Experienced interim moves to new challenged trust

A struggling hospital trust has appointed an experienced interim chief executive for the coming financial year.

Chris Bown will move across London to replace Dame Jacqueline Docherty at the top of London North West University Healthcare Trust.

Dame Jacqueline will retire at the end of March. She has been chief executive of LNWH since 2015.

Mr Bown will join the north west London trust for 12 months from 6 April. He was most recently interim chief executive of Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals Trust in east London.

LNWH’s financial position “remains very challenging,” as of last month, when it reported a deficit of £75.7m.

The multi-site trust has struggled financially since it was formed from a merger of Ealing Hospital and North West London Hospitals in 2014.

It is also missing access targets, including the accident and emergency performance standard. In January this year, it had 12,674 type 1 attendances with 64.4 per cent admitted or discharged within four hours.

The trust also has a new board chair. Sir Amyas Morse took up the post on 1 January 2020 for a term that will run to 30 September 2021.

The former comptroller and auditor-general of the National Audit Office will also continue as chair of neighbouring Hillingdon Hospitals Foundation Trust, while serving on the LNWH board.

A spokesman said the trust has no plans to create a shared chief executive role with The Hillingdon, like the model BHRUT and its neighbouring mental health trust North East London FT are developing, which will see both led by a joint chief executive from April 2021.