NHS Improvement and NHS England have announced who will lead on driving improvements in care and efficiency across the NHS.
Hugh McCaughey will take on the new role as National Director of Improvement in the new NHS Executive group. Hugh is currently Chief Executive of South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust in Northern Ireland.
In his new role, which he will take up on 1 April, Hugh will help ensure NHS providers and local systems are equipped to deliver world-class universal healthcare on a sustainable basis.
Hugh has been the Chief Executive of South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust in Northern Ireland since 2009, where he has made quality improvement a key strategy. This has led to significant improvements in the trust’s performance across a wide range of clinical, workforce and cultural areas, as well as its financial effectiveness. The trust has also established a Quality Improvement Academy which has resulted in more than 4,000 staff being trained in quality improvement.
Ian Dalton, Chief Executive of NHS Improvement, said: “I am delighted that Hugh has been appointed to this new leadership role, which underscores the importance of quality improvement in driving better quality care for patients.”
“Hugh brings a huge amount of technical expertise in the application of improvement science in healthcare settings, and he also understands the challenges of leading change in complex and ever-changing environments. He will act as an effective national champion for improvement across the NHS.”
“Hugh will be building on the successful productivity work that has been carried out by NHS Improvement with acute hospitals, mental health, community and ambulance trusts. I would like to thank Jeremy Marlow who has led this work for the past three years.”
“On a personal level, I have very much appreciated Jeremy’s commitment, values and his drive as one of the executive directors of NHS Improvement. He has been a great colleague and I wish him well in the next stage of his career.”
