The prestigious hospital yesterday became part of UCLH, London’s top performing NHS foundation trust. It has some of the world’s leading clinicians and academics in ear, nose and throat services.
The management change will see UCLH become a specialist centre of excellence for head and neck services for patients. It will combine the services provided by the RNTNEH with the dental, oral health, neuroscience and head and neck cancer services already provided by UCLH.
The RNTNEH was previously part of the Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust but is situated much closer to UCLH.
In the longer term, the vision is to bring the RNTNEH, Eastman Dental Hospital and existing UCLH head and neck services into one centre on the main University College Hospital campus.
Sir Robert Naylor, UCLH chief executive, said: “I am delighted to be able to welcome colleagues from the Royal National Throat Nose and Ear Hospital to UCLH.
“This is an incredibly exciting opportunity to create a national centre of excellence for mouth, ear, nose and throat services. No leading centre of this scale and breadth currently exists in the UK for head and neck services.
“This decision is in line with the Trust’s vision to develop a leading biomedical research campus integrating teaching, research and clinical services, working closely with UCL.”
The majority of the RNTNEH services are delivered from the Gray’s Inn Road hospital site, Edgware Community Hospital and Finchley Memorial Hospital. In collaboration with the Royal Free and The Whittington, they provide in-patient day case and out-patient clinics.