New chair for acute trust

Deborah Evans started her role at Gloucestershire Hospitals Foundation Trust this month, following the departure of Peter Lachecki at the end of April.

Ms Evans has held various leadership roles in the NHS during her career, including chief executive of NHS Bristol, CEO of Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust cluster, and managing director of West of England Academic Health Science Network.

Since 2017, she has also been trustee and chair of Brunelcare, a housing and social care charity that provides nursing homes, homecare and supported living.

Ms Evans joins the trust at a time when it is among the worst-performing providers against the four-hour accident and emergency department waiting-time target in England.

Its performance in April was 54.5 per cent, while patients faced waits of up to 46 hours before being given a bed – according to the trust’s latest board papers.

Last year, staff at the EDs in Gloucester Royal and Cheltenham General hospitals wrote to the trust’s executive directors, raising concerns about “unsustainable” working conditions and risks to patient safety. 

The trust’s CEO – Deborah Lee – is currently off work as she recovers from a stroke. Her duties are currently being undertaken by interim CEO Mark Pietroni.

Ms Evans said: “While the challenges ahead are enormous and may feel relentless, particularly as we come through a pandemic that has impacted all of us in such different ways, I am heartened by the possibility and opportunities ahead.”