ODP Programme Leader appointed North Wales Regional Lead for the Association for Perioperative Practice
Date: Thursday, March 13, 2025
Wrexham University’s Operating Department Practice (ODP) Programme Leader has spoken of his pride at being appointed as the Regional Lead for North Wales for the Association for Perioperative Practice (AfPP).
Rob Evans, a former Operating Department Practitioner (ODP), says he is committed to “making a difference” in his new AfPP role; to enhance patient safety and improve perioperative care.
As part of the role, Rob says he is looking forward to supporting perioperative practitioners across North Wales, and to spreading the word about the innovative work being done in the region. He says his focus will be on fostering collaboration, sharing best practices, and driving initiatives that contribute to safer surgery and better patient outcomes.
Rob has always been passionate about education and supporting the development of perioperative professionals. After years of firsthand experience in hospital settings as an ODP and later, Theatre Manager, he made the transition into an educational role, where he could focus on training and mentoring the next generation of perioperative practitioners.
He joined the ODP training team at Birmingham City University as a Lecturer, moving to Wrexham University a couple of years later in 2021, where he set up the BSc (Hons) Operating Department Practice degree from scratch.
“I wrote the whole ODP degree programme from scratch, and got it approved and accredited, and in just a few months from now the first batch of ODP students will graduate which is such a fabulous feeling,” said Rob.
“The course has now been going for three years and is going from strength to strength. I will definitely be holding back the tears when our first group of students graduates this summer, and goes on to practice in our hospitals – potentially looking after people we know and hold dear.”
ODPs are the only healthcare professionals trained specifically to care for patients in hospital operating theatres – and play a crucial role in each phase of a person’s operation.
Rob said he always had his heart set on a role in education but wanted to teach something he had total experience in and understanding of, and being an ODP was what he chose as it allowed him “to make a real difference to people’s lives”.
He said: “Teaching others to be ODPs is the dream job for me, and I love the fact I get to work with students and equip them for becoming the best ODPs they can be.”
His ambition now is to make the Wrexham ODP degree course the best in the country, and to shout about the magnificent work being done in perioperative practice in North Wales.
“We are doing such great work, here in North Wales in areas such as prehabilitation – healthcare that helps patients prepare for medical or surgical procedures which can help reduce complications, side effects, and recovery time; robotics, and sustainability; and we want to share this with others,” he said.
He is thrilled to be the new AfPP Regional Lead for North Wales, and the opportunity it gives him to be part of the Association he has been an engaged member of since his student days.
Rob added: “As a student I received AfPP’s Journal of Perioperative Practice which was invaluable to me in keeping up with current and new perioperative practice, and the Association has been a big part of my career.
“I am now looking forward to telling other practitioners about AfPP and all the benefits, including free webinars, discounted events, member-price publications, networking opportunities, and much more.
“AfPP supports you to become the best practitioner you can be and leads on perioperative excellence.”
The Association for Perioperative Practice (AfPP) is a professional organisation that has been providing support and guidance to perioperative practitioners for 60 years.
Its mission is to ensure that all patients receive safe and effective surgery through the advancement of knowledge, standards, education, and research in all areas related to perioperative care. By working closely with healthcare professionals, AfPP strives to provide the highest quality of patient care and safety possible during operative procedures.