Our Medical Advisor

Just4Children is advised on medical issues by Rachael Hutchinson.

Rachael has been on the consultant staff at the Norfolk and Norwich Teaching Hospital Foundation Trust since January 2008. Having grown up in Norfolk and attended Sprowston High School, this was a return to home soil 20 years later after leaving for medical school!

As an Orthopaedic Surgeon her main specialist area is paediatric orthopaedics, specialising in neurodisability and optimising function in those with physical disability plus management of complex foot and ankle problems in children. Having a second post-graduate degree in gait analysis and functional assessment, her main other areas of interest are sports injuries in the growing skeleton and adult foot and ankle surgery.

As part of her training she completed specialist fellowships in foot and ankle surgery in Sheffield and paediatric orthopaedics in Melbourne, Australia and various hospitals in America.

She has completed research in areas relating to foot pressure studies and gait analysis (walking patterns) in reference to children’s foot disorders, being awarded a post-graduate Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree in 2005 for this work. Other areas of research have included orthopaedic issues in neuromuscular disorders.

Her passion is treating children with disability and improving opportunities available to them, both in and out of medicine. She is a UK medical classifier for British Para-swimming and is involved in developing a classification system with the British Table Tennis Association for the disabled. She has helped set up a number of initiatives within the Norfolk area to increase sporting opportunities for children with disabilities.

She herself has two children aged 12 and 9 and in her spare time has recently taken up the challenge of getting fitter herself!