Building for the future: New appointments across the IDrF
This month sees three important appointments to key leadership roles within the IDrF, each bringing considerable experience and fresh perspectives to the organisation.
Firstly, we have a changeover in our Responsible Officer, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank Dr Lucinda Homer for her significant contribution to the IDrF. During her time as RO, she led important and challenging changes within our appraisal and revalidation service, including the successful transition to our new L2P software platform. She has been consistently praised and respected by her team, and I am enormously grateful for her commitment to both them and our doctors. We wish her every success and happiness in her next role.
Taking on the role of Responsible Officer, I am delighted to welcome Dr Adedeji (Deji) Okubadejo to the IDrF. Deji brings extensive senior leadership experience across both NHS and independent healthcare.
Deji is a highly experienced consultant anaesthetist and healthcare leader, with extensive experience across both the NHS and independent healthcare sectors. He previously spent ten years as a Group Medical Director and Responsible Officer in the independent sector and has held senior NHS leadership roles with responsibility for medical appraisal, revalidation, clinical governance, quality and patient safety.
With around 1,000 doctors now undertaking appraisal and revalidation through the IDrF, the Responsible Officer role carries significant responsibility. But it also brings an important opportunity. We want appraisal and revalidation to be more than a regulatory requirement: done well, it should provide a meaningful opportunity for reflection, professional development and supporting doctors to continue to grow throughout their careers.
Deji brings considerable experience, insight and a longstanding commitment to high professional standards and quality improvement. We are delighted to welcome him to the IDrF team and look forward to working with him as we continue to develop an appraisal and revalidation service that combines robust professional governance with genuine investment in the growth and development of our doctors.
I am also delighted to welcome Dr Ross Stewart as the new Chair of our GP Committee. As a former NHS GP partner and founder of Cademuir Clinic in the Scottish Borders, Ross brings first-hand experience of building an independent practice and a strong commitment to representing and connecting independent GPs across all four UK nations.
Having previously worked as a full-time NHS GP partner, he established his own independent GP service, which has grown from a small rural practice into a thriving multidisciplinary clinic providing a broad range of primary and specialist healthcare services.
Ross has been an active member of the IDrF GP Committee and brings valuable first-hand experience of establishing and growing an independent medical practice. He is also actively involved in the wider healthcare landscape in Scotland, including engagement with Healthcare Improvement Scotland.
As Chair, Ross is keen to strengthen the voice and community of independent GPs across all four nations of the UK, supporting greater collaboration, sharing of experience and representation of the issues that matter to GPs working in independent practice.
We are delighted that Ross has agreed to take on the role and look forward to working with him as we continue to develop the IDrF’s support and representation for our GP members.
And to complete this month’s appointments, I am particularly pleased to announce Olivia Reid’s appointment as Managing Director of the IDrF following her period as Interim MD. Since taking on the role, Olivia has been pivotal in shaping and delivering our strategy, driving key projects and bringing renewed focus and momentum to the organisation. Her exceptional knowledge of independent healthcare, positive energy and commitment make this a hugely exciting appointment for the IDrF.
Olivia joined the IDrF in 2022 and has since developed an extensive understanding of the organisation, our members and the wider independent healthcare sector. Initially working within our appraisal and revalidation service, she progressively took on broader operational and leadership responsibilities before being appointed Interim Managing Director earlier this year.
Since taking on that role, Olivia has made a significant impact. She has been pivotal in translating the Board’s ambitions into a clear organisational strategy, driving forward key projects across the IDrF and strengthening the way we work with our committees, members and corporate partners. She has also brought greater focus and momentum to the organisation at an important time in its development.
Having worked closely alongside Olivia since my appointment as President, I have been hugely impressed by the depth of her knowledge of independent healthcare and her instinctive understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing our members. Her energy, commitment and determination are exceptional, and she combines these with a genuine passion for what the IDrF can achieve.
Olivia’s appointment as Managing Director reflects what she has already demonstrated in the role. I am enormously excited about what we can achieve together and about the next stage of the IDrF’s development under her leadership.
