East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust

Ben Stevens

Chief Strategy and Partnerships Officer

Ben has a long history in the NHS. He started his career as a Paediatric Nurse at Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital in 1996. He has since worked as a senior clinical and operational leader in NHS organisations across London and the south east. During this time he has carried out the role of chief operating officer. His most recent role was as managing director of planned care and cancer at University Hospitals Sussex.

Dan Gibbs

Chief Operating Officer

Dan Gibbs joined the Trust on 10 February 2025. He was formerly Chief Delivery Officer at the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board. Dan is an experienced Board director and operational leader. He has been a Chief Operating officer and an Operations Director in Acute and Community Trusts. Dan has also worked as a strategy director as part of NHS England’s South East regional team.

Dorothy Otite

Director of Corporate Governance

Dorothy joined the Trust in June 2026. Dorothy is an experienced governance professional and is legally trained. She has worked in a range of industries, including the NHS, social housing, telecommunications, financial services and oil and gas. She has expertise in board governance and effectiveness, risk management, and regulatory compliance. Before this role, Dorothy was Interim Director of Corporate Governance at The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. She has also worked at East Kent Hospitals in different roles over the years, most recently as Interim Group Company Secretary.

Norman Blissett

Chief People Officer

Norman joined in January 2025. Deputy Chief People Officer at King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust since November 2023 Has previously worked for East Kent Hospitals as Deputy Chief People Officer.

Sarah Hayes

Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer

Sarah Hayes joined us as Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer on 18 September 2023. She has more than 18 years’ senior management and leadership experience in the NHS. She is experienced in both hospital and community settings. Sarah was Chief Nurse at North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust. She had held this post since December 2019. In that time, she worked on initiatives to improve patient care and experience. Sarah also championed and strengthened nursing, midwifery, allied health professionals and leadership. In 2019, Sarah was awarded the title of Queen’s Nurse. This was in recognition of her commitment to patient care and nursing practice. Previously, Sarah was deputy chief nurse at Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust.

Belinda Phipps

Interim Non-Executive Director

Belinda has more recently undertaken interim roles which have included being Chief Executive of: She was Chief Executive of the Science Council between 2015 and 2018. From 1999 to 2014, she was Chief Executive of the National Childbirth Trust where she grew the organisation significantly. Before this she was Chief Executive of East Berkshire NHS Trust, and Managing Director of the South Thames Blood Transfusion Service. She has held a number of Non-Executive roles which have included Dorset Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, and the BMJ. She was also Trustee of the Collective Voice and Pro Bono Economics, and Chair of the Fawcett Society. In her early career she worked for GSK in marketing, research and sales.

Dr Andrew Catto

Non-Executive Director

Andrew joined the Trust on 1 November 2022. Andrew’s medical background is as a Geriatrician and General Physician. He is highly experienced in senior medical leadership roles. These have been in both primary and secondary care. Andrew’s leadership style is ‘leading from the front’. He strongly believes in empowering others and is extremely supportive of employee development. After an academic career with the Medical Research Council, Andrew resumed clinical practice. He joined Airedale Hospital as a Consultant in Stroke and Elderly Care. In this role he delivered care in a community setting. After this he became the Trust's Medical Director. In 2009, Andrew became Medical Director at Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust (HEFT). He then became Interim Chief Executive, and later Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO). In March 2015, Andrew became an Associate Director at NHS England. In this role he experienced developing new models of care and system transformation. This includes the four West Midlands Service Transformation Plans. Andrew joined Integrated Care 24 (IC24) as Chief Medical Officer in 2017. He became Chief Executive in 2020.

Ffion Griffith

Non-Executive Director (NED)

Ffion joined the Trust on 1 May 2025. An experienced Non-Executive Director for 13 years. Ffion has also been an executive for 30 years, primarily as Global HR Director in professional services businesses. Ffion lives with her partner and her two adult children near Sevenoaks and is a keen gardener and scuba diver.

Professor Chris Holland

Non-Executive Director

Professor Chris Holland has had an extensive career in medicine and medical education. He has worked with: The General Medical Council (GMC) He gained his Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery from Queen’s University Belfast in 1997. He then went on to gain a Master’s Degree in Medical Education from the University of Warwick. He is currently completing a Doctorate in Education at King’s College London. His thesis is on Leadership in Education. He has previously researched many topics, including: The experiences of medical students from under-represented backgrounds during their time at university. He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Anaesthetists, the Faculty of Intensive Care, and the Academy of Medical Educators. Professor Holland is the Founding Dean of Kent and Medway Medical School (KMMS). Professor Holland is a Consultant in Critical Care at Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust. He is an Associate with the GMC and a GMC Performance Assessor.

Richard Oirschot

Non-Executive Director

Rob Musgrove

Robert Musgrove Non-Executive Director

Robert Musgrove

Non-Executive Director

Robert joined the Trust on 1 May 2025 Robert is a Chartered Civil Engineer. Robert holds a Master of Business Administration from Henley Business School. 25 years’ experience in the design and implementation of infrastructure transformation programmes. This includes work in the MoD, the Home Office and the NHS. Robert is the UK Lead for Digital Real Estate and Sustainability for IBM Consulting.

Spencer Prosser

Interim Non-Executive Director

Spencer is also a Non-Executive Director at East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust. Until recently he was Chief Finance Officer at Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust. Before this, he was Regional Finance Director at NHS Improvement for the South region. He has held other senior finance roles at: Brighton & Susses University Hospitals NHS Trust Western Sussex NHS Foundation Trust Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. He started his career as an NHS Regional Financial Management Trainee and is a CIPFA qualified Accountant.