Curriculum vitae – James W Fairley

Mr James W Fairley BSc MBBS FRCS MS (Lond) Consultant ENT Surgeon

71 Mill Court, Ashford, Kent TN24 8DN

tel 01233 642244

Updated: February 2019

Profile Summary

Accredited Consultant Ear Nose & Throat Specialist
Over 35 years clinical experience
Established independent and NHS practice South East England since 1993
Strong academic background in evidence based medicine
Skilled in general otolaryngology, adults and children
Special interests in otology, rhinology and laser surgery
Lifetime commitment to clinical excellence

Personal details

Full Name: James William Fairley
Nationality: British
Marital status: Married, three grown-up children and five grandchildren

Professional qualifications

UK GMC Registration: Fully Trained Specialist (Otolaryngology) Certificate No. 2719566; Revalidated 6 February 2019; Revalidation due date 17 February 2024

Medical Qualifications

1996: Master of Surgery (University of London)
1993: Accredited Trained Specialist in Otolaryngology (Royal College of Surgeons of England)
1988: Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (Otolaryngology)
1981: Bachelor of Medicine Bachelor of Surgery St Thomas’ Hospital Medical School University of London
1978: Bachelor of Science (Pharmacology) University of London

Professional memberships

Member British Association of Otolaryngologists / Head & Neck Surgeons, ENT UK
- Former Committee Member, Clinical Audit and Practice Advisory Group (CAPAG)
- Former Chairman, e-Learning Group of the Education and Training Committee
- Inaugural Survey Guardian
- Member Facial Plastic Surgery Group
Member Independent Doctors Federation
Fellow Royal College of Surgeons of England
Fellow Royal Society of Medicine, Sections of Otology & Laryngology
Member British Society of Otology
Member European Rhinologic Society
Member Otorhinolaryngological Research Society
Member British Society for the History of ENT (formerly Treasurer & Membership Secretary)
Founder Member & former Chairman BAHA professionals group
Honorary member Danish Society of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery

Independent Private Practice

Private Practice Office – Kent: 71 Mill Court Ashford Kent TN24 8DN
Private Hospitals – Kent: One Ashford Hospital Kennington Road Ashford Kent TN24 0YS; The Chaucer Hospital Nackington Road Canterbury Kent CT4 7AR; Kent Institute of Medical Sciences – KIMS Hospital Maidstone Kent ME14 5FT; Spencer Private Hospitals, William Harvey Hospital, Ashford Kent TN24 OLZ
Private Practice Office Clinic – London: The Harley Street ENT Clinic 109 Harley Street London W1G 6AN

Former NHS practice

Consultant ENT Surgeon East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust 01 Aug 1993 – 31 Aug 2014

NHS hospitals: William Harvey Hospital Kennington Road Ashford Kent TN24 OLZ; Kent and Canterbury Hospital Ethelbert Road Canterbury Kent CT1 3NG

Clinical practice in ENT

Private practice, adults and children
Until 2009, approx 2,000 new referrals & 3,000 follow-up patients seen per year, now approx 1,500 total
Specialist opinion provided on the full spectrum of ENT disorders
Until 2009, approx 500 ENT surgical operations performed per year, now approx 100

Specialist skills

General Otolaryngology (Adult & Paediatric)

Otology (including complex middle ear surgery and BAHA implants)

over 1,000 major middle ear operations completed
published results of Causse laser stapedotomy on par with best reported internationally
published results of BAHA implants on par with best reported nationally

Rhinology (including functional endoscopic sinus surgery and septo-rhinoplasty)

several thousand routine nasal procedures since 1984
lateral rhinotomy, fronto-ethmoidectomy, transantral ligation of the maxillary artery, and radical frontal sinus obliteration with osteoplastic flap successfully performed
approx 2,000 FESS operations since 1987
Septoplasty, septorhinoplasty and turbinate reductions for nasal airway obstruction performed

LASER surgery

KTP laser regularly used since 1995, CO2 since 1984
accredited LASER user

Head & Neck Surgery

diagnostic procedures including laryngoscopy, pharyngo-oesophagoscopy, biopsies, fine needle aspirations previously performed, small volume procedures now referred to colleagues
patients requiring cancer treatment are referred to multidisciplinary teams
parotidectomy, submandibular gland, branchial cyst, thyroglossal cyst excisions previously performed with good results, now referred to colleagues due to small volumes and sub-specialization

Facial Plastic Surgery

experienced in both internal and external rhinoplasty techniques
functional rhinoplasty still performed, purely cosmetic rhinoplasty no longer performed
pinnaplasty / otoplasty previously carried out with good results, now referred to colleagues due to small volumes and sub-specialization

Endoscopy

skilled use of rigid and fibreoptic endoscopes
microlaryngsocpy including vocal cord augmentation injection previously performed with good results, now referred to colleagues due to small volumes and sub-specialization
functional endoscopic sinus surgery regularly performed.

Clinical excellence

This section is written as a narrative in the first person as I feel that the heart and soul of being a good doctor cannot and should not be reduced to a series of bullet points……

My approach to professional excellence is simple.
I treat people as I would like members of my own family to be treated.
I do the very best I can (given the difficult circumstances we face in the NHS) for every patient referred to me.

I am approachable, friendly, and try to establish empathy early in a consultation.
I believe in “getting it right first time”. This means more than getting the diagnosis right. It means finding out what the patient hopes for and expects from treatment, and explaining the limitations and risks of surgery.
Having explained treatment options in terms I hope the patient can understand, I check they have understood it.
My policy is complete openness and honesty.
I give copies of my GP letters to patients and parents as a matter of course.

I keep up to date, and I learn from my patients.
I know my own strengths and limitations.
I don’t hesitate to discuss difficult problems with colleagues, and refer on when necessary.

Though lucky enough to have “a good pair of hands” I always strive to improve my surgical skills. In theatre, I am a meticulous operator, though not one of the quickest. For emergencies, I am always available when on-call, and do not hesitate to come in even when not on-call if there is a problem with one of my patients. In clinics and in theatre, I stay as long as it takes.

I am grateful to all the colleagues I worked with during my nine years of excellent postgraduate training in ENT- including over 20 individual consultants in seven busy departments. This gave me broad clinical experience and a sound basis for further professional development.

I am now in my 24th year of independent practice, and have built on this foundation a wealth of clinical experience and judgement, learned mostly from my patients, to whom I am most grateful for entrusting me with their lives and wellbeing.

Clinical governance, appraisal & audit

Former Committee member, ENT-UK Clinical Audit and Practice Advisory Group
NHS and BUPA clinical governance and outcomes assessment participant
Contribute data to National Audits organised by the Royal College of Surgeons and ENT UK
Presented audit results locally, nationally & internationally
Annual appraisal by NHS Trust scheme for Consultants since inception
Track record of acting on audit results – gave up using laser for tonsillectomy & returned to conventional instruments following audit which showed unacceptably high level of secondary haemorrhages
Published results of audit of stapes surgery and BAHA (bone anchored hearing aid) show results equal to best published figures internationally
CME (Continuing Medical Education) continually updated
Trained Performance Assessor for UK General Medical Council

Research & evidence based medicine

Lifetime philosophical interest in science & basis of knowledge
Strong pre-medical school grounding in mathematics, statistics, & scientific logic
Skills in use of scientific & medical reference literature since 1978 Bsc Pharmacology
Experience in bioassay techniques, physiological research & experimental surgery
Work in research laboratories developing new drugs for Swiss pharmaceutical company 1978
Early user of on-line literature research services since 1987 (pre-internet – dialog knowledge index)
Major interest in evaluation of surgical interventions, developed symptom-scoring outcome assessment tool for rhinosinusitis
Set up & ran nasal research clinic Sheffield 1990 – 93
Carried out a prospective randomized controlled trial of FESS versus conventional inferior meatal antrostomy for recurrent acute and chronic sinusitis
Fundamental endoscopic anatomical research into localization of pathological processes causing facial pain and headache
Currently Reviewer for Clinical Otolaryngology & Cochrane ENT Group &anp; British Medical Journal
Inaugural Survey Guardian for ENT UK British Association of Otolaryngologists Head and Neck Surgeons

Teaching & training skills

Practical scientific & medical teaching since 1978
Skills in formal tutorials, lectures, marking written work & viva voce examinations since 1983
Formal & informal teaching to students, medical colleagues and colleagues from professions allied to medicine throughout career
Former London University Examiner in medical aspects of voice (BSc Speech Science students)
Graduate of Royal College of Surgeons “Training the Trainers” course
Regular one-to-one teaching of junior medical staff in out-patients and operating theatres
Coaching of junior colleagues for postgraduate examinations
Numerous regional, national and international presentations on my research
Lectures and demonstrations on regional, national and international courses
Regarded as a good public speaker (evidenced by formal and informal feedback following presentations)
Former examiner & mentor Postgraduate Diploma in ENT course (for GP’s with Special Interest)
Former Chaiman, e-Learning group, Education & Training Committee, ENT UK British Association of Otorhinolaryngologists – Head & Neck Surgeons

Management & administration

Former Chair, Medical Advisory Committee, Spire St Saviours Hospital
Former Lead clinician ENT & Clinical Board member, South Kent Hospitals NHS Trust 1996 – 2000

Career history

1 Aug 1993 – present: Consultant Otorhinolaryngologist – Specialist ENT Physician & Surgeon in Private Practice, South East England
1 Aug 1993 – 31 Aug 2014: Consultant ENT Surgeon East Kent University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Mr James W Fairley

BSc MBBS FRCS MS (Lon.)

Consultant ENT Surgeon

Mrs Sylvia A Fairley

Dip Nurs (Lon.)

Practice Manager