Dr Dinakantha Kumararatne 2018-03-02 Person 5 5 0

I have been under Dr Kumar’s care since 2001, having previously attended immunology clinics in four other hospitals. Dr Kumar’s clinic was the first I had experienced that used a multi-disciplinary approach to provide holistic care. Dr Kumar runs joint clinics with other Addenbrookes departments (e.g. Respiratory, Infectious Diseases, Hepatology, Lung Function etc.). These joint clinics have successfully picked-up longstanding issues that had previously gone undiagnosed as they are not frequently seen in immune competent patients. They have also been very useful to monitor and take pro-active preventative measures to minimise disease progression. As far as I can see, Dr. Kumar’s use of Joint Clinics is quite innovative and necessary to provide the personalised care needed for different immune conditions. Even with regards to my own condition, research shows that patient care needs to be tailored and go beyond the scope of the immunology clinic. For example, in a 2013 research paper, the author stated: “Effective management of CD40L deficiency requires a comprehensive individualized look to each patient regarding his/her course of disease and various manifestations. In this view, each efficiently managed patient is an individual piece of art.” Dr Kumar has been practising this approach to good effect for many years. In my opinion, he is a highly respected immunologist, a very effective clinician and clearly, in terms of patient management, a veritable ‘artist’ in providing personalised care. As an addendum, I noticed from some of the other posts comments about slow admin. I would partly agree, but I would point out two mitigating factors 1. Administrative support to consultants at Addenbrookes has been heavily cut back, which means (as far as I can tell) Dr Kumar does a lot of his own admin 2. Addenbrookes moved over to a new IT system, which has caused major issues. I’ve witnessed Dr Kumar having to navigate a complex system to just accomplish basic tasks like booking my next appointment My sense is that Addenbrookes have been trying to save money by automating and cutting admin support. But rather than realising efficiency savings, the end result I’ve observed is that consultants like Dr Kumar are getting bogged down in admin and IT system issues. CUH – I hope you are reading this and think again.