Deciding Together
Interviews with patients and surgeons about how the decision to operate is made.
Research group
Perioperative Outcomes Group
Better decisions before, during and after an operation.
We run pragmatic trials and audits across the surgical pathway, from pre-operative assessment to the first months at home.
Our research
The studies listed on this page are run or led by the group. Each one is entered once and also appears on the matching theme pages.
Our studies
In progress Recruiting Fit for Surgery
A four-week home exercise and nutrition programme before major surgery.
Our people
Dr Tobias Wrenfield
Group Leader
Tobias is an anaesthetist and trialist. He leads the group’s work on pre-operative fitness and shared decision making.
Samuel Fenwright
Research Nurse
Samuel coordinates recruitment across the surgical wards and is often the first person participants meet.
Mei Aldous
PhD Candidate
Mei is studying how patients and surgeons weigh up risk when deciding whether to operate.
Publications
Selected paper
Home-based prehabilitation before major abdominal surgery: a pilot randomised trial
Wrenfield T, Fenwright S, Aldous M, et al. Example Perioperative Medicine, 2025. doi:10.5555/example.2025.014In plain language: Sixty people did a four-week home exercise programme before surgery, or usual care. Most people finished the programme, and those who did walked further after surgery. A larger trial is now recruiting.
- Pre-operative walking tests and length of stayWrenfield T, Fenwright S. Example Anaesthesia Reports, 2026. doi:10.5555/example.2026.103
- How patients talk about surgical risk: a qualitative studyAldous M, Wrenfield T. Example Health Communication, 2025. doi:10.5555/example.2025.104