Deputy Director of Information

After graduating from Manchester, Rachael joined the NHS Financial Management Graduate Scheme and worked for and with NHS organisations across the North East of England, including: Gateshead Primary Care Trust, City Hospitals Sunderland Foundation Trust, Contractor Services Agency, North East Ambulance Service and the North East Audit Consortium. 

Rachael moved to Wales in 2006, managing the information governance agenda for Swansea NHS Trust.  This led to a role in the IG team in Informing Healthcare, advising on IG issues for projects including the Individual Health Record, assisting with the development of a revised Caldicott Manual (with accompanying assessment and training resources), and the establishment of the Wales Accord for the Sharing of Personal Information on behalf of Welsh Government.  At the same time, she completed an MSc in Health Informatics at Swansea University. 

Rachael then took up leadership roles within ABMU Health Board in Patient Experience, Investigations and Claims and Strategic Planning & Commissioning.  She has arranged numerous large scale strategic planning events on behalf of the Health Board, typically involving over 300 delegates.  She has also managed and led on various programmes of work, including acting as the strategic lead for long term conditions, planned care and children & young people and managing the commissioning programmes associated with these.  As strategic lead, Rachael led and worked with many disciplines including colleagues from finance, informatics, R&D and various clinical professions to co-ordinate the commissioning intelligence agenda on behalf of the commissioning programme. 

Rachael joined WAST in March 2018 as Assistant Director of Research, Audit and Service Improvement.  Key achievements, as well as operational management duties at WAST included: developing the Clinical Strategy, ‘Delivering Clinical Excellence In Wales 2020-2025’; supporting the development of the Trust’s business case for an electronic patient clinical record (ePCR); establishing and leading the Assistant Directors Leadership Team (ADLT); supporting the development of the Trust’s Innovation and Improvement Network (WIIN) and more recently supporting the Trust’s business continuity and recovery planning. 

Rachael joined DHCW as Deputy Director of Information on secondment in September 2020. 

She lives in Neath with her husband, son and twin daughters.