This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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New Chief Executive for NHSScotland
08/12/2004
The new Chief Executive of NHSScotland and Head of the Scottish Executive Health Department is to be Dr Kevin Woods, 51, currently Chief Executive of North Central London Strategic Health Authority.
Dr Woods will take up the post on January 17.
As Chief Executive he will have specific responsibility for the leadership and management of NHSScotland and, as Head of The Scottish Executive Health Department, will support the Minister for Health and Community Care and the Deputy Minister, overseeing the development of new policy.
Dr Woods said:
"I'm delighted to be have been appointed as Chief Executive and Head of Health Department. The NHS is a vitally important service on which we all rely and I look forward to helping Ministers and NHS staff achieve improvements in Scotland's health and the quality of services."
Health Minister Andy Kerr, said:
"I regard this as the most important job in the Scottish public sector. I look forward to working closely with Kevin Woods to take forward an ambitious programme of change and improvement for the benefit of the people of Scotland."
The Executive's Permanent Secretary John Elvidge said:
"Kevin Woods brings top level experience of the NHS in both Scotland and England. His breadth of experience will be valuable both to the leadership of the NHS in Scotland and to the Executive's Management Group team.
"He is well equipped to contribute to our wider support for Scottish Ministers across the range of Executive policy and our work developing the civil service in line with the needs of devolved government in Scotland."
Dr Woods has a BSc (Hons) degree and a PhD from the University of London. He is a Member of the Institute of Health Care Management (MIHM) and an Honorary Member of the Faculty of Public Health (Hon MFPH).
Prior to being appointed Chief Executive of North Central London (NCL) Strategic Health Authority in October 2004, Mr Woods was Director of Health Policy and Strategy at Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Strategic Health Authority from January-September 2004.
From 2000-2003 he was the William R Lindsay Professor of Health Policy and Economic Evaluation at the University of Glasgow.
He has previous experience with the Scottish Executive and Scottish Office, as Director of Strategy and Performance Management in the Health Department for five years from 1995-2000.
In his early career Dr Woods held general management positions in several Health Authorities in England as well as academic positions at the Universities of London and Manchester, and the Flinders University of South Australia.
The open competition for the post, which was advertised in national newspapers in September 2004, attracted a wide field of applicants.
The appointment board's recommendation has been agreed by the First Minister and approved by the Prime Minister.
Dr Woods salary will be in the current Senior Civil Service pay band 3 which has a minimum of £90,867 and a maximum of £192,424.
Dr Woods will report to the Executive's Permanent Secretary who is the most senior civil servant in Scotland.
As Chief Executive of NHSScotland he will lead the central management of the NHS and be accountable to Scottish Ministers for the efficiency and performance of the service. He will oversee the work of 15 area health boards and 8 Special Health Boards. The Health Department has around 650 staff. Dr Woods will have responsibility for a budget of £7 billion.
The NHS in Scotland has around 143,000 staff, including more than 63,000 nurses, midwives and health visitors and over 3,300 consultants. There are also more than 13,000 doctors, family practitioners and allied health professionals, including dentists, opticians and community pharmacists, who are independent contractors providing a range of services within the NHS.