From April, The NHS Alliance will bring NHS leadership together, represent their views to government, and support them to improve their services at a time of significant pressure and transformation for the NHS. Sir Ciarán Devane, currently chair of the Health Service Executive (HSE) in Ireland, will serve as its inaugural chief executive.
Lord Victor Adebowale, chair of the NHS Confederation and NHS Providers (and soon-to-be inaugural chair of The NHS Alliance), said: “As the NHS Confederation and NHS Providers, we have not come together to be bigger: we have come together to be braver, more influential, and to provide greater support to our members.
“Our members told us clearly and consistently that the NHS needs a stronger and more unified voice, which can be used to speak with authority across the whole system. That is what I am determined The NHS Alliance will be.
“We will aim to provide outstanding support and value for money for our members, while bringing the collective weight of our membership in pursuit of a higher performing NHS and healthier nation.
“The NHS needs collective leadership right now and I am excited by what The NHS Alliance will deliver for all parts of the health and care system.”
Sir Terence Stephenson, vice chair of the NHS Confederation and NHS Providers (and soon-to-be vice chair of The NHS Alliance), commented: “We will exist to give our members the representation, the evidence, and the solidarity they need to lead through the hardest period that the NHS has faced in its history.
“The NHS needs a unified voice that can advocate on its behalf, influence national policy, and provide a safe space for health leaders to collaborate, connect, and to improve the services that they provide for patients, staff and their wider communities.
“By bringing together the expertise from the NHS Confederation and NHS Providers, The NHS Alliance will deliver just that for our members through more effective advocacy and support.”