Lisha McClelland presents, with session Chair Sean Carrie

On Friday 26th May over 120 Fifth Sense members, their partners and family members came together with medical professionals at an event at the Royal Society of Medicine (RSM)  in London.  Living Without Smell and Taste was part of the RSM’s Medicine and Me series, which provides patients and their families with an opportunity to gain insight from the medical profession and relevant patient bodies around a medical condition which affects them.

The event was proposed by RSM Dean Emeritus John Scadding after  Consultant ENT Surgeon and Fifth Sense trustee Mr Carl Philpott deliver a lecture at the RSM in November 2016.  Mr Philpott and fellow trustee Duncan Boak met with John and RSM colleagues and co-designed a programme that incorporated Fifth Sense members talking about their experiences of living with a smell/taste disorder alongside a number of ENT Consultants who explained what is known about these conditions and challenges involved in treating them.

Fragrance writer Louise Woollam opened proceedings by talking movingly about her experience of losing her sense of smell as the result of a virus, a situation that became much worse after she then began to experience severe parosmia.  ENT Consultant Miss Lisha McClelland of the smell and taste clinic at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital then spoke about post-viral olfactory loss, phantosmia and parosmia.

Claire Hopkins talks about the importance of self-management

Alahree McDonell then spoke about how she has been affected by Chronic Rhinosinusitis for many years, and the various dietary changes she has made as part of efforts to self-manage her condition, which was improved by a visit to the rhinology clinic at Guy’s Hospital in London, run by Miss Claire Hopkins.  Claire herself followed Alahree and spoke about various ways in which CRS can be treated and managed, as well as the MACRO project that aims to improve the way this condition is managed across the NHS.

After a break, Ian Rickson spoke about losing his sense of smell following a head injury, and how this experience has affected his life in different ways.  Iordanis Konstantinidis, an ENT Surgeon who runs a smell and taste clinic in Greece, followed Ian by explaining how olfactory loss can be caused by head trauma.  Iordanis also spoke about the work he is doing to try to encourage early referrals from A&E to his clinic so patients can be investigated sooner for olfactory impairment.

BBC R4 presenter Kathy Clugston then gave a very engaging talk about having never had a sense of smell, mentioning her dad’s favourite joke: My daughter’s got no nose (we’ll refrain from including the ‘punchline’).  John Scadding and Duncan Boak then summed up proceedings and thanked the speakers for their contributions to what was a really informative, rewarding and, at times, emotional experience.

Kathy Clugston with the RSM’s John Scadding

It is the first time that such a high-profile UK medical organisation has hosted an event on smell and taste disorders, and the support of the RSM is something that will help us in our goals around engaging with and educating the medical profession on these conditions.  Mr Sean Carrie, who runs a rhinology clinic at Freeman Hospital in Newcastle, made a great point when he talked about the partnership between Fifth Sense and the clinicians with whom we have links being a means through which we can educate other healthcare professionals.  We look forward to developing our relationship with the RSM and we’d like to thank them for their support of our cause.

If you’re affected by a smell/taste disorder and would like to seek a referral to one of the clinicians mentioned in the article then visit the ‘Clinics’ page of our website for more information.

Louise Woollam writes a blog called the Parosmia Diaries which is a valuable resource for anyone affected by this condition.

L-R: Mr Richard Green, James Martin, Julie Wilson, Mr Paul White

Fifth Sense members James Martin and Julie Wilson were invited to attend the ENT event on 12^th May by Mr Paul White and Mr Richard Green of Ninewells Hospital ENT Department, which was very well attended by ENT staff from all over Scotland.

As well as manning the Fifth Sense stand and networking with the other ENT professionals in attendance, Julie and James also took part in a presentation given by Mr White and Mr Green on smell and taste disorders. The large audience learned how these disorders can have an impact on people personally, emotionally, socially and clinically.

During the presentation, Julie and James discussed their conditions and how they affected all aspects of their lives, followed by a Q&A session. This was well-received by the audience, and the clinicians have fed back to say how beneficial it was to have the input from both Fifth Sense members.

We’d like to say a big thanks to Julie and James for representing Fifth Sense at the event.  It was great to have this opportunity to engage with ENT clinicians in Scotland, which has come about as a result of the successful information day held in partnership with Ninewells ENT Department last year.  We’d like to thank Mr White and Mr Green for their continued support of Fifth Sense and people affected by smell and taste disorders.

Tom Laughton, Eliza Douglas – and some budding perfumers?

Fifth Sense’s Duncan Boak and Tom Laughton teamed up with Fragrance Educator Eliza Douglas at the highly successful Festival of the Senses, held at Anglia Ruskin University in Chelmsford on 1st October.

Eliza came equipped with a large selection of different smells, asking the many adults and children there on the day to what feelings and memories they evoked. This was a great way of showing people that their sense of smell can do more for them than they realise.  Chewing jelly beans with the nose held helped demonstrate just how much the sense of smell contributes to the flavour of food.

The Fifth Sense team were able to engage with many family parties out for the day, which allowed the children who came along to learn more about their senses of smell and taste and how they use them, which is not something they often get to do at school.

Duncan said: “The event gave us a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate to people why smell and taste are important and to highlight the impact of disorders, by uncovering the hidden and often unnoticed role these senses play. We had a great time and hope to be back next year; congratulations to the team at Anglia Ruskin for organising such a great event!”

Anglia Ruskin University are hosting a Festival for the Senses at their campus in Chelmsford, Essex, on 1st October 2016.  Fifth Sense are participating in this free event and will be running some activities to highlight how important the senses of smell and taste are to our lives.  We’ll be joined by fragrance educator Eliza Douglas who’ll be bringing along some smells chosen to tap into the olfactive memories of members of the public who are their on the day.

This will also be an opportunity for us to educate guests on the impact that smell and taste disorders can have on people’s lives and talk about the work we are doing around helping people who have suffered olfactory loss train their senses of smell and taste.

The event is completely free and all are welcome.  We’d be delighted to meet any Fifth Sense members who live in the area.  If you’d like to attend then visit the Anglia Ruskin website for further details of what’s happening on the day and directions. We hope to see you there!