Trauma plastic, reconstructive and burns surgery

If you sustain a hand or soft tissue injury in Dewsbury, Pontefract or Wakefield, you will be assessed by A&E staff on site. X-Rays will be performed if necessary, and your injury will be discussed with our on-call hand surgery doctors as appropriate. If you have a simple hand fracture (broken bone), or mild ligament injury, a splint will be applied to your hand in the A&E department and an appointment with hand physiotherapists will be arranged for you using the telephone number you have provided to the A&E staff. If your injury involves a complex wound, severe ligament damage or a complicated fracture pattern, you will be seen by our on-call team at Pinderfields Hospital. Adult patients are reviewed in the plastic surgery assessment unit (Gate 28c). Our on-call doctors go to review children in paediatric A&E or on Gate 46 paediatric burns unit.

We also take trauma referrals from hospital wards, so should you sustain multiple injuries, injuries requiring multiple specialities, or sustain an injury due to being unwell with a medical condition, we will work in collaboration with other specialities to provide the most appropriate and prompt care for your condition. Occasionally we will transfer your care to Pinderfields hospital if you require regular plastic surgery input

In addition to the above, we also take referrals for appropriate complications of surgery, severe infections such as Necrotising Fasciitis and burn injuries.

Some injuries require advice and oral tablets. Other injuries require surgical intervention. Surgery may take place on the same day of assessment, if urgent or life threatening, or in the following few days. Appropriate timing and treatment plan will be explained by the on-call doctors. It is likely that, following assessment by the plastic surgery team you will be discharged from hospital and asked to come back for your surgery at a later date. We run daily trauma theatre lists, including at weekends, so urgent surgical procedures will usually be arranged for the next morning.

Patients who sustain multiple major injuries involving the head, limbs and chest, for example from a car accident, are usually taken by ambulance straight to a local major trauma centre situated at Leeds General Infirmary.

• Hand Trauma – please see our hand surgery section
• Burns – please see our acute burns section
• Soft tissue injuries of the legs and arms
• Necrotising soft tissue infections
• Complications of cosmetic surgery usually performed abroad
• Complications related to major reconstructive surgery
• Dog bites to arms and legs