The NHS Trust Development Authority (NHS TDA) has today (Tuesday) confirmed the appointment of Eve Richardson OBE as Chair of Isle of Wight NHS Trust.
Isle of Wight NHS Trust is the Island’s unique provider of ambulance, community, hospital and mental health and learning disability services and serves a population of 140,000 with 2.5m visitors per annum.
Eve has spent much time on the Island both for pleasure and for work. She was born in Southampton from a sea-faring family and joined the NHS as a National Graduate Trainee. One of her very early assignments included supporting the new build project of St Mary’s Hospital. She has been a successful leader in the NHS and in the voluntary sector. She has also run an international health and care consultancy supporting a range of services and Boards in the UK and abroad to improve their services and actively engage with their communities.
Eve enjoyed a successful career as Chief Executive at Homewood NHS Trust where working with a creative Board and partners in Surrey they set up new models of integrated care and support, working closely with local communities. She has also held a range of Non Executive roles at Board level on Housing Associations and she served for two terms as a Non-Executive Director of The Ridgeway Partnership NHS Trust, in Oxfordshire until 2008 and was its Champion for Older People.
Eve, her husband and three cats moved permanently to St. Lawrence, Isle of Wight in 2014 after retiring as Chief Executive of the National Council for Palliative Care, the umbrella charity set up by Government to improve end of life care services across all sectors. She took it through three key phases of growth over 15 years working closely with the NHS, social care and leading national and local charities, including services on the Island. She was asked to set up and lead a new national coalition as part of the First National End of Life Care Strategy in 2008 to raise public awareness about the importance of talking about end of life wishes and recording in care plans so they can be met. Eve was also asked to join the Prime Minister’s Dementia Challenge Health and Care Champion Group in 2013 and became an active member. She was awarded an OBE in 2015.
Speaking about her appointment Ms Richardson said:
“I am looking forward to being the Trust Chair and working with everyone at the Isle of Wight NHS Trust and also with the Island’s commissioners, partners and leaders within the wider health and social care and housing communities to improve our services and make the most of the ‘Island Pound’, given that we all have scarce resources. I am sure that my range of experience will be helpful to the Island.
“With the recent announcement of the development of new models of care for the Island under the ‘My Life a Full Life‘ programme and the Island’s status as a Vanguard site in the national New Models of Care initiative, we have a lot to do together and to also actively engage with our communities and the range of people who use our services. I want everyone in the Trust to play a full part in this new programme.”
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Welcoming Eve’s appointment Karen Baker, Chief Executive Officer at Isle of Wight NHS Trust, said:
“Eve has extensive experience of working with health and social care organisations both as a Chief Executive and as a Non- Executive in partnership NHS Trusts. Eve returns to us with a breadth of experience which I know she will use to help us in our endeavours to reshape health and social care on the Island.”
Non-executive appointments to NHS Trusts made by the NHS TDA are subject to the Code of Practice of the Commissioner for Public Appointments.
Ms Richardson has been appointed from 17th August 2015 until 16th August 2017 and is entitled to receive a remuneration of £21,105 per annum. She has declared no political activity on behalf of any political party in the last five years other than her support for the Independent Parliamentary Candidate in the 2015 General Election.
The previous Chairman, Danny Fisher, served as Chairman of the NHS Trust and its predecessor organisation, the Primary Care Trust, for eight and a half years until he stepped down in July 2015.
Paying tribute to Danny, Karen Baker said:
“Danny played an important role in the development of the Trust. He was a huge supporter of the islands bid for Vanguard status as he strongly believed that integration would ensure safe and sustainable services for the future. He formally took on chairmanship of the Island’s NHS organisation – then known as a Primary Care Trust – in October 2006.
“Danny was with us as we brought together services, introduced the Integrated Care Hub, built the Helipad, East Cowes Health Centre and Ryde Health and Wellbeing Centre and saw the introduction of the delivery of high dose antibiotics to people with suspected sepsis. In addition to his various roles around the Island – Deputy Lieutenant, involvement with agriculture and green energy firm Pure Green – he has been a staunch supporter of the NHS and we have much to be grateful to him for.”
