Trudie Davies has been appointed as permanent Chief Executive at North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust after just nine months in her interim role.
NHS England have backed the permanent appointment to help drive the rapid transformation needed. Confirmation of the appointment brings further stability to the Trust, building on strong early signs of recovery under Trudie’s leadership.
Trudie Davies qualified as a nurse in 1995 in north Devon, before moving into management roles in service and performance improvement in a range of NHS organisations including Leicester, Leeds, Mid Yorkshire and most recently as Chief Executive at Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust.
Under Trudie’s interim leadership, performance is showing clear signs of improvement following a renewed focus on quality and safety. The Trust is now seeing reductions in waiting times for operations, diagnostic tests and cancer care. Urgent and emergency care performance has also improved, meaning patients across North Cumbria are already experiencing the benefits. Trudie credits this improvement to the hard work of our staff. She is committed to the belief that if we have happy staff, we will have happy patients and will therefore continue her drive to support an improved culture which puts staff health and well being as a core pillar of success.
A major new £4m investment has been agreed at the Board of Directors to strengthen urgent and emergency care services. The programme will implement a series of measures to improve the range of services available, avoiding unnecessary treatment to hospital and speeding up access to the right care at the right time for patients and ensuring that our staff can provide the highest standards of care and feel proud of what they do.
Trudie said: “It’s an absolute honour and a real privilege to have been appointed as Chief Executive at such an important moment. Since I arrived I’ve been made to feel so welcome by colleagues and the wider community and I’ve already learned so much from the incredible people here. North Cumbria is full of talented and dedicated people, who care passionately about their health services and inspire me every single day with their dedication to making a real difference.
“Together we have already begun to make encouraging steps forward on the challenges ahead, and it’s clear to me just how much potential this organisation holds. I’m genuinely excited about what we can achieve together. My focus is now on accelerating our recovery and delivering safe, high-quality care for all of our communities.”
Chair Stephen Singleton said: “I am delighted that Trudie has been confirmed in post. She has already made a huge impact in the Trust and we are seeing positive signs of moving in the right direction. We still have a lot to do, but we can be confident that we are moving forward with a very able permanent CEO supported by a strong leadership team. I know that colleagues across the organisation will welcome this stability and get behind Trudie and the team.”
Lead Governor, Jacqueline Nicol, said: “I’m absolutely delighted that NHS England have recognised the progress the Trust has made under Trudie’s leadership. She has already made a noticeable difference in how people feel and work across the Trust. Her energy and compassion has already started to lift this organisation, and her permanent appointment gives us great confidence for the future."