Our Board

Vice Chair

Suzanne Dawson | Chair, Scottish Health Council

Suzanne Dawson has non-executive director experience in health and education. She was a member of the Scottish Ambulance Service Board for eight years where she chaired their Clinical Governance Committee. She was Chair of Borders College leading the Board through a period of transformational change which included a major capital estates project and co-location with Heriot Watt University. She sat as one of the first non-solicitor members on the Law Society of Scotland Council.

Suzanne has spent much of her career in economic development where her focus has been in relationship building, stakeholder engagement and organisational development and has a particular interest in the challenges faced in a rural economy. She is Vice Chair of the Board of the Eastgate Theatre & Arts Centre in Peebles.

Dr Abhishek Agarwal

Dr Abhishek Agarwal is an Associate Professor in Strategy. He leads the Master of Business Administration Programme at Edinburgh Napier University. Abhi has over 10 years’ experience in leading training and projects in strategy, governance, and sustainability.

Abhi has an interest in the governance of organisations due to his board and committee member roles. Which have included non-Executive membership of Kirkgate Development Limited and Grampian Housing Association.

As the Board Chair of the Grampian Housing Group since 2019, Abhi has provided strong leadership and vision. He has improved governance practices through a range of new initiatives, policies and processes. He is strongly focused on the boards’ active involvement in co-creating strategy and managing risk.

Through his charity roles and his own experience as a service user Abhi understands the need to address inequalities in our society. Including appreciating the diversity of our communities, listening to service users, co-designing services and enabling better access.

Abhi has an MBA from the University of Aberdeen and a PhD from Robert Gordon University. Is a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute (FCMI) and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA). He is also a Full Member of the Institute of Directors (MIoD).

Keith Charters

Keith Charters is Whistleblowing Champion on the board of Healthcare Improvement Scotland. Keith brings a wealth of experience that spans private equity, medical insurance, wholesale financial markets, publishing and consulting. His skill set encompasses financial oversight, risk management, organisational structuring, compliance and governance. Keith’s third sector involvement has included being treasurer of a charitable company, chairing a book festival charity’s Board, and advising cultural organisations on enterprise structures and governance. As well as publishing books, Keith has written four childrens’ books. Outside of work, he is a runner and athletics coach.

Gill Graham

Gill enjoyed a long and varied career in the energy industry, joining Scottish Power in 1990. In 2002, she moved to Amsterdam to take up the post of Chief Risk Officer with Dutch utility company Nuon and most recently headed the Operations Business Unit of Vattenfall, leading a team across Amsterdam, Hamburg and Stockholm. Gill has vast change leadership experience, having worked in an industry which has undergone transformational development. At Vattenfall, she was the driving force behind the adoption of Operational Excellence/Lean working methods and embedding a workplace culture of continuous improvement. Gill began her career as a lecturer of mathematics, and hence also brings strong analytical skills to the Board. Gill returned to Scotland at the end of 2018.

Nicola Hanssen

Nicola Hanssen is a Registered Nurse with a BA in Business and Enterprise. She has over 30 years’ experience in Health and Social Care in both Scotland and Norway.

Nicola has worked in a range of third sector organisations and in local authority commissioning. Which equipped her with a very practical perspective and insight into how national policies and structures influence how services are delivered to people. She has a particular passion for prevention and early intervention throughout the life course and how factors in the social environment determine access to health services and influence lifestyle choices.

In her former CEO role, she led on designing and implementing innovative initiatives to reduce unintentional harms. Particularly falls and loneliness, to enable older people to live fulfilling, independent lives. She served for 3 years on the Board of Voluntary Health Scotland. Where she learned more about the diversity and interconnectedness of the healthcare ecosystem. As well as how valuable and vital this is.

Dr Nicola Maran

Dr Nicola Maran recently retired from a long and rewarding career as an NHS doctor. She was a consultant anaesthetist in Edinburgh for over 20 years with additional roles in education, research, and leadership.

The common threads throughout her career have been patient safety, human factors, and quality of healthcare delivery. Dr Maran’s leadership roles included Director of the Scottish Clinical Simulation Centre and Associate Medical Director for Patient Safety in NHS Lothian. In this latter role, she provided clinical leadership and oversight of the Scottish Patient Safety Programs within the Lothian Health Board and played a pivotal role in development and implementation of the Lothian Quality Strategy.

Dr Maran has made significant contributions to the development of significant adverse event reviews with a particular focus on involving and supporting patients, families, and staff. She brings a wealth of governance experience from numerous working groups and boards at local, national, and international level including clinical guideline development, simulation, patient safety, human factors and strategy development.

Evelyn McPhail

Evelyn McPhail has 38 years’ experience working in the NHS and Health and Social Care sector until her retirement in 2019. She was the Director of Pharmacy and Medicines for NHS Fife and the Fife Integrated Joint Board of the Health and Social Care Partnership and was responsible for providing strategic leadership, leading on clinical governance and working with partner organisations in the development and delivery of pharmaceutical care services for the people of Fife.

She is a retired pharmacist with experience of transformational change, working in a complex environment with multiple stakeholders and managing in a large organisation with a wealth of experience in health and social care. Evelyn was awarded the Scottish Pharmacy Lifetime Achievement Award in November 2019 for her work in Pharmacy and the public sector.

Her non-executive roles included six years as a Council member of the General Pharmaceutical Council until April 2020, and she was appointed as a Governor of Fife College in February 2020.

Doug Moodie

Doug Moodie has been a Chartered Certified Accountant since 1994, and a Management Consultant since 2012. Working in senior roles and leading teams across several different sectors and complex clients. Doug brings entrepreneurial flair from a variety of different businesses he has established. Including early years childcare, property management, and private equity focusing on the Pharma, Biotech and Technology sectors. Delivering innovative and unique solutions to a wide array of different challenges and medical needs facing society.

He has gained a wide breadth of knowledge and experience. Encompassing a focus on people, innovation, change management, finance, data protection, early years childcare/care homes and strategy. As well as an underlying desire to help others via various voluntary causes that he is passionate about. Which he will champion to help shape and deliver a Care Inspectorate which everyone in Scotland can be proud of.

Since 2014 Doug has been Chair of Falkirk Children’s Panel. As well as Chair of HELM in Dundee who provide support, learning, and guidance to over 200 care experienced young people. He is also Chair of Clackmannanshire Business Improvement District (BID), and a Director/Treasurer of Home Start (Clacks). Who received a Queens Award in 2022 for service to many families needing their help and support across the local community.

Michelle Rogers

Michelle Rogers has over 15 years’ experience in strategic planning of health and social care services for children, young people and families within the NHS, local authority and third sector. She recently worked on secondment in the Drugs Policy Division at the Scottish Government. Contributing to the development of COVID-19 policy and support.  Her current role is as a Community Justice Coordinator. Supporting needs assessment and strategic planning for the Community Justice Partnership. 

Michelle has a wealth of experience in building and developing successful partnerships across sectors. Along with meaningful engagement of lived experience in the development of policy and services. She is passionate about the importance of early intervention and the difference that this can make to health outcomes. She has also a good understanding of the wider determinants of health and the impact of health inequalities. 

Michelle worked for 10 years in Children and Families at City of Edinburgh Council. She also spent time on secondment with NHS Lothian as Strategic Programme Manager for Child and Maternal Health. She has a good knowledge and understanding of children and family’s health and social care issues. As well as the importance of developing whole systems approaches.

Employee Director

Duncan Service

Duncan was Employee Director with NHS Quality Improvement Scotland from April 2009 and has subsequently been appointed as Employee Director of Healthcare Improvement Scotland from April 2011.

In his role as Employee Director and lead UNISON steward, Duncan represents UNISON on the Partnership Forum. He has been a steward since 1998 and has represented staff in both the public and private sector. He represents staff throughout the organisation on many issues and presents their views at the Partnership Forum and other working groups such as the Board subgroups, policy development, and health and safety.

Duncan became involved in the work of NHS Quality Improvement Scotland after representing staff during the negotiations around the transfer of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) from the Royal College of Physicians to NHS Quality Improvement Scotland in January 2005.

He is the Evidence Manager at SIGN and is responsible for carrying out literature searches for clinical guidelines and helping guideline development group members with evaluation of the literature. He is responsible for the SIGN website and databases.

Robert Tinlin

Robert Tinlin has had a successful and award-winning career in local government in Scotland and England. With almost 20 years as a chief executive in South Northamptonshire and Southend-On-Sea. For several years he was the local government chief executive lead for health and social care in the East of England. Chaired the Southend Children’s Partnership and was a founder member of its Health and Well Being Partnership.

He has been a Board member of the Department for Health National Information Board and the Anglia Ruskin MedTech Campus project. As well a Board member of NHS Digital. He is currently a Non-Executive Director on the Board of the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service. Where he chairs its Audit & Risk Committee, and the Governance Board for the Comptroller & Auditor General for Jersey.

Judith Kilbee

Judith Kilbee has a nursing background and qualified in Scotland and in the USA. Throughout the past 36 years she has enjoyed a varied and successful career in the pharmaceutical industry and the independent care home sector. 

As Business Development Manager for specialist care homes in brain injury rehabilitation, Huntington’s Disease (HD) and addictions services, she successfully forged links between agencies. Notably working within the Scottish Huntington’s Association and a specialist care home to achieve the first accredited HD residential services in Scotland. 

Throughout her long career in the pharmaceutical industry, Judith has worked across many specialist areas and in close partnership with the NHS at every level. A solution focused approach and ability to see the big picture have enabled her to map services and improve access to innovative medicines and technologies for people in Scotland.