- Helen Greatorex has led KMPT for nearly seven years
- Plans to step down later this year
- Board will now carry out “national search” for new CEO
A trust chief executive has announced she is to retire later this year after 40 years working in mental health services.
Helen Greatorex, who has led Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust for nearly seven years, said there was never “a perfect time to retire… but now is the right time for me and for KMPT”. She plans to step down in the autumn.
Ms Greatorex was a director of nursing in Sussex for 14 years before she moved to KMPT. She started training as a student nurse in 1983 before qualifying as a mental health nurse in 1987 and worked in the voluntary sector, resettling former psychiatric patients into the community. She also completed the Florence Nightingale leadership programme, which she says motivated her to apply for a chief executive role.
However, her decision in 2020 to share a colleague’s suicide note with the trust’s 3,000 staff as an attachment to her daily email prompted scrutiny, with one staff member calling the move “dangerous and insensitive”. Ms Greatorex apologised, saying she was “truly and sincerely sorry if… I have offended or upset anyone”.
Jackie Craissati, KMPT’s chair, said: “Helen has been an inspirational leader and KMPT has seen improved performance and quality of care under her leadership. She has been a huge advocate for KMPT, our people and our service users and we will all feel her departure greatly.
“The board will now undertake a national search for the next chief executive and continue to work closely with Helen to ensure a smooth transition and further improve the care we deliver to people living across Kent and Medway.”
Source
Trust press release
Source Date
January 2023
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