[T]he interim chief executive of NHS North Cumbria Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Stephen Childs will leave the organisation this week.
Mr Childs was brought in to support the CCG through boundary change and to recover from being placed in legal direction in September 2016.
He continued in his role as managing director of the North of England Commissioning Support (NECS) on a part time basis and now returns to that role full time in April.
Mr Childs said: “I have had one of the most fulfilling and rewarding experiences of my career with the team at NHS North Cumbria CCG. There is no doubt the organisation faced a challenging time, but the staff are committed, hard-working and ambitious for our patients and our community.
“I could not be prouder of the progress we have made in bringing together our health and care teams who are working more closely than ever before.
We have developed ambitious plans to offer more support to patients closer to home through the emerging integrated care communities, and we have secured funding to create a cancer centre and continue the redevelopment of the West Cumberland Hospital.”
His responsibilities will be taken on by Dr David Rogers, the medical director and accountable officer, supported by the chief operating officer Peter Rooney and the chair of the CCG Jon Rush.
Mr Rush paid tribute to Mr Childs saying: “Stephen’s influence and impact has been enormous, he provided a steadying hand which has enabled and empowered our teams to make a real difference. Through his leadership the CCG is no longer under formal directions from NHS England and his partnership working has enabled us to develop a health and care system locally and regionally that is committed to more integrated working to do our best for our patients.
“We are grateful for his hard work, his commitment and his energy and look forward to continuing to work with him as he moves back to his own organisation full time.”
