Animated films that take patients through their operations and post-operative care in advance of surgery are now available to hospitals in the UK and beyond.

Two short films have been developed by Health Enterprise East (HEE), the regional NHS Innovation Hub, with input from doctors at The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust in Harlow, Essex.

The animations show patients what will happen during and after their forthcoming operation. They represent a significant initiative in patient-centred media resources.

The films so far available are Total Knee Replacement and Total Hip Replacement. Films on Laparoscopic Hernia Repair, Gall Bladder Removal and Endovascular Aneurysm Surgery are in preparation for release, and films on other surgical procedures and treatments are planned.

Darren Leech, Executive Director of Delivery at the Trust, said: "Research shows that patients who receive high-quality pre-operative information have reduced anxiety and therefore make a swifter recovery. These animations illustrate to patients the possible implications of their surgery, so they come in prepared. We hope that informing patients in this way will lead to an earlier discharge from hospital."

HEE and The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust have negotiated a licence agreement with Indian-based production company ComartOne, who will sell the films to other hospitals and return a percentage of the revenue to the Trust.

Health Enterprise East Limited (HEE) is the NHS Innovation Hub in the East of England, providing intellectual property management services to the NHS Trusts in the region. For the medtech industry, HEE facilitates access to NHS clinical, scientific and technical expertise and provides advice on clinical evaluation of new medical devices and market research to support the adoption of new technologies.

Total Knee Replacement