Shropshire hospital trust boss announces decision to step down
The chief executive of the county's under-pressure hospital trust has announced that she will be leaving her post.
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Louise Barnett has been in charge of Shrewsbury & Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) since 2020.
The trust, which has been in special measures since 2018, manages both Royal Shrewsbury Hospital (RSH) and Princess Royal Hospital in Telford.
It is in the midst of a major £312m reorganisation process, which was only officially signed off in June, after years of back and forth.
SaTH has also been at the centre of the Ockenden maternity scandal, which concluded more than 200 months and babies were harmed, or died in the trust's care.
Its A&E departments have suffered some of the longest waits in the country, and it was featured in a damning Dispatches undercover documentary earlier this year.
Ms Barnett said that she had decided to step down to allow the trust's new chair – who will be appointed in due course – to choose a new leader for the organisation.
Her time at the trust has seen her steer the hospitals through the unprecedented Covid pandemic, and only recently an improved Care Quality Commission rating – from 'inadequate' to 'requires improvement'
In a statement SaTH said it would "soon begin the process of appointing a new chief executive to help ensure that its improvement journey can continue".
Ms Barnett said: “I have been chief executive at the trust for over four years and feel that now is the right time for me to stand aside and allow the new chair, who will be appointed shortly, to appoint a new leader to take the trust forward into the next chapter towards further improvements.
"I would like to thank all my amazing colleagues and volunteers for their hard work, support and dedication in moving forwards on our improvement programme. I know how much effort and energy has been spent, with our patients, families and communities always at the heart.
"I am grateful for the feedback, engagement and commitment from our patient networks and communities which is helping us on our journey of improvement. There is still more work to be done but I know I am leaving the trust in capable hands.”
Professor Trevor Purt, interim chair for SaTH, said: “I would like to thank Louise for her hard work and dedication throughout her time at the trust. It has been a very challenging period with intense public scrutiny but her energy and commitment to improving the services delivered to the public served by the trust has been exceptional.”
