Ian Carruthers
Encyclopedia
Sir Ian Carruthers is a senior British
manager/administrator working for the National Health Service
(NHS). He is Chief Executive of the South West Strategic Health Authority.
He has held a variety of senior appointments including:
, Blackpool
, Southend
, Portsmouth
and Plymouth
. Between 1987 and 2006 he was Acting District General Manager for East Dorset Health Authority, District General Manager at West Dorset Health Authority, Chief Executive of the Dorset Health Commission, and Chief Executive of the Dorset Health Authority.
During the year until 1 April 1995, Carruthers was seconded to the South and West Regional Health Authority as Regional General Manager/Regional Director of the NHS Executive, and from 1 December 2004 to 31 July 2005, he was seconded to the Department of Health
, on a part-time basis, as Transitional Director of the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement.
Other roles include serving on the Department of Health Financial Strategy Steering Group and on the Strategic Health Authorities Chief Executives Reference Group on Delivering Race Equality in Mental Health. In the past Carruthers was a member of the NHS Modernisation Board, the National Steering and Advisory Group for Shifting the Balance of Power within the NHS and he also served as a member on the Modernisation Action Team on Patient Access which contributed to the NHS Plan. On 7 March 2006 he took over as acting NHS chief executive, following the departure of Sir Nigel Crisp. He held this position until September that year, being succeeded by David Nicholson
.
Sir Ian is Visiting Senior Fellow of the Health Services Management Centre at the University of Birmingham
, where his published papers include:
In May 2011 it was announced he would be taking up the position of Chancellor
of the University of the West of England
.
on the grounds that there had been insufficient public consultation and the process was therefore illegal. Following these objections Mr Watkinson was suspended and then dismissed and subsequently took his case to an employment tribunal which held, unanimously, that Mr Watkinson had been unfairly dismissed and sharply criticised Ian Carruthers' behaviour . The likely cost of the tribunal and compensation for the bullying which Mr Watkinson received is inexcess of £2 million.
.
in rugby union
, cricket
and soccer in his school days. He was offered a playing contract by Carlisle United football club but turned it down at the insistence of his father.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
manager/administrator working for the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
(NHS). He is Chief Executive of the South West Strategic Health Authority.
He has held a variety of senior appointments including:
- Acting Chief Executive of the NHS in England for 6 months during 2006
- Acting Director of Commissioning for the NHS and joint Chief Executive of Dorset and Somerset Strategic Health Authority
- Hampshire and Isle of Wight Strategic Health Authority.
Career
Carruthers first started working in the NHS at Garland Hospital, Carlisle in 1969 in an administrative role. He subsequently held management posts in BarnsleyBarnsley
Barnsley is a town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Dearne, north of the city of Sheffield, south of Leeds and west of Doncaster. Barnsley is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley, of which Barnsley is the largest and...
, Blackpool
Blackpool
Blackpool is a borough, seaside town, and unitary authority area of Lancashire, in North West England. It is situated along England's west coast by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre estuaries, northwest of Preston, north of Liverpool, and northwest of Manchester...
, Southend
Southend-on-Sea
Southend-on-Sea is a unitary authority area, town, and seaside resort in Essex, England. The district has Borough status, and comprises the towns of Chalkwell, Eastwood, Leigh-on-Sea, North Shoebury, Prittlewell, Shoeburyness, Southchurch, Thorpe Bay, and Westcliff-on-Sea. The district is situated...
, Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
and Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
. Between 1987 and 2006 he was Acting District General Manager for East Dorset Health Authority, District General Manager at West Dorset Health Authority, Chief Executive of the Dorset Health Commission, and Chief Executive of the Dorset Health Authority.
During the year until 1 April 1995, Carruthers was seconded to the South and West Regional Health Authority as Regional General Manager/Regional Director of the NHS Executive, and from 1 December 2004 to 31 July 2005, he was seconded to the Department of Health
Department of Health (United Kingdom)
The Department of Health is a department of the United Kingdom government with responsibility for government policy for health and social care matters and for the National Health Service in England along with a few elements of the same matters which are not otherwise devolved to the Scottish,...
, on a part-time basis, as Transitional Director of the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement.
Other roles include serving on the Department of Health Financial Strategy Steering Group and on the Strategic Health Authorities Chief Executives Reference Group on Delivering Race Equality in Mental Health. In the past Carruthers was a member of the NHS Modernisation Board, the National Steering and Advisory Group for Shifting the Balance of Power within the NHS and he also served as a member on the Modernisation Action Team on Patient Access which contributed to the NHS Plan. On 7 March 2006 he took over as acting NHS chief executive, following the departure of Sir Nigel Crisp. He held this position until September that year, being succeeded by David Nicholson
David Nicholson (civil servant)
Sir David Nicholson KCB CBE is Chief Executive of the English National Health Service, appointed in September 2006.-Education:Nicholson was educated at Forest Fields Grammar School in Nottingham, and graduated from Bristol University with a 2:1 in History and Politics.-Career:Nicholson joined the...
.
Sir Ian is Visiting Senior Fellow of the Health Services Management Centre at the University of Birmingham
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
, where his published papers include:
- Improving HImPs: the Early Lessons (ref RR35; I Carruthers, J Shapiro, T Knight)
- Purchasing in the NHS: The Story so far (1995, ref DP34) (I Carruthers, D Fillingham, C Ham, J James)
- Doctors in Unit Management (ref HS16, I Carruthers, G Page, D White)
- Options for strengthening Unit management. The implications for personnel, financial and functional management, planning, monitoring and communications (1982; ref HS13) (I Carruthers, C Fewtrell, D White)
- Reviewing the strength of Unit nursing management: An audit approach (1981; ref HS12)
In May 2011 it was announced he would be taking up the position of Chancellor
Chancellor (education)
A chancellor or vice-chancellor is the chief executive of a university. Other titles are sometimes used, such as president or rector....
of the University of the West of England
University of the West of England
The University of the West of England is a university based in the English city of Bristol. Its main campus is at Frenchay, about five miles north of the city centre...
.
John Watkinson controversy
Ian Carruthers was heavily criticised by an employment tribunal for his role in the dismissal of John Watkinson the Chief Executive of Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust. Mr Watkinson objected to Ian Carruthers' plans to reconfigure upper gastrointestinal services within the South West of England by centalising services at PlymouthPlymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
on the grounds that there had been insufficient public consultation and the process was therefore illegal. Following these objections Mr Watkinson was suspended and then dismissed and subsequently took his case to an employment tribunal which held, unanimously, that Mr Watkinson had been unfairly dismissed and sharply criticised Ian Carruthers' behaviour . The likely cost of the tribunal and compensation for the bullying which Mr Watkinson received is inexcess of £2 million.
Honours
He received his Knighthood in the 2003 New Year's Honours List for services to the NHS. In 2009 he received an honorary degree of Doctor of Science from the University of the West of EnglandUniversity of the West of England
The University of the West of England is a university based in the English city of Bristol. Its main campus is at Frenchay, about five miles north of the city centre...
.
Personal life
Married with a son and daughter Carruthers is a keen sportsman who won county caps for CumbriaCumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
in rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
, cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
and soccer in his school days. He was offered a playing contract by Carlisle United football club but turned it down at the insistence of his father.