Hebden Bridge doctor elected Vice President of the Royal College of Physicians
Dr Linda Patterson OBE who has lived in Hebden Bridge since 1984 has been elected as the Clinical Vice President of the Royal College of Physicians of London.
Linda works as a Consultant physician in East Lancashire — she worked at Burnley and Blackburn Hospitals until 2008, but is now developing an innovative post working more closely with the community services and general practitioners. Linda has held previous senior roles in the NHS — she was the Medical Director of the first regulator of the NHS in England and Wales, the Commission for Health Improvement, from 2000–4. She is currently a Non Executive Director of the National Patient Safety Agency.
The Royal College of Physicians was founded by Henry VIII and is independent of government. It is is responsible for setting the standards for education and training of junior doctors, and setting standards for medical practice. It is committed to high quality patient centred care, which is constantly improving and supports its 20,000 Members and Fellows with excellent programmes of education and development. The College also leads medical debate and advises government and other decision makers on health policy. It has recently spoken out about the dangers of excess alcohol consumption and lobbied for many years to achieve the ban on smoking in public places.
Linda will continue in clinical practice 2 days a week in East Lancashire, where she is a Consultant Physician specialising in the medical care of older people. She will spend three days a week based at the College in Regents Park, London. The post is for 3 years and starts this September. This is an exciting role and Linda will concentrate on improving the quality and safety of medical care.
Linda is also a Trustee of the Hebden Bridge Community Association, which has taken the Town Hall into community ownership, and also of the White Ribbon Campaign, the national charity based in Mytholmroyd, working to eliminate violence to women. She lives in Charlestown with her partner Chris.