New chair appointed for NHS Tayside

Lorna Birse-Stewart has been appointed as the new chair of NHS Tayside.

Birse-Stewart has been vice chair since October 2018 and became interim chair in July 2019.

She has a background in both the NHS and the third sector.

Birse-Stewart was chief executive of the Ambulance Services Charity and regional manager for Scotland of Arthritis Research UK.

She has previous experience within the NHS as a non-executive director for seven years of the Royal West Sussex NHS Trust, where she held non-executive responsibility for Accident and Emergency and was a member of NHS independent review panels.

She was also a regional manager of Independent Age for five years and also has a special interest in paediatrics and research.

Health secretary Jeane Freeman said: “I am pleased to appoint Lorna-Birse Stewart to this role.

“She became vice chair in October 2018 and interim chair in July 2019 and has brought valuable skills and knowledge to the board having over 35 years’ experience working across health and third sector organisations.

“Her proven leadership skills will stand her in good stead as the Board continues to navigate its way through the challenges presented by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

“I expect her and her team to ensure the continued delivery of the high standards in healthcare which the people of Tayside have rightly come to expect.”