All our teams are currently working extremely hard as we, along with the rest of the NHS, tackle Covid-19. That’s why we wanted to give our colleagues the spotlight, as part of our In Conversation With interviews, to share what they’re doing and the impact on them.

This week we spoke to Siobhan Graham, who recently helped oversee an upgrade to one of our radiotherapy machines, making us the first Trust in the UK to introduce Ethos Therapy. This more patient-focused treatment uses artificial intelligence to tailor it to our patient’s daily changing needs. She also shares what it was like becoming our Head of Radiotherapy in the midst of the pandemic.

Age: 33

Lives: In Leyton in a house share with couple Paris and Rosie, who have become like a second family to the Australian native as she lives so far from her own loved ones.

And: Keen traveller Siobhan planned to spend a year in the UK before going home to Oz, that was over six years ago! It was the opportunities at our Trust which have played a big role in keeping her interest on this side of the pond.

How did you decide on a career in radiotherapy?

I was always interested in the medical profession and wanted to do a job where I could help people. My mum’s a teacher and a parent of one of the kids she taught ran the local hospital’s Radiology department, so I did work experience there.

I was really interested in the technical aspect of radiology. I didn’t quite get the scores I needed to study it a university so I did a Bachelor of Science degree instead. It was on a career day about postgraduate courses that radiotherapy came up.

I’d not heard of it before and was really drawn to it. I liked that it combined the technical aspect of radiology that I liked, mixed with being able to be a part of the patient’s journey. So I did that as my master’s.

Once I finished studying, I got a job as a radiotherapist at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne.

What made you decide to move to the UK?

Working holidays are a bit of a tradition for antipodean healthcare workers, and I had an advantage as my mum’s parents are Irish so I have dual citizenship.

My sister was living here when I came over, so I bunked in with her and planned to stay for a year. I remember clearly when I told my line manager at my old job that I was going travelling for a year, she said ‘you’ll be gone longer’, that was six and a half years ago!

Having family around in Ireland and some in Surrey is nice and opportunities in my career have kept me here. I fell into a little bit of a ‘right place, right time’ situation.

Tell us more about your career in the UK

Queen’s Hospital was the first I worked for after I moved here in 2014, I found it through an agency. I’d only been in London for three days when I got it. I worked in the Radiotherapy department for a few months before I went travelling.

After that I moved around doing agency roles in a few different hospitals. At one point when work was slow I spent some time working at a special needs school in Wimbledon. I thought it would be something different from retail or pulling pints. Working with those children was a really good learning experience.

I came back to our Trust in 2016, a time when I’d started to think about going home. However, it was around then that we started our linac (machines we use for radiation treatment) refresh process.

A team leader role came up and I applied, doing that from 2016 to 2019. Throughout that time we introduced new machines, including the Halcyon treatment machine, which cut treatment times while improving patient comfort, and went paperless. It was really interesting, especially as we were the first in the UK to implement the Halcyon.

Then we started talking about the implementation of Ethos, which I was really excited about. It takes me back to my training when I learned about both planning and delivering treatment to patients. I applied for a role to lead the implementation. That was a huge reason for me to stay.

Ethos had to be delayed due to the pandemic – what was that like?

The decision was taken out of our hands! Unfortunately it was due to be implemented at a time when there was only one engineer in the country with the expertise to complete it. However, we made sure we kept momentum in our preparation and went live on Monday 3 August.

I became interim head of department the week the country went into lockdown (it became permanent in July), overseeing a team of 35 people.

What was really important to us was that we didn’t stop treating patients, while keeping them safe of course. The only patients whose radiotherapy treatment we paused were those on alternative treatments.

We had to look at where the benefit of treatment outweighed the risk of Covid-19 for our very vulnerable patients. It meant doing things differently; for example, we shortened the length of treatment for some breast cancer patients, following the publication of clinical trial data.

We also had less patients in the department at the same time, by staggering treatments. Our patients responded really well; we’ve had lots of good feedback and lovely thank you cards.

I think our Trust has done really well during the pandemic. Communication has been really good. The daily updates have been really helpful in understanding what’s going on. I also attended senior nurse huddles, while not everything was relevant to radiotherapy, it really helped me to reassure my staff what the rest of the Trust was doing.

What makes you passionate about your job?

The introduction of Ethos, being at the forefront of where I see the future of radiotherapy was incredible. Also, as an early adopter of new technology we have a close relationship with the manufacturer, and the opportunity to use our experience to influence the development of future technologies.

What I enjoy about Ethos is that we’re adapting our treatment to fit our patients, and not asking our patients to adapt to our treatments. I love that we’re making a difference to our patients’ lives.

It’s also really impressive to see what our department has achieved in using new technologies, as a smaller trust on the outskirts of London.

What do you like getting up to in your spare time?

Well, pre-Covid, I loved to travel. It was always a running joke to ask me what my next destination was. I’ve been able to tick most European countries off the bucket list!

Before I settled in in the UK I travelled to Turkey and did the pilgrimage to Gallipoli for Anzac Day, which is really significant to Australians as it was where our troops landed in World War One.

After my first stint at our Trust I went on a four week trip around Europe. I’ve met some of my best friends while travelling.

I met a fellow Ozzie while travelling and we realised that our parents live 20 minutes apart back home. We’re still really close. She’s gone back to Melbourne now, however, I’ve been keeping in touch with her during the pandemic. We started using an app during lockdown to do virtual walks together.