Lancaster University’s Faculty of Health and Medicine has announced the appointment of three outstanding individuals as Honorary Clinical Chairs.

The Faculty awards honorary appointments to individuals who have a strong relationship with the University, demonstrating their engagement to the life of the University and their shared communities.

Professor Jo Rycroft-Malone, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Health and Medicine, said: "I’m delighted to welcome Professors Brotherton, Chandrabalan and Spencer to our community. Their honorary appointments signal the growing strength of our clinical collaborations and are an opportunity to deepen these further. We look forward to working with them over the coming years.”

The three Honorary Clinical Chairs are:

Professor Ailsa Brotherton, Executive Director of Improvement, Research and Innovation at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Professor Brotherton has been instrumental in strengthening the relationship between the trust, system and faculty. She has been responsible for the development and implementation of the Trust’s continuous improvement strategy, establishing a Lancashire and South Cumbria Flow Coaching Academy and leading the establishment of a Microsystem Coaching Academy. She has recently been appointed as the Improvement Director for the National Improvement Board, supporting the work of the Board and NHS IMPACT.

Professor Vishnu Chandrabalan, Director and Chief Clinical Information Officer: Lancashire and South Cumbria Secure Data Environment, Head of Data Science & Consultant Surgeon in General and Colorectal Surgery at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Professor Chandrabalan has been leading Lancashire and South Cumbria's Secure Data Environment program which promises to bring together a range of data in ways that will allow us to understand more how to improve health outcomes in the region. Professor Chandrabalan has led on the technical aspects of this work using new technological advances to ensure data is safe and yet accessible to research. He has also led on progress to ensure the right type and quality of data is available. His passion for this project has also been a key factor in its success.

Honorary Professor of Health Inequalities Professor Mark Spencer who is a GP and Senior Partner at Mount View Practice, Fleetwood and Clinical Director of Fleetwood Primary Care Network. Professor Spencer is a founding member and community champion for Healthier Fleetwood, a resident led, nationally recognised initiative aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of local people. Professor Spencer is also co-founder and a Non-Executive Director of FCMS, a not-for-profit Primary Care provider of NHS urgent care and community diagnostic services across parts of Lancashire and Yorkshire. He is also a trustee of Fleetwood Trust, a local charity which now owns the former Fleetwood Community Hospital, repurposing the building as a vibrant community hub.

The new three professors join two existing Honorary Clinical Chairs within the Faculty of Health and Medicine: Professor Jennifer Logue and Professor Andrew Smith, both within Lancaster Medical School.