Daily Insight: New year, fresh start

A major hospital trust has rung the changes to its executive team ahead of a Care Quality Commission report which is expected to criticise its previous leadership.

Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals Foundation Trust has overhauled its board following the arrival of Sir Jim Mackey as the new chief executive this month.

The changes include the medical director stepping down, the retirement of the chief nurse, a change of role for the chief operating officer and new interim roles being created such as managing director and director of patient and staff experience.

It comes ahead of a CQC report – due to be published this month – which is expected to criticise the previous executive leadership and organisational structure at the trust. Dame Jackie Daniel was the CEO at the time of the inspection – she stepped down late last year.

Sir Jim told HSJ that the trust needed “more boots on the ground” among its executive team after draft of the CQC report highlighted “some gaps in capacity or skills in the team”.

He added that both the retirement of the chief nurse and resignation of the medical director from the board had been planned for some time.

New year, fresh start part 2

NHS England has revealed the appointment of 19 national clinical directors, eight of whom are assuming their roles for the first time. This includes positions in stroke and maternity services.

During the past summer, NHSE re-advertised all NCD positions, introducing several new roles. The organisation has now disclosed the selected individuals for 17 of these posts, with one, elective recovery, remaining a joint responsibility.

The newly appointed NCDs cover various areas such as learning disabilities and autism, stroke, heart disease, and maternity. However, 10 positions, including two recently established roles, are yet to be announced.

NHSE emphasises that the NCDs are highly experienced clinicians who provide comprehensive national clinical leadership, supporting organisational programmes and priorities alongside their active clinical roles within the NHS. They possess extensive knowledge in their respective specialities and are actively engaged in frontline NHS services.

According to NHSE, the NCDs play a crucial role in advancing the key objectives outlined in the NHS long-term plan, offering clinical guidance and leadership to facilitate the transformation of services for patients and ensuring the NHS is well prepared for the future.