Sarah Stapley

Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Portsmouth Hospitals University Trust

Consultant Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgeon with subspecialty interest in Hand Surgery and Military Surgery. Qualified from Glasgow University. Joined the Royal Navy in 1987, undertook Surgical Training, obtaining a DM during this period. Fellowship training in Hand Surgery in Wrightington, and Trauma in Toronto, Canada. Accrediting in 2004, before undertaking 6 tours to Iraq and Afghanistan Conflicts. Has used Day Surgery throughout consultant career, and since COVID has assisted in developing pathways for acute trauma to be managed via day surgery. Has a significant interest in training, holding multiple training positions and has supported several trainees through higher degrees. Retired from the MOD in 2021. Currently a visiting Clinical Professor to Loughborough University. Continues to work in the NHS as a Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgeon, sitting on BOA Council as BADS representative

Karen Harries

Lead Nurse Day Surgery and Pre-operative Assessment, Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust

Karen is an Australian trained Registered Nurse who has been in the UK since 1995. She is currently the Lead Nurse for Pre-operative Assessment at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust. Karen has worked in a range of day surgery/23 hour and theatre settings for over 30 years and is passionate about educating and empowering day surgery nurses to be knowledgeable and expert in their extended role. 

Karen is delighted to be part of BADS Council and to be involved in driving and promoting the profile and importance of day surgery. 

Pallavi Dasannacharya

Consultant Anaesthetist

Pallavi is a consultant anaesthetist, based in London at St Georges Hospital since 2013. She is the Clinical Lead for Day surgery and the Day Surgery team has incorporated short acting spinals, day case mastectomies, laryngeal and mastoid surgery into ambulatory pathways.
Ambulatory emergency surgery and are expanding to other complex surgeries notably laparoscopic hysterectomies and thyroid surgery. She has a specialist interest in Vascular anaesthesia, regional anaesthesia and preoperative assessment and optimisation of high risk patients.

Fatima Eltinay

Anaesthetist, Cumberland Infirmary

Dr Fatima Eltinary is an anaesthetist at Cumberland Infirmary with a deep commitment to transforming perioperative care and making day surgery safe, more efficient and accessible for all patients. She also has a huge interest in Geriatrics and Gerontology with post graduate degrees in these areas. Fatima has been an active member of BADS since 2016 and has since developed her expertise in pre-operative optimisation of high-risk patients for day surgery. She has recently joined the BADS Council.

Joanna Higgins

Consultant in Trauma and Orthopaedics, University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust

Miss Joanna Higgins is a fellowship trained Hand and wrist, Trauma and Orthopaedic surgeon. Graduated from the University of Birmingham in 2005, completing Specialist Training in Wessex in 2018, followed by a subspecialist fellowship at the Pulvertaft Hand Centre in Derby. She was appointed to consultant post at University Hospitals Dorset in 2021. 

Joanna has a very varied professional practice. She is a strong advocate of “Getting It Right First Time”, restoring patients back to a good level of function, honest communication and treating patients according to their individual needs. Always looking for Quality and Service Improvement within Hand and Wrist Surgery has joined a national collaborative called HandsFirst, improving hand and wrist trauma across the UK. She has been the driver behind the Hand Hub at University Hospital Dorset, where a procedure room has been utilised to undertake as much Day Case Local Anaesthetic Procedures as possible. 

Joanna was also successful in becoming British Orthopaedic Association Culture and Diversity Champion for the region, improving workforce culture within the specialty and beyond. This has led to Joanna developing and sitting on various working groups within surgery. These include Ergonomics in Surgery, Parents in Surgery, BSSH Patient Information Group and International Medics in Trauma and Orthopaedic 

Eleanor Boden

LED Trauma and Orthopaedic Specialist Registrar, Portsmouth Hospitals University Trust

Ms Eleanor Boden is an LED Trauma and Orthopaedic Specialist Registrar at Portsmouth Hospitals University Trust. She started her foundation training in the Severn Deanery in 2019 before going to Australia to work in Emergency Medicine and Trauma. More recently Eleanor completed her Core Surgical Training Pathway in Wessex, spending time with Ms Joanna Higgins, at University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust. She received the Barry Prize for MRCS Part B

Professor Stella Vig

Deputy National Medical Director for Secondary Care and Quality: National Clinical Director for Elective Care, Croydon Health Services NHS Trust

Stella brings over 30 years of NHS experience, with a career spanning clinical practice, strategic leadership, and system-wide transformation. As a consultant in vascular and general surgery at Croydon University Hospital since 2006, she has consistently driven service improvement and operational excellence. 

In her national roles as Deputy National Medical Director for Secondary Care and Quality, and National Clinical Director for Elective Care at NHS England, Stella leads initiatives to improve patient safety, streamline elective care, and enhance clinical pathways through data-driven decision-making. 

Most recently, Stella serves as Joint Chief Clinical Transformation Officer at Southwest London ICB, shaping long-term clinical strategy and optimising service delivery. Stella also continues to champion the Croydon Elective Centre, ensuring continuity of planned care even during peak demand. 

Across all her roles, Stella is recognised for her collaborative leadership and ability to deliver scalable, impactful improvements in healthcare quality and efficiency.