Our Chief Executive named as one of the top five chief executives of the year

Chief Executive, Dame Marianne Griffiths, who leads Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals (BSUH) and Western Sussex Hospitals (WSHT), was named as one of the top five chief executives of the year.
Roadside View, Front of Royal Sussex County Hospital, Cars parked outside

“I’m absolutely thrilled that Marianne’s leadership has once again been recognised in this way. Since 2017, she has been focused on the continuous improvement of all our patient services across both trusts. During this time, WSHT became the first ever non-specialist acute hospital trust to be rated Outstanding by the CQC in all key inspection areas and BSUH jumped three inspection ratings to Good overall, and Outstanding for caring.”

Chair, Alan McCarthy

The ranking, which was announced weeks before the two trusts are proposing to merge into University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, was decided by a high-powered judging panel. These included NHS England chief operating officer Amanda Pritchard, Care Quality Commission chief inspector of hospitals Ted Baker and Royal College of Physicians president Andrew Goddard.

Chiefs were judged on the performance of their organisations, their leadership style and their contribution to the wider health system during the pandemic.

Dame Marianne Griffiths, became the first woman to take the top spot in the 2018 rankings, and retained the number one spot in 2019. She came third in 2017.

“This recognition is a true testament to the incredible dedication and exemplary compassion and care our staff have shown over the last year, during one of the most challenging times in our history. Now, as we plan to come together as a new single organisation, I look forward to us all embracing the many opportunities we have before us to further improve care of our patients and each other.”

Dame Marianne Griffiths

"“Healthwatch Brighton and Hove congratulates Dame Marianne Griffiths for this well-deserved award. This rightly recognises the tremendous leadership she displayed that helped our local Trust come out of special measures and achieve a Good Overall but Excellent in some areas rating by the Care Quality Commission. Under her charge, we have continued to cement our collaborative working relationship with the Trust which has ensured that the patient voice has been heard and acted upon.”

David Liley, CEO and Fran McCabe, Chair, Healthwatch Brighton and Hove