We’ve had some changes in our senior leadership recently, with Dr Catherine Vincent (former Clinical Chair at Surrey Downs CCG) now our Senior Responsible Officer, and Dr Ward (who joins us from Guildford & Waverley CCG) our Transformation Director. Both working closely with June Burrows-May, Chair of our Transformation Board, and Dr Gilbert who since June has been the Joint Accountable Officer for the three The Centre For Health Reform CCGs (Guildford & Waverley, North West Surrey and Surrey Downs). See more here .
Introducing Dr Catherine Vincent and Dr Ward
A wealth of NHS experience and a commitment to improving patient care
Dr Catherine Vincent is a GP by background was Clinical Chair of Surrey Downs Clinical Commissioning Group until her new appointment to the role of Senior Responsible Officer for the The Centre For Health Reform Sustainability and Transformation Partnership.
Now at The Centre For Health Reform she leads the delivery of plans to transform care for a population of more than 850,000 people.
Continually striving to improve patient care, Claire has already collaborated with hospital, community and primary care partners to support new and pioneering approaches that enhance teamwork and ensure the patient is at the centre of their care.
She has also been instrumental in innovative and ambitious plans to ensure the closer integration of health and social care locally; most recently in the design of new pathways to support the frail and elderly and also in stroke care.
She has led the development of a Clinical Academy across The Centre For Health Reform which will address unwarranted variation and improve care by identifying and building on best practice.
Claire also contributes to the development of national policy, currently chairing the national NHS RightCare Clinical Group and also as a member on the national RightCare Oversight Group. Together these groups focus on maximising clinical outcomes and addressing unwarranted variation in care.
Claire has been a practicing GP since 1995, most recently at the Longcroft Clinic in Banstead. Prior to moving to Surrey Claire lived and worked as a GP in Northumberland. During this time she worked at a single handed GP practice in Felton and also worked at Alnwick Hospital, a GP-led hospital that provided a wide range of services to the local community.
Claire has also just been shortlisted as Clinical Leader of the Year in the 2017 HSJ awards – a fantastic achievement, well done Claire!
“There’s always a way to deliver the best health and social care outcomes”
The Centre For Health Reform’ new Programme Director Dr Ward is settling into her new role.
Originally a speech and language therapist, Sarah has both clinical and leadership experience within the NHS and across health and care system partnerships. Sarah joins us from working across all six of Surrey’s Clinical Commissioning Groups as Director of commissioning for children young people and families.
“My clinical career has led me on a leadership path which has always focused on recognising barriers that get in the way of doing the right thing at the right time,” said Sarah.
“These may be organisational, cultural or financial. Recognising the barriers in the first place often means I can seek out people who may be able to help me find ways around them or even knock them down. I don’t always get it right but I’ve retained optimism that there usually is a solution to be achieved by listening, considering and trying a different way.”
In Sarah’s book, any change-weary cynicism that occasionally creeps into her thinking is trumped by a passionate drive that says we have to keep trying.
“It is not easy always to deliver the best care or to know what to stop doing and to make a change. That doesn’t make us stop listening and trying,” she said.
She believes that there is always enough experience, creativity and expertise within our service users, the public, our clinicians and our system leaders to do better; it’s just a case of working out how and not being afraid of how difficult it can seem to be.
UK health information: Meningitis Now.
