Dermatology

About our Service

The Dermatology Department at Arndale House is staffed by consultants, specialty doctors, clinical assistants, a specialist registrar and nurse specialists as well as dermatology nurses.

The department provides a comprehensive service which sees patients with common skin diseases such as acne, eczema and psoriasis.

In addition we provide a number of specialist clinics and a ‘see and treat’ one stop service, primarily set up for suspicious, i.e. cancerous looking skin lesions. We also provide a nurse-led Telederm clinic where patients are reviewed by a dermatology nurse, who reviews patients face-to-face, takes a history and consults with a dermatology consultant on a treatment plan for the patient.

We also offer virtual appointments which include video and telephone consultations for our review patients.

Skin cancer forms an important part of the department’s work, and we have close links to the plastic surgery team and the hospital’s own Oral Maxillofacial Surgery Team.  We are all part of the Local Skin Cancer Multidisciplinary Team, and meet on an almost weekly basis.

In addition, we have a Skin Cancer Specialist Nurse who is there to support and guide patients and ensure they receive optimised individualised care.

Getting in touch

Outpatient Appointments

You can find details of the average waiting times for any department via the My Planned Care website. You will also find some useful information on how to keep well whilst you wait for your appointment.

Please contact the Outpatients Department on 01582 561385 (0830-1700 Mon – Fri) if:

• You are changing your address or phone number
• You would like to change or cancel your appointment (except surgical (biopsy) appointments – please contact the Secretaries)
• You are chasing an appointment
• You would like to check the date and time of your appointment
• To find out if we have received referrals from your GP Surgery

Patch Testing Appointments

For Patch Testing appointments please contact the Dermatology team on 01582 718144.

Surgical Appointments for a Dermatology Procedure

For surgical appointments for a Dermatology procedure, please contact the Dermatology Secretaries on 01582 497229 (0800-1600 Mon-Fri). Please note to ensure all queries are dealt with efficiently, the Dermatology Secretaries run an answerphone service. When leaving a message please include:

• Your hospital number / NHS number
• An up-to-date contact number for us to contact you back on
• Your query

We aim to respond to your query within 48 hours, however this may be longer if we are awaiting a response from your consultant. Please note we are open Monday to Friday.

If you do not leave your hospital number or NHS number, we will not be retuning your call as we are unable to trace your records without this number.

The answerphone is checked throughout the day, so please do not leave more than one message. If you leave all your details, we will return your call.

Emailing photographs

If the secretaries request photographs from you, please use this email address.

When emailing the Dermatology team, please include:

• Your hospital number in the subject line.
• No more than 3 photos per email. Please attach the photos and do not embed them in the body of the email as we are unable to view them.
• Please also include your consultant’s name and a brief message of your query for your consultant.

If you are experiencing a flare up of your condition, please send some photographs to the above email address immediately and include in the email you are experiencing a flare up.

How to find us

As you may be aware, we are situated in Arndale House in The Mall Luton, and not at the main Luton & Dunstable Hospital site on Lewsey Road. When attending our clinics, please following the below instructions to find us

• If driving please use the postcode LU1 2LJ. This is for the Central Arndale Carpark. Drive up to level 6 where you will see an entrance to Arndale House (picture below). For the lift, turn left and there are a few steps down to the lift which will take you to the first floor. For the stairs, come in the door and turn right and go up to the first floor.
• If you are coming via the Arndale Centre we are situated in Arndale House, between Chopstix and the Perfume Shop. Take the lift to the first floor.
• Please note Arndale House is unable to facilitate bariatric wheelchairs or stretchers. Please contact us if that applies to you as we may be able to facilitate a video or telephone appointment, or make other arrangements with you.

Blood forms and prescriptions

If the consultant has requested a blood test, please contact the Phlebotomy Department to arrange an appointment on the numbers listed below. There are Phlebotomy appointments available at Arndale House in the same area as the Dermatology clinic. To arrange this, see details below:

• 01582 718968 (Between 13:00-16:15)
• 01582 343309 (Automated Booking Line 24/7)
• luton.sangix.co.uk (You will need to register first)
• Transport Number – 0345 605 1208

Please remember to bring your blood form to your appointment that you have booked.

Once you have done this blood test, please leave a message on the Dermatology Secretaries phone (either the day of your blood test, or the following day) with your hospital number advising you have done your blood test.

We will pass your blood results to your consultant who will raise a prescription for you or will contact you if they need to discuss the results with you first.

If the blood test is for children under the age of 13, you will need to contact the Paediatric Outpatients Department to arrange an appointment at the Main Hospital Site on 01582 497224 Monday to Friday 8:00am-10:00am and 4:00pm-5:00pm.

Our team

We have a dedicated and experienced team of doctors, nurses and administrative staff who work together to deliver excellent patient care.

Dr Bernadette DeSilva – Consultant Dermatologist & Clinical Director
Dr Christina Vlachou – Consultant Dermatologist
Dr Rakhi Singh-Raghunath – Consultant Dermatologist
Dr Amir Ghazavi – Consultant Dermatologist
Dr Amila Wickramanayake – Locum Consultant Dermatologist
Dr Prasanna Karunarathne – Locum Consultant Dermatologist
Dr Anderson De-Poli – Specialty Doctor
Dr Grace Alo – Specialty Doctor
Dr Jenn Elias – Specialist Registrar
Dr Jawad Shahzad – Locum Consultant Dermatologist
Dr Alexandra Chambers – Locum Consultant Plastic Surgeon & Dermatologist

Janis Bursford – Senior Nurse Manager
Charu Chauhan – Dermatology Specialist Nurse
Jennylyn Ros – Dermatology Specialist Nurse
Dale Montesclaros – Dermatology Specialist Nurse
Sofia Kausar – Dermatology Specialist Nurse
Anette David – Research Clinical Nurse Specialist
Naz Begum – Dermatology Nurse
Ambily Michael – Dermatology Nurse
Anne Cleary – Dermatology Nurse
Paula Kennedy – Health Care Assistant
June Carter – Health Care Assistant
Claudette Davis – Health Care Assistant

Hannah Synan-Jones – General Manager
Jackie Downes – Deputy Head of Nursing
Leah Davis – Service Manager
David Pullman – Assistant Service Manager

Marie Fraser – Departmental Secretary
Donna Dalziel – Departmental Secretary
Jackie Cox – Departmental Secretary
Harry Springer – Administration Assistant

Dermatology Services

Minor Operations

Skin lesions are areas of abnormal cells grouped together somewhere on the surface of the skin. There are many different types of lesions: simple, benign growths which may be unsightly, infected, or get in the way of your clothes or spectacles etc. and other growths may be types of skin cancers.

Not all lesions need to be removed. Sometimes you will be given another appointment so that it can be kept under review. If the growth is causing a problem for you or your specialist thinks that the lesion might be cancerous, then it is better to have it removed. Once the lesion is removed it can be analysed under a microscope and an accurate diagnosis made. Your specialist will discuss the choices with you and agree the best treatment plan with you when you are seen in the clinic. It is very important that you let your specialist know if you are taking Aspirin, Warfarin, Clopidogrel or any other blood thinning medicine.

Skin lesions can be removed very successfully under a local anaesthetic – you stay awake throughout the procedure. The area around the lesion is made numb with an injection. Where possible the surgeon will plan to keep scarring to a minimum by following the natural crease lines of the skin. It is usually necessary to remove a small amount of normal skin surrounding the lesion in order to get a neat scar and ensure complete removal of the lesion. The scar may seem quite large compared with the size of the lesion; this is because the lesion might be larger underneath the skin and it is important to remove it all.

Phototherapy

Light therapy, also known as phototherapy, uses controlled artificial ultraviolet light to help reduce symptoms of common skin conditions. These can include eczema, psoriasis and vitiligo (when patches of your skin lose their colour).

Patch Testing

A patch test is a diagnostic method used to determine which specific substances cause allergic inflammation of a patient’s skin. Patch testing helps identify which substances may be causing a delayed-type allergic reaction in a patient and may identify allergens not identified by blood testing or skin prick testing

Systemic and Biologic Clinics

Systemic therapies such as Methotrexate, Omalizumab and Apremilast and Biologic therapies such as Adalimumab, Etanercept and Infliximab are used to treat certain cases of psoriasis. Our systemic clinics closely monitor our patients with monthly blood tests and regular follow-up to ensure the patients are staying well on treatment.

PDT

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a two-stage treatment that combines light energy with a drug (photosensitizer) designed to destroy cancerous and precancerous cells after light activation. Photosensitizers are activated by a specific wavelength of light energy, usually from a laser.

Awards

In 2019 Luton Dermatology were nominated and awarded the QiC awards

In 2021 Luton Dermatology were nominated and came runner up for the HSJ Award.