Trust appoints new Medical Director

Dr Claire Kenwood has been appointed to the key role.

Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust has appointed a new Medical Director.

Dr Claire Kenwood will take up her place on the Board in the coming months.

Dr Kenwood will join the Trust from Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, where she is currently Associate Medical Director for Quality.

She is a Non-Executive Director for Advancing Quality Alliance (AQuA), with particular interests in mental health recovery and rehabilitation, service and quality improvement. In addition, she is a founding member of Q, which stands for quality, and is an initiative connecting people with improvement expertise across the UK, led by the Health Foundation and supported and co-funded by NHS Improvement.

Chairman of Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Frank Griffiths, said: “This is an important appointment to the Board of Directors and the Executive Team.

“Dr Kenwood joins the Trust at an exciting time, and I’m sure her wealth of experience in clinical leadership and patient safety will be invaluable to our future success.

“On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Dr Jim Isherwood for his contribution to the Trust as Medical Director for the last four years. Jim made a significant contribution during his time as Medical Director, which he fulfilled while carrying out his existing role in the Forensic Psychiatry Service in York. I wish him the very best in his full-time return to his clinical duties as a consultant psychiatrist.”

Chief Executive, Dr Sara Munro, said: “I am delighted to welcome Dr Kenwood to the Trust. During the interview process, our stakeholder panel described her as a breath of fresh air, so I am confident she will be an excellent new addition to the Board and Executive Team.”

Dr Claire Kenwood said: “I am really pleased to be joining the Trust as Medical Director.

“I’m sure the months ahead will be an exciting time for the Trust, and that 2017 will bring with it both opportunities and challenges.

“I look forward to getting started and to meeting the Trust’s staff, service users and members when I take up the post in the New Year.”