Andrew Valentine Morris
Sir Andrew Valentine Morris OBE Hon FRCP (born Oct 1955) is a former British hospital administrator who is currently a non-executive director of NHS Improvement.
He was until February 2018 the Chief Executive of Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust. His career within the English NHS spanned more than 40 years, joining as a NHS management trainee aged 19. Following stints in Leicester, Nottingham and Hereford, he was appointed unit general manager at Frimley Park Hospital, Surrey in 1989. He became its first chief executive in 1991 and remained in post till his retirement in 2018, making him one of the longest-serving chief executives in the NHS.
In 1996, he amalgamated the Cambridge Military Hospital with Frimley Park, leading to the incorporation of a Ministry of Defence hospital unit (MDHU) within the Trust. In 2005, Frimley Park Hospital was awarded foundation trust status and in 2014 it was the first NHS Trust to be awarded "outstanding" by the Care Quality Commission in its new inspection regime.
On 1 October 2014, Sir Andrew led the first NHS Foundation Trust take over of another NHS Foundation Trust when Frimley Park Hospital took over Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals in Berkshire, forming Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust. The Wexham Park site had been graded "inadequate" by the CQC prior to the acquisition. Within a year, Wexham Park had been regraded as "good", a transformation considered 'the most impressive example of improvement' by Sir Mike Richards, the then chief inspector of hospitals.[1]
Sir Andrew was appointed an officer of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Golden Jubilee Birthday Honours 2002 and knighted in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to healthcare.
In March 2016 he was appointed the leader of the Frimley Health sustainability and transformation plan footprint, which covers the areas of Bracknell and Ascot CCG, North East Hampshire and Farnham CCG, Slough CCG, Surrey Heath CCG and Windsor, Ascot and Maidenhead CCG.[2]
In 2016 the Health Service Journal named him as the fourth most influential Chief Executive in the English National Health Service.[3] In 2017, the same journal promoted him to the number one position, citing system leadership and mentoring other CEOs as important factors in deciding the rankings.[4]
Morris was awarded honorary Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians of London in May 2016 for his contribution to healthcare administration.
In February 2018, he retired from Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust but continued as the lead for the Frimley Health and Care Integrated Care System (ICS).[5]
On 20 July 2018, it was announced that Sir Andrew had been appointed as a non-executive director of NHS Improvement, initially on a three-year term. Accordingly it was stated that he would be stepping down as the ICS lead in a managed transfer.[6] He was succeeded by Fiona Edwards, CEO of Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.
Honours and awards
- 2002 Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE)
- 2015 Knight Bachelor (Kt)
- 2016 Honorary Fellow of Royal College of Physicians of London (Hon FRCP)
References
- "CQC inspectors find 'remarkable' improvement in patient care at Wexham Park Hospital". Care Quality Commission. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
- "Leaders named for eight major STP patches". Health Service Journal. 15 March 2016. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
- "HSJ Top Chief Executives 2016". Health Service Journal. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2016.
- "Revealed: The NHS's top trust chief executives in 2017". Health Service Journal. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
- https://www.fhft.nhs.uk/news/ceo-to-retire-next-year/
- "New appointments to our board | NHS Improvement". improvement.nhs.uk. Retrieved 20 July 2018.