Aston Healthcare recruits new clinical governance team

Knowsley-based primary healthcare provider, Aston Healthcare, has appointed a dedicated clinical governance team to ensure that as its organisation expands it continues to provide consistent, safe and high quality patient care.

It has appointed Dr Elmotaz Ahmed (38) as its new director of clinical governance and he is supported in the role by new medicines management and clinical governance officer, Rachel Edwards (27).

Introduction of the new team comes as Aston Healthcare enjoys rapid expansion across Merseyside and beyond. As well as taking over the responsibility of running more GP practices, Aston has adopted a leading role in practice based commissioning, working closely with local Primary Care Trusts to ensure more specialist services are delivered at primary care level.

An NHS hospital doctor for some five years, Dr Ahmed joins Aston from a local GP practice in Doncaster. In addition to having responsibility for Aston's clinical governance he is a practicing GP at its Knowsley medical centre with special interests in evidence based practice and musculoskeletal medicine.

Rachel Edwards is fully qualified in pharmacy services with a seven year career in primary and secondary care pharmacy and is also a specialist in medicines management. Her combined role will see her looking at clinical and cost effective prescribing and safe use of medicines within Aston as well as supporting Dr Ahmed in ensuring Aston meets the Department of Health framework for safe, quality patient care.

Commenting on the new team, Dr Ahmed said: "Clinical governance is at the centre of any organisation that contemplates the delivery of a modern, patient-led healthcare service. As an operation expands, high quality of services, risk management and continuous improvement become even more important and Aston has recognised this, creating a dedicated team to lead and monitor clinical governance across the organisation."