NHS England digital chief moves to digital GP company

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Juliet Bauer to join Livi as an executive
Ms Bauer was NHS England’s first chief digital officer
Livi holds NHS contracts to provide video GP consultations

NHS England chief digital officer Juliet Bauer is leaving to work for one of the new digital GP companies working on NHS contracts, focusing on NHS partnerships.

According to an internal memo obtained by HSJ, Ms Bauer will leave “with immediate effect” and move to the digital company Livi in April, where she will be an executive with responsibility across Europe and NHS partnerships. Livi, also known as Kry in its native Sweden, holds several contracts in the NHS to provide video GP consultations.

Ms Bauer was NHS England’s first chief digital officer and had responsibility for digital projects focused on patients, including the NHS app, NHS 111 online, the NHS app library, and widening digital patient participation.

She will be replaced on interim basis by Tara Donnelly, the current chief executive of the Health Innovation Network, from 4 February.

In a message to staff, Ms Bauer said: “I couldn’t imagine the things we would be able to achieve. Empower the Person [the name of the programme Ms Bauer leads] has come a long way, and I believe is on a really strong strategic path, and that is thanks to all of your hard work.

“Admittedly I have learnt more acronyms that I cared and signed off more assurance documents that I would have liked.”

In the memo, NHS England deputy chief executive Matthew Swindells said: “I am extremely grateful to Juliet for all her hard work and passion over the last two and half years, which has ensured we have a clear digital strategy for engaging citizens in their own health and care.”

In a statement confirming the appointment, a Livi spokeswoman said Ms Bauer will “focus on working in partnership with the NHS and other health systems around the world”.

Last year, Ms Bauer was placed at 33 on HSJ’s 100 most influential people in health.

She has previously argued the NHS needed to evolve to accommodate new models of digital GP services, such as Babylon’s GP at Hand.

While Ms Bauer will step down from her current role, she will continue to work with NHS England and NHS Improvement over the next three months to encourage diversity in executive positions.

This story was updated to include a statement from Livi on 11 January.