Revolving Doors at CQC
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- Published: Tuesday, 10 December 2024 09:22
- Written by Peter Ingle
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It has been a tough few weeks for regulator bosses. The CQC may need to consider fitting a revolving door to their headquarters as yet another senior figure has announced that they will be leaving.
The Chair of the Care Quality Commission, Ian Dilks, is to leave the organisation next spring, saying that the past three years have been, “at times been intensely challenging”.
He was appointed in April 2022, to a three-year term which ends in March 2025 but has now confirmed at a board meeting that he will not be seeking re-appointment to the embattled regulator.
Recruitment for a new chair will start shortly, meanwhile new chief executive Sir Julian Hartley will be taking up his post at the beginning of December.
Mr Dilks, formerly NHS Resolution chair from 2014 to 2020, said in his statement that while his decision not to seek reappointment was primarily for personal reasons, that it would, “give new leadership a chance to approach the challenges we face with a fresh perspective.”
There has been a stream of other recent executive and non-executive departures from the CQC board. Mr Dilks confirmed the recent resignation of executive director of operations Tyson Hepple, while chief data and digital officer Mark Sutton also left earlier this year. Non-executive director Ali Hasan has also left, with Belinda Black set to depart in January.
GDPUK has reported in recent weeks upon the very hasty departure of CQC CEO Ian Trenholm, who left with just four days notice in June. By October, his acting replacement, Kate Terroni, the former deputy chief executive, had also in effect gone, since she was on leave of absence at the time her departure was announced, and would not be returning.
At the time of Ian Dilks’ appointment in 2022, Health and Social Care Committee Chair Jeremy Hunt noted that he did not have any knowledge of the social care sector, which is a vital element of the CQC’s work. There were also concerns about the lack of the diversity of those candidates who were considered, which will add to the challenges of those looking for the next CQC chair.
It has been a torrid time for regulators with Sir David Warren announcing that he would step down as chair of the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) by March 2025. This followed a great deal of pressure on him to resign. It is expected that he will go as soon as a replacement is found. His departure follows a damning review of the NMC which uncovered bullying, racism and toxic behaviour at every level of the organisation.
Many doctors are now openly calling for heads to roll at the GMC over a variety of issues, with their handling of Physician Associates being the last straw for many registrants.
GDPUK readers can only wonder which regulator bosses will be next to write their own version of the “this is the right time give new leadership a chance to approach the challenges we face” farewell.
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