2 September 2010
The Chief Executive of Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust, Samantha Jones, has announced that she will be leaving the Trust at the end of December.
Samantha, who has been at the Trust since 2007 and with the NHS since 1989, is leaving to join Care UK (a leading independent provider of health and social care), as the regional director for healthcare service in the south of England.
Samantha said: "Choosing to leave the Trust and the NHS at this time has been one of the hardest decisions I have ever taken. However, the role with Care UK is extremely exciting and will allow me to use and build on all the things I have learned from my time within the NHS.
"Importantly for me, the new role is also based closer to where I live, so I will be able to spend more time with my family, including my two 15 month old twins Leo and Ellie."
John Davey, Trust Chairman, said: "Sam will be missed by us all. She is extremely popular with the staff and volunteers, and has really turned the organisation around.
"Sam should be extremely proud of what the Trust has delivered since she joined, in particular the many improvements we have made to the care we give to our patients. This includes meeting all of the key standards the Government sets for hospitals for the last three years running and consistently improving the feedback we get from patients through the Care Quality Commission's annual patient surveys.
During Samantha's tenure as Chief Executive, the Trust has also seen significant improvements in its finances, and with plans in now place to spend hundreds of millions of pounds redeveloping both St Helier and Epsom hospitals, the Trust is facing a bright and busy future.
John added: "Whilst we - like hospitals up and down the country - face a challenging financial position over the coming years, I am pleased to say that we do it knowing that we have balanced the books for the last three years. This has only been achieved thanks to Sam's direction and, importantly, without compromising on the quality and safety of the care our patients receive.
"Sam played a critical role in securing the Government's approval of our plans to spend £219 million on a major redevelopment of St Helier Hospital and it will undoubtedly remain as one of her key legacies. She has also driven our plans for the Epsom site and, as a result, the Trust Board recently signed off outline plans to spend up to £70 million there."
The Chairman of the Trust is working with the Trust's strategic health authority, NHS London, to recruit a replacement for Samantha.
