLOMAS
MB BS University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne 1989
FRCS (Primary) Royal College of Surgeons of England 1991
FRCS (C Si G) Royal College of Surgeons of England 1993
Intercollegiate FRCS
Surgical Neurology 2000
MD University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne 2001
CURRENT APPOINTMENTS:
CONSULTANT NEUROSURGEON
(sub-specialty – complex spine and paediatrics)
Department of Neurological Surgery
Addenbrooke’s NHS Trust
Cambridge CB2 2QQ
VISITING CONSULTANT IN NEUROSURGERY
Norfolk & Norwich Hospital
Peterborough District Hospital
Bedford General Hospital
HONORARY VISITING SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW
University of Cambridge
I received my undergraduate training at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, graduating in 1989 and continued thereafter in both post-graduate training in basic and higher surgical training.
My BST included orthopaedics, ENT, General Surgery and Vascular Surgery. I completed the FRCS (England) in April 1993. My neurosurgical training was at Newcastle General and Middlesbrough General Hospital. I was awarded FRCS Surgical Neurology in April 2000. My training was supplemented with secondments to Great Ormond Street, Montefiore Hospital, Bronx, New York and Maudsley Hospital, London.
During my training I spent two years in research. I was awarded the Louis Alexander Fellowship, by the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 1996 and later a Hunterian Professorship. I completed my Doctorate of Medicine in 2001, awarded by University of Newcastle. The research was later funded by the Medical Research Council and in 2001 I was appointed as MRC Senior Lecturer and Honorary Consultant at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
I later moved to a Consultant Neurosurgeon post in Addenbrooke’s Hospital in 2002. Here I participate in the care of general neurosurgical problems and but am lead Paediatric Neurosurgeon but also have a major interest in complex spinal problems. I am Lead Consultant for Clinical Audit in Neurosciences. I am also Associate Director of Postgraduate Education for the Trust.
PREVIOUS APPOINTMENTS:
Senior Lecturer and Honorary Consultant Neurosurgeon
University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne 2001-2002
Northern Regional Neurosurgical Registrar Rotation
Newcastle General Hospital
Middlesbrough General Hospital 1994-2001
Research Associate
Newcastle General Hospital 1995-1997
OTHER
Medical Research Council Senior Lecturer,
University, Newcastle upon Tyne 2001-2002
Hunterian Professor, Royal College of Surgeons 2001-2002
Associate Director of Postgraduate Education current
Chair Person, Women in Surgery, RCS current
Lead Consultant for Modernising Medical Careers current
Lead Consultant for Department of Neurosciences Audit current
Lead Consultant Paediatric Neurosurgery at Addenbrooke’s current
Reviewer for various Neurosurgical Journals
and Cochrane database current
Committee member, Opportunities in Surgery, RCS current
Council member, Cambridge Medical Society 2005-2007
Medical Adviser, Association Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus current
Member, East Anglia Spinal Association current
Member, Cervical Spine Society current
Member, British Association Spinal Surgeons current
Member, Society of British Neurological Surgeons current
Member, British Paediatric Neurosurgical Group current
Member, European Society for Paediatric Neurosurgery current
MEDICO-LEGAL EXPERIENCE
· Police Surgeon (Northumbria Police) 1990-1994
Examining, preparing reports and appearing in Court, supporting victims of rape and serious sexual abuse
· Writing Medical Reports since 2002
· Several Court appearances as expert witness
· Types of Report
Personal injury, claimant 50%
Personal injury, defence 40%
Personal injury, joint 10%
Paediatric non-accidental injury, defendant 40%
Paediatric non-accidental injury, prosecution 40%
Paediatric non-accidental injury, joint 20%
· Time to Appointment
Less than 4 weeks (urgent by special arrangement)
· Time to report
Less than 4 weeks after records and copy scans available (urgent by special arrangement)
PUBLICATIONS
· Early Surgery versus initial conservative treatment in patients with spontaneous supratentorial intracerebral haematomas in the International Surgical Trial in Intracerebral Haemorrhage (STICH): a randomised trial. AD Mendelow, Barbara Gregdon, Helen M Fernandes, Gordon Murray, Graham M Teasdale, D Terence Hope, Abbas Karimi, M Donald Shaw and David H Barer and STICH investigators. Lancet 2005; 365:387-397
· Spontaneous Intracerebral Haemorrhage. H.M. Fernandes. Surgery 2003;22 (3):66-68
· Cerebral oedema associated with betaine treatment in classical homocystinuria. AM Devlin, L Hajipour, A Gholkar, HM Fernandes, V Ramesh, AAM Morris. Journal of Paediatrics (In press)
· Alterations to STICH protocol (letter). MDM Shaw, AD Mendelow, GM Teasdale, GD Murray, BA Gregson on behalf of the MRC Steering Committee (HM Fernandes Principal Investigator). The Lancet 2003; 362:1244
· Protocol 99RPT/7 International STICH (Surgical Trial in Intracerebral Haemorrhage). MRC Steering Committee of STICH (HM Fernandes) http://www.thelancet.com/info
· Design and Analysis of Phase III Trials with Ordered Outcome Scales: The Concept of the Sliding Dichotomy. Gordon Murray, David Barer, Sung Choi, Helen Fernandes, Barbara Gregson, Kennedy Lees, Andrew Mass, Anthony Marmarou, A. David Mendelow, Ewout Steyerberg, Gillian Taylor, Graham Teasdale and Christopher Weir. Journal of Neurotrauma 2005;22:511
· Woman aged 24 years with fourth ventricular mass (Giant cell ependymoma). Case Report. P Pal, HM Fernandes, D Ellison. Brain Pathology (2005)
· Surgery in Intracerebral Haemorrhage: the Uncertainty Continues? (2000)
· Intracranial pressure and clinical status: assessment of two intracranial pressure transducers (2000)
· Spontaneous Intracerebral Haemorrhage: A clinical dilemma (1999)