Haemophilia centre at The Royal London Hospital

About us

Our commitment to excellence in haematology care is rooted in a tradition of experience, innovation and compassion. We offer a wide range of services for adults and children.

Multidisciplinary Care

Collaborating closely with other specialists, we ensure that patients receive comprehensive care addressing their unique medical and psychosocial needs. We have a team of haematologists, highly trained nurses and physiotherapist, and specialised biomedical scientists.

• We provide adult and paediatric consultant-led, nurse-led and physiotherapy-led clinics on a weekly basis.
• We provide access to psychology counselling support, workshops and peer support groups specialised in the care of patients with bleeding disorders.
• Our joint clinics with obstetrics and gynaecology provide care for girls and women with bleeding disorders at different stages of their lives.
• Our links with The Royal London Dental hospital allow patients with severe bleeding disorder to access specialised dental care if required.
• We have close ties with orthopaedics, hepatology, infectious diseases, dental, obstetrics and gynaecology.

Personalised Treatment Plans

We develop tailored treatment plans, which may include clotting factor replacement therapy, for each patient to ensure the best possible care. Our dedicate operations manager, admin team and homecare pharmacist, ensure that our patients receive their treatments at home.

Education and Support

We provide patient and family education on managing their condition, including how to recognise and manage bleeding episodes.

You can find out more about our team on our app: My Haemophilia Centre, available on the Apple store and Google play store.

The National Infected Blood Psychology Service (IBPS) is made up of 16 NHS Trusts across the UK. It was set up in response to the findings from the Infected Blood Inquiry.

At Barts Health, we offer this service at The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel. We also work closely with other services in London, including The Royal Free Hospital and Guy’s and St Thomas’.

Who we support

We understand how wide reaching the impact of contaminated blood has been on infected individuals and their families.

We offer specialist psychological and social support to anyone who has been infected or affected by the use of contaminated blood or blood products. 

Meet the IBPS team at Barts Health

Our team includes a social worker and a clinical psychologist, so we can support your emotional, social, and practical needs.

• Caroline Bright is our Navigator and a trained social worker. She will be your first point of contact. Caroline will listen to your needs and help you get the right support. She can also help with things like housing, finances, benefits, community services, and getting the care you need from health services.
• Dr Nadia Somers is our clinical psychologist and leads the service. She offers therapy to people living with long-term health conditions or those who have been through difficult or traumatic experiences.

Our ethos

We aim to offer a service that puts the infected and affected populations at the heart of the service by:

• having knowledge of the contaminated blood scandal/treatment disaster and its wide-reaching impacts on people’s lives
• being accountable by being open and responsive to feedback. Our contact details are below
• being proactive and increasing ease of access to psychosocial support. For example by offering video, telephone and in-person appointments
• offering support that is practical as well as psychological, and always compassionate

How to access the service

You can refer yourself to our service at The Royal London Hospital here.

What happens after you refer?

Once we receive your referral, we will get in touch with you by phone or email. If you haven’t heard from us within two weeks, please email us directly.

Your first appointment will be with Caroline, our Navigator. This is a chance to talk about what support you're looking for. You can choose to have this appointment by phone, video call, or in person.

Please note: Your appointment reminder may appear under “Clinical Haematology.”

If you need urgent help

This is not an emergency or crisis service.

If you need urgent mental health support, please:

• Call 999 or 111
• Go to your nearest A&E
• Call Samaritans on 116 123 (free and available 24/7 across the UK)
• Text SHOUT to 85258 for free support

Contact us

• Email the team
• Phone: 020 35 941 869

(Please note: admin support is provided by the Haemophilia team. They will take a message and pass it on to the psychology service.)

Your data

 

All health and personal data will be stored securely in line with the IBPS privacy policy.

 

If you are making a claim for compensation through Infected Blood Compensation Authority (IBCA) you will be informed that IBCA can access your medical and/or psychology notes under the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, if needed. You can find more information on the ICBA website.

 

Where can I find further information? 

• The National Infected Blood Psychology Service (IBPS)
• NHS Blood and Transplant: Infected Blood Inquiry
• British Red Cross support service
• Haemophilia Society
• Hepatitis C Trust

When to refer a patient with easy bruising or bleeding

General Practitioners (GPs) play a vital role in identifying patients who may have bleeding disorders, especially those who present with symptoms like easy bruising. If you encounter a patient with unexplained or frequent bruising or bleeding, it is essential to consider the possibility of an underlying bleeding disorder, either inherited or acquired.

A combination of the following key indicators may prompt a referral to The Royal London Haemophilia Centre:

• Recurrent and excessive bruising starting at a young age
• Protracted bleeding after minor injuries
• Excessive bleeding after surgery
• Family history
• Unexplained bleeding

What tests should I perform in primary care?

If you suspect your patient may have a bleeding disorder, please carry out the following blood tests: full blood count, clotting screen (PT and APTT), fibrinogen levels, liver function tests and iron studies. 

Please also carry out an ISTH Bleeding assessment tool which can be found on the Practical Haemostasis website. If your patient has an abnormal score and/or abnormal blood test results, please send a referral to us through the “Advice and Guidance portal”. If you are unsure whether to refer a patient or have any questions about referring a patient to our centre, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us through Advice and Guidance.

Regular prescriptions in patients with bleeding disorders

We advise all patients with bleeding disorders to take Tranexamic acid if they have bleeding symptoms and would be grateful if this is on their repeat prescription. The dose is 1gr TDS for adults. They should not take it in case of haematuria.