Mr Keith Eyres, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, recently celebrated finishing his 500th knee replacement surgery at the South West Ambulatory Orthopaedic Centre (SWAOC).

This represents another milestone for the centre, which is based at the NHS Nightingale Hospital Exeter. It has been instrumental in reducing waiting times for certain procedures across Devon, providing vital operations to the local population.

Mr Eyres said: “Working at SWAOC gives me the same buzz I got when I started as a consultant 26 years ago. It’s so refreshing and reminds me of what I love about my job – making patients comfortable with a team of like-minded people dedicated to a new way of working. Everyone should be proud of what we’ve achieved so far, and of the difference it’s making to all the patients who have come through the centre.”

Since opening in March 2022, this state-of-the-art centre has completed more than 3,000 operations, including knee replacements, hip replacements, foot and ankle procedures, spinal procedures and more.

Mr Eyres’ 500 knee replacements represents a huge proportion of this work, making up over half of all knee replacements done at the centre, and a sixth of all operations in total, helping SWAOC to continue its ground-breaking work and bring real benefits to the people of Devon.

Vince Matawaran, Senior Theatre Practitioner, said: “Five hundred knee replacements in just over two years is an amazing achievement. This accomplishment has made a remarkable contribution to reducing waiting lists, and I am incredibly proud to be a part of the team.”

Nick Garbanzos, Registered Nurse, said: “This was a momentous occasion for everyone at SWAOC, and it means a lot that we were part of it. The whole team loves to work with Mr Eyres, and I know this milestone is just the beginning.”