Public appointment: members appointed to NHS 24 Board - July 2021

Public appointment news release.

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The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, Humza Yousaf MSP today announced the appointments of Carol Gillie, David Howe and Marieke Dwarshuis as Members of the NHS 24 Board.

Member

Carol Gillie worked for over 35 years in the NHS gaining a breadth of experience in a number of areas including finance, capital planning, procurement, estates and facilities. She graduated from the University of Edinburgh with a degree in modern languages and, following completion of the NHS training scheme, qualified as an Accountant (member of the Charter Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy). The majority of her career has been in NHS Borders and she retired from the post of Director of Finance in 2020. Carol is a member of Scottish Borders College Board as well as undertaking voluntary work in her local community.

David Howe is a leader in the global technology industry helping large organisations to adopt digital capabilities to transform their business. He started his career in the British Army and has also worked in the financial services industry. David brings experience in leading large global organisations in a digital first environment, using technology to improve the delivery of service.

Marieke Dwarshuis’ career in Scotland spans 30 years in the public and voluntary sectors in a wide range of roles, including Director of Consumer Focus Scotland, positions at the Scottish Government, Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator, Citizens Advice Scotland and Shelter Scotland. Marieke is an experienced Non-Executive Director, having been a Member of the Board of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service for over 8 years; and she is currently serving as a Member of the Board of Food Standards Scotland and the Scottish Legal Aid Board. She brings experience of leading and overseeing organisational change, of governance in fast developing organisations and of the operational delivery of advice services.

Appointment

The appointments will be for four years and will run from 1st September 2021 to 31st August 2025

The appointments are regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner.

Remuneration

The appointments are part-time and attract a remuneration of £8,842 per annum for a time commitment of one day per week.

Other ministerial appointments 

Marieke Dwarshuis is a Member of the Scottish Legal Aid Board for which she receives remuneration of £238 per day, for a time commitment of 3.5 days per month. She is also a Member of Food Standards Scotland for which she receives remuneration of £207 per day, for a time commitment of 4 days per month.  

Carol Gillie and David Howe do not hold any other public appointments.

Political activity

All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees’ political activity within the last five years (if there is any to be declared) to be made public.   

Carol Gillie, David Howe and Marieke Dwarshuis have had no political activity within the last five years.

Background 

NHS 24 delivers a high quality online and out of hours telephone service providing access to health advice and information at any time across Scotland. Its core unscheduled care service handles successfully about 1.7 million calls out of hours each year, providing clinical advice and care when GP surgeries are closed and people are too ill to wait until they re-open. Working with Health Boards and other partners NHS 24 also provides a range of other health information services to inform and support people in maintaining their health and managing ill health, including NHS Inform which provides the public with a wide range of online services including a health encyclopaedia and local services database.  

Public appointment: members appointed to NHS 24 Board
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