Questions and Answers with Consultant Gastroenterologist Professor Stephen Patchett

By Clara Caslin

Professor Stephen Patchett is a Consultant Gastroenterologist who works in Beaumont Hospital in Dublin. He also works in The Bon Secours hospitals and is an Associate Clinical Professor in the Royal College of Surgeons Dublin. He graduated from UCD and began his training in Dublin before moving to London to train in St Bartholomew's and The Royal London Hospitals. 

He was a Senior Lecturer in St Barts in 1996 and then returned to Ireland to take up his current position in Beaumont in November 1998. He has a focus on diagnostic and therapeutic gastrointestinal endoscopy and therapeutics of inflammatory bowel disease. He is the clinical lead for endoscopy services in Beaumont and The Bon Secours. He is currently the chair of the working group for the national QA programme in endoscopy and represents the College of Physicians on the QA Steering group and the Conjoint Endoscopy Curriculum development group. 

Professor Stephen Patchett

What is your role?

Consultant Gastroenterologist.

When did you realise that being a Gastroenterologist was what you wanted to do? 

When I was a second year junior doctor and started working with a very influential gastroenterologist who subsequently became my mentor.

How many IBD patients do you treat (estimate)? 

1000.

What age group are the patients you treat? 

17-85.

Are all cases different or do you see a lot of similar ones? 

Whilst there are similarities, every patient is different both in the manifestation of their disease and their approach to dealing with their illness.

What do you think people can do to help their IBD?  

Look after themselves physically and emotionally. Eat well, exercise, don’t smoke. Learn as much as they can about their disease through interaction with others and IBD societies.

Do you ever think there will ever be a cure? 

I think ultimately yes but this will be some way off. However our ability to control the disease is improving rapidly and living with IBD will not be the challenge that it use to be.

What sort of lifestyle do you tell patients is best for them? 

Important to stay active and eat well (as we all should). This is the same advice that we would give to the general population.

Do you think IBD is one of the hardest diseases to live with? 

Difficult question as there are many difficult diseases. It really depends on the severity of an individual’s disease.

What would you say to someone who was newly diagnosed? 

Apart from explaining the nature of the disease and its treatment, I would stress that in the vast majority of cases, treatment is very successful and that a very fulfilling and active life is possible. I think a positive outlook is very important.

Image Credit: beaumont.ie

My Experience Of Having A Colonoscopy!

Hi everyone,

If you read my blog then you'll know that I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease just over four years ago. In August, I was in the hospital for a routine check-up and met a new doctor on the team. We were chatting about my case for a while and all seemed ok. Two weeks later, I received a letter in the post informing me that I had an appointment to have a colonoscopy done two days later! I had an appointment the day that it was scheduled so I had to reschedule it. I received another letter a few days later from the doctor that I met telling me that the team had discussed my case and wanted me to have a couple of tests done quite urgently. 

For anyone that doesn't know what a colonoscopy is, it's a test where they place a camera up your you know what so that they can see your rectum and entire colon. It can also reach the last part of the small intestine called the ileum. I've dodged having a colonoscopy done for years but this doctor wasn't letting me away with it! Everyone always thinks it's so strange when they find out that I've never had one done before but the reason I didn't have one done was because there was too much inflammation in my intestines when I was sick and they didn't want to chance that any perforation would occur during the procedure. 

My appointment date came and it was scheduled for last Tuesday which was the day before I started in Dublin City University (DCU). I was quite anxious about it because I didn't know how I would be after the test and I didn't want to miss my first day of a new college. I'm sorry for what I'm about to say to anyone who is going to have a colonoscopy done but I'm going to be completely honest. KLEAN PREP IS THE MOST VILE THING THAT I HAVE EVER HAD TO GO THROUGH. Your preparation starts a week before you have to go for the colonoscopy. You have to avoid certain foods which was grand and then at 3pm the day before the test you have to start drinking Klean Prep. 

You have four sachets that you dilute with a litre of water each and you're supposed to drink 250ml every ten minutes so that your bowel is clear for the procedure the next day. The only way to describe the taste is like swallowing vanilla scented salt water. You can dilute it with mi wadi but I ended up having to drink straight mi wadi before I could take a taste and then I washed it down with more straight mi wadi. I started at 3 15pm and I was still up at 3am finishing it and by finishing it I mean that I got through two and a half sachets in 12 hours!! 

I was annoyed at myself for struggling so much with it but it literally reduced me to tears after half a glass at the thought that I was going to have to struggle through four litres of this crap. Once the Klean Prep starts working, I advise you to stay very close to a bathroom! I gave up at 3am after the two and a half sachets because things were clear (if you get me) and I was really tired too. I wasn't scared about having the colonoscopy, I was more anxious that they would find anything! 

I was in chatting with some women in the dressing room when a nurse came looking for me. I went out and was brought into a room to have the cannula put into my arm and sat up on a bed. It was only after around five minutes of chatting to the nurse that I realised I was in the procedure room! A few minutes later, the doctor put some sedation in the cannula and I felt a bit relaxed but I was still completely aware of what was going on. The colonoscopy began and I watched everything that was being done on a screen and asked about 1,0000 questions (the poor doctor)! There were a few moments of cramping and discomfort but they didn't really bother me as they passed after a few seconds.

My biopsies won't be back for a few weeks but there were no signs of any inflammation anywhere which I was delighted about! That was my experience of having a colonoscopy. In short, Klean Prep is evil and the colonoscopy is absolutely nothing to be worried about! 

Clara