Meet the team

Dr James Stewart (Clinical Lead for Adult Nutrition) 

Dr James Stewart qualified from Leicester Medical School 1991 and trained in the East Midlands in Gastroenterology. He developed an interest in nutrition during this time and was appointed as a Consultant Gastroenterologist in 2001.   He further developed his nutritional interest and became Clinical Lead for Adult Nutrition in 2006. 

Dr Stewart devised and wrote the national NCEPOD report on provision of parenteral nutrition, is a member of the BSG Clinical Services and Standards Committee, a member of the scientific committee of the British Nutrition Foundation and a former member of the BSG Nutrition Committee. He is the Lead Physician to the Regional eating Disorders Service and his particular clinical interests are the provision of parenteral nutrition in intestinal failure and the management of electrolytes.

Dr Dan Rogers (Consultant Gastroenterologist) 

Dr Dan Rogers qualified from Leicester Medical School in 2003 and trained throughout the East Midlands in General Medicine and Gastroenterology. He completed his specialist nutrition training at the Leicester Intestinal Failure Unit and was appointed as a Consultant in Gastroenterology, Clinical Nutrition and Intestinal Failure in 2013.  He was appointed as the British Association of Parenteral & Enteral Nutrition (BAPEN) Secretary in 2017.

In addition to providing care to patients having Home Parenteral Nutrition he has a particular interest in those patients with Intestinal Failure who do not require Parenteral Nutrition and runs the non-PN Intestinal Failure Clinic. 

In addition he has an interest in Medical Education and has run a multi-disciplinary Clinical Simulation Programme in the University Hospitals of Leicester Endoscopy Unit.

Dr Sejal Shah (Consultant Gastroenterologist)

Dr Sejal Shah qualified  from University of Wales College of Medicine in 1992 and completed training in Gastroenterology and General Medicine in the East Midlands. He developed an interest in Nutrition during his training and was appointed as a Consultant Gastroenterologist in 2006.

In addition to caring for patients requiring parenteral nutrtition, he has an interest in enteral tube feeding and is involved in the provision of small bowel capsule endoscopy.

Miss Kirsten Boyle (Consultant Surgeon)

Miss Boyle completed her specialist registrar training in Leicester in 2010. She then undertook a fellowship in Leeds, concentrating on surgery for recurrent colorectal cancer. She commenced her consultant post in Leicester Royal Infirmary in 2011. Her main interests are in intestinal failure surgery and the management of advanced and complex pelvic cancers.  She is part of a large team of surgeons who deal with primary and recurrent cancers of colorectal, gynecological or urological origin and is one of the dedicated intestinal failure surgeons in Leicester. She is actively involved in training junior surgeons and medical students and runs the Royal College of Surgeons of England’s Basic Surgical Skills course in Leicester. She is also an accredited trainer in colonoscopy and laparoscopic colorectal surgery.

Mr Michael Thomas (Consultant Surgeon)

W Michael Thomas qualified in 1982 and  appointed as a Consultant Colorectal Surgeon at the University Hospitals of Leicester in 1996. He was awarded a DM from the University of Nottingham for a thesis relating to screening for colorectal cancer and has been the recipient of awards and grants in this field.  He underwent specialist training in the Colorectal Units in Nottingham and Leicester and, on completion, underwent further training  in Adelaide, South Australia  and St Mark’s Hospital, London.  His current areas of special interest are in the treatment of advanced colorectal malignancy (being one of a team offering a regional service) and in the management of complex Crohn’s disease

Dr Faiz Rahman (Consultant Biochemist)

Dr Faiz Rahman qualified in 2002 from University of Mumbai. He did his core medical training in Nottingham and trained in Chemical Pathology and Metabolic Medicine in Leicester. He was appointed as a Consultant in Metabolic Medicine and Chemical Pathology in 2016. 

Along with caring for parenteral nutrition patients, he has an interest in micronutrient deficiencies, especially after bariatric surgery. He was the lead author of the Leicestershire guidelines for biochemical monitoring and micronutrient replacement for patients undergoing bariatric surgery.

Dr Rahman also does the metabolic bone disorders clinic and the lipid clinic, and is part of various research studies in his department in these fields. He teaches on Lipids in the University of Leicester and is the laboratory lead for endocrinology and inborn errors. He organises the Leicester paediatric biochemistry meeting and advises paediatric and adult endocrinology.

Dr James Stephenson (Consultant Radiologist)

James is a Consultant Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiologist and Associate Professor. He started a surgical career path but developed his interest in radiology when completing his MD utilising MRI to assess the response of colorectal liver metastases to a novel therapeutic agent. Having trained predominantly in Leicester, he completed a specialist GI imaging fellowship at St Mark’s Hospital, London, with a focus on intestinal failure, CT colonography and complex colorectal cancer before returning to Leicester.

He has active research interests in bowel imaging and radiology quality assurance. He is a BSGAR committee member and audit lead, is a co-opted member of NICE and on the ASGBI working group revising the High Risk General Surgical Patient report.  He has lectured extensively on imaging in Gastrointestinal disease and runs a number of renowned national training courses and is Head of Undergraduate Radiology at the University of Leicester.

Dr Felicia Lim (Consultant Microbiologist)

Dr Lim qualified from Nottingham Medical School in 2006. She completed core medical training in Nottingham and specialist training in Medical Microbiology in Leicester. She was appointed as Consultant Medical Microbiologist in 2017.

Her areas of specialist interests are infections in the field of intestinal failure and nutrition, critical care and orthopaedic surgery. She also has a specialist interest in infection prevention and control.

She is actively involved in undergraduate and postgraduate infection teaching and is an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the University of Leicester.  

Charlotte Rubio (Speciality Clinical Lead/Nutrition Matron)

Charlotte trained in Leicester and qualified as an RN in 2004. Since then she has worked predominantly in Gastroenterology in a variety of roles.

Charlotte started as a staff nurse on a gastro medical ward at LGH where she completed a BSc in nursing and Professional Practice. Charlotte then took on the role as Inflammatory Bowel Disease Specialist Nurse where she developed the service at the LRI undertaking nurse led clinics, transition clinics and overseeing patients on biologic therapies.

After a period in day case medicine Charlotte joined LIFT in October 2016 as a Nutrition Specialist Nurse, was promoted to Senior Nutrition Specialist Nurse in 2019 and is looking forward to expanding the role.  She has completed her Non Medical prescribing course and hopes to start an MSc in the next few months.

Charlotte was awarded the prestigious British Journal of Nursing Nutrition Nurse of the Year award in 2023 and is a NNNG committee member.

Melanie Baker (Senior Specialist Dietitian)  

Melanie has over 15 years experience working as a Dietitian with adult patients needing Parenteral Nutrition or other support, due to Intestinal failure.  Her undergraduate training was completed at Surrey University in 1996 and she was awarded an MSc in Health Service Research in 2005. 

Currently she is working part time clinically whilst completing a PhD with the University of Manchester. Previously she combined her clinical post with part time research and her publication interests include enteral feeding following surgery, management of patients with high output stomas and Parenteral Nutrition.  

She has co-authored three book chapters and wrote the Parenteral Nutrition chapter in the PENG pocket guide which is used by many practicing Dietitians and health care professionals working  in Nutritional Support.

Melanie is a tutor on the PENG (Parenteral & Enteral Nutrition Group of the British Dietetic Association) Clinical Update Course for Dietitians and was an expert advisor for the NCEPOD review of adult Parenteral Nutrition Services.  She has been the regional BAPEN representative for a number of years and supports training and education, delivering sessions on a number of post-graduate regional and national courses.  Since 2015 she has also been a representative on the National HPN Framework Stakeholders Group and is a supplementary prescriber.

 Becky Muggridge (Senior Specialist Dietitian) 

Becky completed her undergraduate training in Nutrition and Dietetics at King's College London in 2009, and prior to joining the team in Leicester she managed a complex cohort of Intestinal Failure patients at The Royal London Hospital where she developed her skills and knowledge alongside the nutrition team.  

Becky has a large amount of experience managing patients on parenteral nutrition in hospital and at home due to a wide range of clinical conditions including inflammatory bowel disease, severe trauma and motility disorders. 

Her post-graduate training has included the St Marks Intestinal Failure course and completion of the Parenteral and Enteral Clinical Update course for Dietitians as well as helping to develop local policies and resources for patients requiring parenteral nutrition.  She is looking forward to contributing to the further development of services in Leicester, has completed her non-medical prescribers course and is a local researcher for a NIHR Quality of Life Study in HPN. 

Sarah Crawford (Senior Dietitian)

Sarah studied undergraduate Human Biology at the University of Birmingham before completing a postgraduate in Nutrition and Dietetics and has worked as a Dietitian at the University Hospitals of Leicester since she qualified in 2015.

Sarah initially worked in general medicine, gastroenterology, hepatobiliary, trauma and cardiology before working as a senior Dietitian on the Intensive Care Unit. Next, she moved into a specialist role developing the upper gastrointestinal surgery dietetic service whilst managing the dietetic needs of upper and lower gastrointestinal surgical patients.

Sarah therefore has a large amount of experience that she can apply to our patients with intestinal failure, particularly those having surgery. Sarah is looking forward to studying to become a non-medical prescriber and attending study days in parenteral nutrition. Sarah enjoys how clinically complex our patients can be but above else loves to talk to and support them.

Anglea Holohan (Senior Nutrition Specialist Nurse)

Angela has a varied nursing background including intensive care and ECMO,  extensive roles within renal nursing and developed an interest in vascular access during these roles. Before joining LIFT in January 2020, Angela worked on a GI surgical ward at the LRI where she further developed her interest in nutrition. Angela brings experience of managing patients with long term chronic health conditions as well as recent practice for acute patients needing short term nutritional support either via the enteral or parenteral route.

 Angela is keen to promote shared and self care having seen the benefits for patients she has nursed in other specialities.

 Outside of work Angela enjoys rowing competitively at masters level and can often be seen rowing up and down the River Soar close to Leicester Royal Infirmary.

Catherine Pickering (Nutrition Specialist Nurse)

Catherine joined the LIFT team in November 2020.  She qualified as an enrolled nurse in Huddersfield in 1985 and converted to a Registered Nurse in 1994.  In 2000 she completed a Diploma in Health Care Practice.  

Catherine brings a broad range of clinical experience, having worked in General Surgery, Orthopaedics, and for many years in Nephrology at Leicester General.  She has lots of experience of caring for patients with chronic conditions and experience with central venous catheters and electrolyte disturbances. She is looking forward to using all these skills to care for patients with intestinal failure and nutritional needs.