New chief nurse and medical director bring huge breadth of experience to GOSH

Two experienced and accomplished clinical leaders will join the executive team at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust (GOSH).

Juliette Greenwood, who comes to GOSH from Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, will take up the post of chief nurse while Dr Vin Diwakar, the medical director of Birmingham Children’s Hospital, has been appointed the Trust’s new medical director.

Mrs Greenwood has more than ten years’ experience as a chief nurse across three foundation trusts. She is no stranger to GOSH having been the assistant and then deputy chief nurse at the hospital for five years. An experienced nurse and service manager, she is also a member of the Health Education England Yorkshire and the Humber Local Education and Training Board.

Dr Diwakar, who is a practicing consultant paediatrician, comes to GOSH with more than five years’ experience as medical director at the Midlands specialist children’s hospital. He is a highly experienced clinical leader who has shaped the care of children and young people with rare and complex conditions in different organisations in Birmingham, the West Midlands and nationally.

Welcoming the new appointments, Dr Peter Steer, chief executive of Great Ormond Street Hospital, said: “I am delighted that leaders of Juliette and Vin’s calibre have been appointed to these key leadership roles. They bring an enormous breadth of clinical and educational experience to GOSH alongside their long-standing commitment to child healthcare.

“They join us at a critical time when there are both huge opportunities and huge challenges across the NHS - particularly in the area of specialist care.”

Mrs Greenwood said: “I am delighted to be re-joining the Great Ormond Street Hospital team. The experience I have gained in a high performing trust like Bradford Teaching Hospitals has equipped me with a real understanding of the complexities and challenges facing children’s healthcare.

“Having worked at Great Ormond Street Hospital earlier in my career, I understand the hospital and the importance it plays in the lives of many people. Returning as chief nurse is a truly wonderful opportunity and I am looking forward to working with the team to take nursing and patient care forward.”

Dr Diwakar said: “I am passionate about the care of children with specialised and highly specialised conditions.  Many of my patients have rare multisystem disorders and are under the care of several different specialists, so I have direct knowledge of the scope of highly specialised paediatric clinical care and intend to combine the medical director’s role with an active clinical practice.

“GOSH is one of the greatest children’s hospitals and I can’t think of anywhere I would rather be after leaving Birmingham. I love being a medical director and a paediatrician and am excited about leading the clinical body, with a new executive team, through the challenges that the trust must face to continue making a real difference to children and young people with highly complex needs.”

Mrs Greenwood will join the Trust early in the new financial year with Dr Diwakar taking up his post at the beginning of July.