Sussex ME/CFS Society

Meet the Medical Advisors

Professor Leslie J Findley

Prof Findley is consultant neurologist and clinical lead at the
Essex Neurosciences Unit at Oldchurch Hospital. He is also
clinical lead for the Clinical Network Coordinating Centre
overseeing the NHS Kent & Medway CFS/ME Service.

Prof Findley received his undergraduate medical training at the
University of Sheffield, graduating MB, ChB in 1968. Between
1973 and 1981 he undertook postgraduate training in neurology
at the Institute of Neurology, London and St Mary's Hospital
Medical School. He was appointed consultant neurologist at the
Essex Neurosciences Unit in 1981. He was visiting consultant
neurologist to Queen Elizabeth Military Hospital until its closure in 1991 and was appointed Professor of Health Sciences (Neurology) at University of London, South Bank in 1996. Prof Findley is the Clinical Director of a referral centre for patients with complex fatigue syndromes of all types. He has contributed to WHO and national guidelines on the subject of diagnosis and management of fatigue syndromes.
Dr Susie Rockwell
Dr Susie Rockwell has been an NHS GP at Portslade Health
Centre since 1992 and is also a GP appraiser. She has been
involved with commissioning while sitting as a member of the
Professional Executive Committee of Brighton and Hove city
PCT. She has an interest in CFS and has been on the steering
group involved in setting up the new local service. She has
trained in homeopathy at the Royal London Homeopathic hospital
and has a small private homeopathic practice in Hove.
Professor Anthony Pinching
Professor Anthony Pinching has since 2003 been Associate
Dean for Cornwall, and Professor of Clinical Immunology, in
the Peninsula Medical School, with his base at the Royal
Cornwall Hospital, Truro. He trained in Medicine at Oxford,
also gaining DPhil (in Neuroanatomy). After postgraduate
training, he became Senior Lecturer, then Reader, in
Clinical Immunology at St Mary's, and in 1992 took up the
Louis Freedman Chair in Immunology at St Bartholomew's.
His academic and clinical interests have included cellular immunology, autoimmunity (myasthenia gravis, vasculitis), immunodeficiency (especially HIV/AIDS), chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS/ME), and medical ethics. He was Deputy Chairman of CMO's CFS/ME Working Group, and is Chairman of the Department of Health's CFS/ME Service Investment Steering Group. His clinical focus is now predominantly on CFS/ME.
Dr Keith Hine
Dr Keith Hine MD FRCP is the senior Consultant Physician at the Princess
Royal Hospital. He is a General Physician with a special interest in
diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and is currently the Lead Clinician
for Digestive Diseases in the Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals
Trust. He also has a number of other roles outside the Trust namely
Chairman of the Specialist Training Committee for Gastroenterology in
South Thames, an examiner for the General Medical Council Professional
and Linguistics Advisory Board and an examiner for the Membership of
the Royal College of Physicians. Dr Hine has had an interest in CFS/ME
since his appointment as a consultant in 1984. He is an ex-officio member of the Sussex wide CFS/ME Steering Group and has been a Medical Adviser to the Sussex ME Society since 1986.
Dr Alan Stewart
Dr Alan Stewart has specialised in a nutritional approach to illness for
over the last 20 years since establishing his practice in Sussex in the
early 1980's. He qualified from Guy's Hospital in 1976 and became a
member of the Royal College of Physicians. He is the author of various
popular books on nutrition, including "Nutritional Medicine" and "Tired
all the time". He has particular interests in nutrition, assessment and
diagnosis. At present he is writing a series of articles on the prevalence
of nutritional deficiencies within the U.K. population as have been
detailed in the recent National Diet and Nutrition Survey conducted by
the Foods Standards Agency and the Department of Health.
The results of this recently reported survey and their relationship to
fatigue states will be covered in an in depth article in next quarter's newsletter.
Dr Kamal Patel MRCPCH MSc
Consultant Paediatrician
Dr Kamal Patel has worked for Brighton & Sussex University
Hospitals NHS Trust since February 2002. He is a Consultant
Paediatrician at the newly opened (June 2007) purpose-built
Royal Alexandra Children's Hospital designed by and with
children/young people in mind. He currently holds a specialist
CFS/ME Clinic once a month for patients living in Sussex and
the surrounding area, and has developed a multidisciplinary
approach to the management of CFS/ME. The service currently
is provided by Dr. Patel alone. He advises that further support
and advice can be obtained from this group and AYME. The approach is very much child/young person and family-centred. Education Services help provide a maximum of five hours per week of home tuition/educational support (including on-line teaching, teaching at school to help integration) for patients up to the age of sixteen.

The number of CFS/ME patients being seen at The Royal Alexandra Children's Hospital continues to grow, and the Trust plan to accept referrals up to the age of 19 in the near future. Dr. Patel is continually looking at new ways to support CFS/ME sufferers and their families, and is leading the way to better inform people involved with the child's/young person's day-to-day life about the condition - liasing closely with, and where possible visiting the patient's school/college.

He has developed his interest in CFS/ME following a post as a Junior Doctor at The Royal London Homeopathic Hospital in 1995, where he learnt about their multidisciplinary approach from Dr. Michael Jenkins and the variety of associated problems that patient's experience.

He uses many different approaches, concentrating mainly on pacing, graded rest and improving sleep. He is open to the use of herbal Echinacea, homeopathy, massage, reflexology and osteopathy. He hopes to incorporate research into CFS/ME into his practice.