Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust’s Primary Immunodeficiency Service is one of only four centres in the country to have achieved the standards required for full accreditation by the UK Primary Immunodeficiency Network.

The aim of the UK Primary Immunodeficiency Network’s accreditation scheme is to improve the care of patients who have primary immunodeficiencies through the development of common approaches to diagnosis, care, support and management by setting high standards of practice and service organisation. 

Dr. Claire Bethune, Consultant Immunologist at Derriford Hospital said: “We are very pleased to have been fully accredited by the UK Primary Immunodeficiency Network.  We’ve seen the number of patients with primary immunodeficiencies triple in the last five years and it’s great to know that our standards have been maintained and our services improved.  It is a credit to the hard work of the whole team.”

The accreditation process started with a self-assessment by Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust of its compliance with the standards set by the UK Primary Immunodeficiency Network.  This was followed by a formal accreditation application which was subject to an external peer review by the UK Primary Immunodeficiency Network’s Accreditation Committee.  Finally, a site assessment visit to Derriford was completed by professional specialty assessors.

The standards that must be achieved to receive full accreditation include making sure that risk assessments are undertaken for every patient with primary immunodeficiencies as well as the provision of facilities and equipment for allowing patients to self-infuse their antibody injections at home or at local community hospitals if desired.  Plymouth Hospitals was the pioneering NHS trust in the peninsula for developing a framework for giving patients this choice - saving them from making extra trips into hospital and giving them the option of receiving their injections in familiar surroundings.