Nuffield Health has appointed Alison McCourt as clinical services director.
The former British Army nurse’s remit is to provide leadership to clinical teams across the charity’s hospitals, fitness and wellbeing centres, healthcare clinics, and workplace wellbeing services.
Having joined the British Army in 1988, McCourt (pictured) was awarded an OBE for her role in combatting the Ebola crisis in October 2014 in Sierra Leone.
She was promoted to colonel and the head of health strategy in December 2015, with responsibility for all healthcare governance in the British Army.
In 2018 McCourt was appointed chief nursing officer and was awarded a CBE for her leadership of military nursing. She was also appointed commander medical for 3 (UK) division with technical command of all medical facilities and delivery and planning of healthcare for the 30,000 strong division worldwide.
During this time she was deployed to support NHS England and Improvement in planning and establishing the Nightingale hospitals in response to the pandemic.
McCourt remained at NHS England and Improvement for a further year as deputy chief operating officer, reporting directly to current NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard throughout the first 18 months of the pandemic.
She returned to NHS England and Improvement for four weeks over this past Christmas and New Year to lead a small group of military planners tasked to work alongside the Covid vaccine delivery taskforce to accelerate the booster vaccination programme.
McCourt said: “I’m excited to be joining the Nuffield Health team. The passion of its senior leaders and committed workforce aligns to my personal and professional ethos.”
Caroline Smith, chief quality and operating officer at Nuffield Health said McCourt ’s experience would be vital to the charity as the pandemic and this year evolves.
“Alison’s appointment is fantastic news for the charity. She brings with her extensive knowledge and experience gained through her distinguished career as a senior clinician in the military,” Smith said.
“Her leadership skills, demonstrated by transforming nursing in the British Army and in her strategic role at NHS England and Improvement, will be vital as Nuffield Health’s clinical teams emerge from the pandemic and respond to the evolving healthcare needs of our local communities.
“Alison’s inclusive style of leadership and experience across different sectors and continents will help us to achieve our aim of providing an inclusive and learning culture that supports our nurses, clinicians and hospital teams to ensure we continue to deliver the highest quality outcomes and best experience to the people we care for,” she added.