Dame Barbara Hakin joins IMPOWER Board

Dame Barbara joins IMPOWER – the country’s largest independent consultancy focussed exclusively on delivering better public services.

Welcoming the appointment, Quentin Baer, IMPOWER’s Chairman, said:

“Dame Barbara brings her exceptional and unique experience of the NHS and local government to IMPOWER’s work across public services. Her distinguished career stretches from being a doctor at the front-line to leader of Primary Care Trusts and Strategic Health Authorities, to deputy CEO of NHS England. This appointment underlines our commitment to delivering better outcomes across the nation’s public services.”

Dame Barbara Hakin said:

“Sustainably improving outcomes in the public sector is more important than ever, and I am delighted to be joining a company with such a strong track record in this area. With my experience overseeing the Better Care Fund, I am particularly excited by IMPOWER’s innovative approach to working at the interface between health and social care systems. The potential to scale this up is clear and I look forward to contributing to that growth for the benefit of our communities.”

Over recent years IMPOWER has worked with CCGs and a range of health providers including GPs and community and acute trusts to improve the management of demand and to design and deliver implement sustainable, preventative models of care.

About Dame Barbara Hakin

Dame Barbara worked in the NHS for over forty years, both as a clinician and senior manager. Qualifying as a doctor in 1975 she was a GP for 20 years in Bradford where she went on to become the PCT Chief Executive.

Hakin became recognised nationally for her pioneering work in changing models of care and increasing the range of care available in the primary and community setting – a cause she has continued to champion throughout her career. She was responsible for setting up the first NHS Community Diagnostic and Treatment Centre and creating the role of General Practitioner with Special Interest.

After serving as Chief Executive of the East Midlands and the Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Health Authorities, Hakin moved to the Department of Health in 2010 to set up the NHS Commissioning Board (which became NHS England) where she set up the commissioning system. In 2013, she was appointed Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Chief Executive and became responsible for oversight of all delivery across the NHS – both through Clinical Commissioning Groups and the NHS Regions, and with direct responsibility for Primary Care and Specialised Commissioning as well as Commissioning Support Units and the NHS resilience and preparedness for its part in any major emergency episode.

Hakin retired from the NHS at the end of 2015 and now offers healthcare advisory services. She champions the role of the independent sector in supporting the NHS and specifically how to improve patient care and cost effectiveness through a range of innovative solutions.