Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust appoints Dr Paul Jones as Chief Digital Information Officer

Dr Paul Jones has been appointed Chief Digital Information Officer (CDIO) at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, replacing former CIO 100 leader Richard Corbridge, who stepped down in March to take on the job of Director of Innovation at Boots UK.

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Jones will bring to the role a deep experience of healthcare in both the private and public sectors. He joins the Trust from BUPA, where he spent almost four years as Director of Information Strategy and Architecture.

He previously enjoyed an eight-year stint as CTO as NHS Connecting for Health, where he was the senior responsible officer for the £800 million budget National Spine Programme, which connected NHS services online and the £1 billion budget N3 programme, which delivered Europe’s largest private network. His CV also includes spells as Group CIO of Serco and as a Director within the public sector practice of KPMG Consulting.

“I am delighted to be joining Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust at an exciting time in its digital journey,” Jones said in a statement. With ambitions to become a digital hospital, it is great to see the focus and importance placed on improving the experience of both patients and staff through impressive digital initiatives.

“I am looking forward to learning more about the challenges and opportunities and I have been blown away by the people I have met so far. The Leeds Way culture shines strongly across the organisation.”

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Since the departure of Corbridge, the CDIO post has been filled on an interim basis by Andy Williams. Jones is expected to take over in November.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust Chief Executive Julian Hartley welcomed the appointment in a statement.

“We’re absolutely delighted that Paul will be joining our Trust board and I know he will be a great asset to the team,” he said.

“This is an exciting time for Leeds Teaching Hospitals and Paul’s skills and expertise will help us to build on the innovative work of our Digital and Informatics team in collaboration with partners across the city. This will drive forward our vision to provide the best specialist and integrated care for patients across our seven hospitals.”