Meet our experts

Mr Eric Butchart is the Senior Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff.

Mr Butchart has twenty-four years' experience as a consultant, and was the European Surgical Editor of the Journal of Heart Valve Disease for six years. He was a member of the European Society of Cardiology Committee which published European guidelines for anticoagulation in patients with heart valve disease in the mid 1990s.

Mr Butchart is currently the Chairman of the European Society of Cardiology Working Group on Valvular Heart Disease and is also a member of the World Health Organisation Guidelines Committee on Rheumatic Heart Disease. His principal area of research is the influence of anticoagulation management and patient risk factors on thromboembolism after heart valve replacement.

Mr Butchart has edited a book on thromboembolism and has published almost 100 works, many devoted to this subject. His most important recent finding, based on analysis of a 20 year prosthetic valve series, is that poor anticoagulation control is the strongest risk factor for reduced long-term survival after valve replacement.

Mr Pushpinder Sidhu is a fourth-year Specialist Registrar in Cardiothoracic Surgery, currently based at the Royal Hospitals' Trust in Belfast.

Mr Sidhu's training was undertaken in Dublin at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. He qualified in 1987.

He is a medical officer for the Ulster Branch of the Irish Hockey Union and is also involved in motor sports as a medical officer for circuit racing, rallying and hill-climbs.

Mr Sidhu’s recent publications include an article on self-managed anticoagulation published in 'The Annals of Thoracic Surgery'.

Professor David Fitzmaurice is a part time GP and Senior Lecturer at the Department of Primary Care and General Practice at the University of Birmingham.

Professor Fitzmaurice's interest in oral anticoagulation management arises out of work undertaken in the Department investigating models of care, particularly in primary care, focusing on the use of computerised decision support systems and near patient INR testing.

This work has been very successful and the Birmingham model of primary care oral anticoagulation management is now accepted as a credible alternative to hospital outpatient management.

Current work includes investigating the cost-effectiveness of screening for atrial fibrillation, the relative treatment effects of warfarin and aspirin for the treatment of atrial fibrillation in the very elderly, and looking at both the clinical and cost-effectiveness of patients managing their own warfarin therapy.

He has published extensively in this and other areas, is editorial advisor to the British Medical Journal (BMJ), and is currently a member of the editorial board of the Thrombus.

Professor Fitzmaurice is the primary care editor of the PROMOAT web site which aims to disseminate information relating to all aspects of oral anticoagulation management.

Dr Patrick Kesteven is Consultant Haematologist at the Freeman Hospital, Newcastle.

Patrick Kesteven grew up in Rome, where his father worked for the United Nations. However, when he was 10, his family moved back to Australia where he completed his education and acquired some cultural polish.

Medical training was at Sydney University and then St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney. The latter led to completion of his physicians training. He moved to St Thomas' Hospital in London to undertake Haematology training and to do a bit of travelling. This continues to this day. During his stay at St Thomas', Patrick completed his Pathology training and a PhD on the problems of anticoagulation during open heart surgery.

This led to his appointment at the Freeman Hospital in Newcastle, a major cardiothoracic centre, as a Consultant Haematologist. Since then his research has been centred around the problems of anticoagulation and of pathological venous thrombosis.

Professor Samuel J Machin MB, ChB, FRCPath, FRCP was educated at Manchester Grammar School and Sheffield University and specialises in haemostasis - that is, the coagulation of blood.

He has research experience from the Department of Vascular and Haemostasis Research Unit, KU Leuven in Belgium and a senior lectureship at Middlesex Hospital Medical School. In 1990 he was appointed Professor of Haematology at University College, London.

Sam says, 'My primary research interests are in haemostasis and I am Head of the Haemostasis Research Unit in the Department of Haematology, University College London, with approximately twenty people in the research department. My main areas of research interest are in vascular and endothelial cell platelet interactions and in particular the patho-physiology and management of the primary anti phospholipid syndrome, thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura and thrombotic arterial disease. I am also the Department of Health (MDA) Centre for evaluation of haematology/coagulation equipment and have an active research group in laboratory automation. I have published over two hundred articles in prime review journals.'

Sam has held the following positions in Learned Societies: Vice President of the British Society of Haematology 2003-2005 and President elect 2005-2007. Member CMO's National Blood Transfusion Committee and National Commissioning Group for Blood and Blood Products. President of the British Society of Haemostasis and Thrombosis Year 2000-2002. Treasurer of the British Society of Haematology 1994-2000. SSC Vice-Chairman of the International Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis 1995-6. Treasurer ISTH 2003. Past President, International Society Laboratory Haematology 1995-6.

Andrew Hartley BPharm (Hons), MRPharmS studied pharmacy at Bradford University and graduated with honours. He registered in 1985.

Owning three community pharmacies in the South West of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, Andrew has been a member the Sheffield LPC for many years and was appointed to the Executive Committee of the Sheffield South West PCT in April 2001. As part of that role he is Chair of the Pharmacy and Prescribing sub-group and a member of the Clinical and Corporate Governance sub-committees. Until recently he acted as a liaison officer for Southern Derbyshire LPC.

Andrew has a number of long-standing, positive relationships within the pharmaceutical industry and sits on a Diabetes Advisory board and has run or consulted on a number of pharmacy-based enhanced services supported by the pharmaceutical industry. He has participated in an AntiCoagulation Europe 'Round Table' meeting.

He has a strong interest in service re-design as well as improving patient disease control and outcomes and isn't afraid to challenge the status quo when he feels it is a barrier to service improvements. In April 2004 he completed a pilot to evaluate a Primary Care based INR management service and, following a successful evaluation and positive patient feedback, is working with Sheffield SW PCT to extend this to a full service under the new General Medical Services contract.

He has presented some of his projects at conferences hosted by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain and spoken as a guest speaker at branch meetings.

Married with three children aged 8, 18 and 20, Andrew spends his spare time with his family and enjoys sailing and most other water sports, motor racing, travel and reading. In November 2003 he sailed across the Atlantic, as one of a crew of five, in a 52ft yacht. In October 2004 Andrew is starting a two-year Graduate Diploma in Law, (distance learning) course with Nottingham Law School.

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