POCT National Networking Forum 2026

Robert Bolton began working as a Specialist BMS in November 1999. As an experienced member of staff who proactively involved himself in the modernisation of the department, Robert holds a great deal of knowledge both technical and clinical with regards to the equipment in use within the laboratory and has used this to both troubleshoot issues and train members of staff. Roberts whole job description fell into the top end of a specialist Bio-medical scientist's expected performance. The role comprised of many secondments into a Senior Bio-medical scientist role (band 7). 

Just recently, in January 2025, Robert has become Point of Care Coordinator.  

Robert is part of a well-established friendly team, working within a modern, well equipped and connected POC team at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Katy has been working in the NHS and its services for 20 years in Clinical Biochemistry and Point of Care Testing (POCT). Currently employed as the Consultant Specialty lead for POCT for Berkshire and Surrey Pathology Services, the service covers 5 NHS Trusts, with 6 acute medical sites and multiple community services. The service also provides a dedicated ISO accredited POCT EQA scheme, Qpoint of which Katy is the Clinical Director. At the end of 2020 Katy was seconded to the Department of Health and Social Care, then later UKHSA, Operational Supplies team as the Point of care workflow programme lead, with the primary aim of providing technical and scientific leadership in the deployment of rapid covid testing into NHS Emergency departments. In January 2024 Katy was made Chief Healthcare Scientist for Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust with responsibility for executive representation of Healthcare science services at the Trust and into the ICS. 

Katy has worked alongside the national NHS England personalized care team to support the production of POCT guidance for Virtual ward and Hospital at Home services. The BSPS service provides Labkit to its partner Trusts and community Trusts, a roaming bag of POCT kit that can be used in multiple clinical services to support POCT testing for rapid decision making. 

After graduating in 2004 with a BSc in Biomedical Science from the University of Westminster, Fadzai Fadairo completed her Specialist Portfolio in Clinical Biochemistry at King George Hospital.

She began her professional career as a Locum Specialist Biomedical Scientist (BMS), working on the Isle of Man, in Leicester, East London, and Surrey across a variety of NHS and private laboratories. In 2009, she secured her first permanent role within the NHS, where she gained her initial exposure to point of care testing (POCT).

Fadzai is now a Senior Specialist BMS and POCT Coordinator at University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, based at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton. She leads a small but highly effective team of dedicated professionals, delivering an excellent service to hospital staff and patients.

Outside of work, she is a wife and mother of two children who are passionate about football. She can often be found cheering from the sidelines or running the line. Singing brings her great joy, and she regularly performs background vocals for her church band. A lover of live music, she had the pleasure of seeing Stevie Wonder in concert last year. A little-known fact about Fadzai is that she appeared in the music video for “You” by House Gospel Choir.

Sharman is a Consultant Clinical Scientist and Clinical POCT Lead at the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust. She is also Clinical Chair of the Greater Manchester POCT subgroup contributing towards developing the POCT strategy for the network and a member of the North West POCT group.

Sharman worked at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board in North Wales, before joining the team at Stepping Hill Hospital in March 2021. Prior to this Sharman worked in the North West Region at the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital Willink Unit after completing training at Hope Hospital in Salford.

Sharman was Chair of the then ACB (Association of Clinical Biochemistry and Laboratory Medicine) Wales region from 2019 to 2021 and was previously Secretary of the region from 2015. She was also Chair of the All Wales Clinical Biochemistry audit group and North Wales Clinical Biochemist Audit Lead. 

Her main interests include Point of Care Testing (POCT), in particular the development of POCT services closer to home and supporting antimicrobial stewardship. Her FRCPath dissertation involved development of a rural community POCT service. Recently she has been involved in setting up the North West and Greater Manchester Acute Respiratory Infection Hub, POCT pilot and POCT Pathology network group evaluation of genetic POCT with the Genedrive Analyser. 

Sharman has also maintained a keen interest in R&D throughout her career, initially in endocrinology at Hope Hospital in Salford. She represented Pathology on the Health Board Research and innovation committee, being Principal Investigator on a number of studies including for Covid-19 testing. Currently she is Pathology R&I Lead at Stockport FT.

Ryan is the national lead for the Point of Care Testing (POCT) programme within NHS National Services Scotland, where he manages a specialist team of three. The programme operates as a national resource supporting all 14 territorial NHS health boards in Scotland, providing expertise on POCT projects and collating data to develop “Once for Scotland” approaches for the Scottish Government. Formed during the COVID-19 pandemic, Ryan chairs a national POCT stakeholder group that continues to serve as a valuable forum for information sharing, collaboration, and project updates across the healthcare system. He has led and supported a wide range of POCT initiatives across diverse healthcare settings, including cardiac care, emergency departments, ambulance services, prisons, social care, community pharmacies, and nationally coordinated programmes spanning multiple health boards. The role also includes a four-nations remit, with active engagement across the devolved UK nations to share learning and align POCT activity where appropriate. To ensure projects are informed by current innovation and best practice, Ryan maintains up-to-date market knowledge through regular engagement with POCT manufacturers. Through his work, Ryan is committed to promoting equitable, safe, and effective POCT implementation, supporting local health board delivery through strong national policy, and improving patient experiences across diagnostic pathways.

I have worked at Harrogate and District foundation trust (HDFT) since 2006.  Initially I was in the role of POCT and community services manager but as the POCT department role grew I have been POCT manager exclusively since 2011.  The department has grown from looking after a few gas machines and glucose meters for hospital to achieving UKAS accreditation for many aspects of the service both on and off site.  I have been involved in many areas of service development over the years including delivering a Flexible thinking training course to NHS managers for 2 years, working for the PCT (alongside the POCT manager role), sitting on working groups at the department of health to name a few.  All of these additional challenges have helped to shape and influence how the POCT department respond to our clinical communities and have enable me to develop a wider viewpoint for our service.

In 1984, after earning a degree in Life Sciences from the Polytechnic of Central London (now the University of Westminster), Alise McAuliffe responded to a local newspaper advertisement for a Medical Laboratory Scientist (MLS) position at Edgware General Hospital. She began her career there as a Junior B MLS, initially spending six months in Microbiology before rotating into Biochemistry, where she completed her portfolio and achieved state registration.

After undertaking the IBMS Fellowship evening course at Paddington College and successfully passing a rigorous examination, she became a Fellow of the Institute of Biomedical Science in 1987. Shortly afterwards, she applied for and was appointed to a new role as Senior Biomedical Scientist in Biochemistry. Due to various organisational mergers, she subsequently worked as a Senior in Biochemistry at both Barnet Hospital and Chase Farm Hospital.

From her early days at Edgware and throughout her career, Alise has been closely involved in Point of Care Testing (POCT). In the earlier days of her practice, maintaining blood gas analysers involved manually changing membranes on individual electrodes and replacing large gas cylinders for calibration—very different from today’s solution packs and sensor cassettes. She was responsible for three blood gas analysers at Edgware Hospital and one at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital site in Stanmore.

In 2015, partly due to relocating from North London to Hemel Hempstead, she decided it was time for a change and accepted a fixed-term Band 7 role in Biochemistry at Luton and Dunstable University Hospital. However, while still working her notice at Barnet Hospital, a rare opportunity arose: a Point of Care Testing Manager position at Luton. She applied successfully and began the role in early 2016.

Outside of work, Alise has raised five children to adulthood and now has five grandchildren, as well as a pre-teen, car-enthusiast stepson and two cats.

She also leads a busy life beyond family and work. She enjoys attending live music events and often spends weekends—sometimes in pouring rain and deep mud—listening to loud guitars and powerful vocals. She loves travelling, frequently (though not exclusively) to see her favourite bands perform.

An avid reader, she particularly enjoys fantasy and gothic horror, along with related films and television series. Somewhat fittingly, she also has a fondness for hospital dramas. In addition, she has a growing collection of craft materials for projects she hopes one day to have time to complete—perhaps in retirement.