Cara Charles-Barks has been announced as the Joint Chief Executive Officer of the Royal United Hospitals Bath, Great Western Hospitals and Salisbury NHS Foundation Trusts.
Cara Charles-Barks at the RUH in Bath in 2020 | Photo © RUH
The appointment follows a decision by the Boards of each of the three NHS Trusts earlier this year to establish a group model that will deliver better outcomes for people across the region.
Ms Charles-Barks, who will be in post from Friday 1st November, has worked in the Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire health system for eight years, having been Chief Executive at Salisbury and the RUH.
She said: “I am delighted to have been appointed Joint Chief Executive Officer of the three Trusts in Bath, Swindon and Wiltshire at this pivotal moment in the NHS’ history.
“As three Trusts we now have the opportunity to learn together, to tackle inequalities in access to services, to work together to remove barriers to good health and provide improved health outcomes for all our communities.”
Sue Harriman, Chief Executive of Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board (BSW ICB), said: “Cara’s appointment is excellent news for our three hardworking acute hospitals and our wider health and care system.
“True collaboration adds real value to patient care and all three hospital trusts have a unique role to play in strengthening the support that local people and communities count on at every stage of their lives.
“Under Cara’s expert leadership, our hospitals will be stronger together and I look forward to seeing the benefits of these new arrangements over the coming years.”
The collaboration between the NHS trusts will see all three remain as separate organisations with dedicated executive teams and boards.
Ms Charles-Barks qualified as a Registered Nurse in 1990 in Australia. She has 30 years’ experience in the public and private health care sector and has been named as one of the NHS’s top 50 Chief Executives five times.
She has been the Chief Executive Officer of the RUH since September 2020. Before that, she was CEO at Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, during which time she received an MBE as part of the Queen’s Birthday Honours for her leadership during the Novichok incident.
In June 2019, she was appointed Honorary Colonel of 243 Multi-role Medical Regiment, part of the Army Medical Services.
