Kate Maynard has been appointed as the new Chief Operating Officer of University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT).
Kate was previously the Trust’s Deputy Chief Operating Officer and has been acting as Interim Chief Operating Officer since April 2020, guiding the Trust through the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. She joined the Trust in 2013 after working as a Locality Director for the NHS in Devon.
In her new role as Chief Operating Officer, Kate has a crucial role to play in redesigning the delivery of hospital and community services for people living in the Morecambe Bay area and will manage all of the Care Groups which run the clinical services provided by the Trust.
As part of her new role, Kate is now also the Lead Director for the Trust’s Estates and Facilities teams which includes capital planning and investment. She will continue to oversee the Trust’s response to COVID-19, working closely with local health and care partners as well as planning and implementing the Trust’s recovery phases.
Kate will lead service improvement and transformation and will be instrumental in redesigning service delivery, drawing on the learning from COVID-19.
As a member of the Senior Leadership Team, Kate will also be pivotal in overseeing improvement in the Trust’s Care Quality Commission rating.
Aaron Cummins, Chief Executive of UHMBT, said: “We are extremely pleased that Kate has been appointed to this key role within our Trust.
“Kate’s wealth of experience in leadership and healthcare will mean we can engage with colleagues and patients to deliver our strategic vision for the Trust and the Morecambe Bay area. This includes dealing with the current COVID-19 pandemic as safely and effectively as possible, focusing on the wellbeing of colleagues, a continued emphasis on quality and safety of services and a focus on the work of our COVID-19 Recovery Cell.
“Kate has been a strong leader throughout the pandemic and will enable us to continue to ensure that quality and safety of care remain our main focus.”