Chief of Staff to Patient Safety Commissioner

Description

We are currently looking for a Chief of Staff to the independent Patient Safety Commissioner. This is a fantastic opportunity to play a key leadership role with extensive autonomy in the Independent Patient Safety Commissioners office which is hosted by the MHRA.

Please note this opportunity is currently only available to those working within the Civil Service. Applications from non‑Civil Servants will not be reviewed and will be rejected.

This is a full‑time opportunity on a fixed‑term contract until September 2028. Secondments or loans will be considered. The role will be based in 10 South Colonnade Canary Wharf London E14 4PU
and some office attendance will be required in this office and in other locations set by the Commissioner. Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK and not overseas.

The Office of the Patient Safety Commissioner (OPSC) is an independent Statutory Office hosted by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). The Patient Safety Commissioner is accountable to Parliament and appointed by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.

The Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review First Do No Harm published in July 2020 by Baroness Cumberlege recommended the establishment of a Patient Safety Commissioner to champion the patient voice and support and encourage the efforts of the healthcare system to improve patient safety around the use of medicines and medical devices. Our purpose is to listen to patients amplify their voices and drive the system towards the safe use of medicines and medical devices.

We are looking for an exceptional leader who is deeply committed to improving patient safety and has experience working in a large fast‑paced matrix environment where priorities often change and there is a significant amount of complexity.

• Acting as Chief of Staff to the Patient Safety Commissioner on all aspects of her portfolio providing constructive challenge to ensure robustness in plans and messaging while providing the Commissioner with oversight of relevant policy and Private Secretary support.
• Embedding the Patient Safety Principles setting out how the Commissioner should operate but also how the healthcare system should listen to and involve patients.
• Manage a team of 3 people ensuring the smooth running of corporate services in the OPSC driving a high‑performing and supportive culture which develops the team while maintaining high morale.
• Acting as the primary link with DHSC sponsor team and MHRA hosting team in addition to building and maintaining strong working relationships with stakeholders across the healthcare system including DHSC policy No.10 ministerial and permanent secretary offices as well as parliamentarians and the private sector.
• Overseeing the implementation and evolution of the OPSCs strategy. Setting and communicating clear priorities driving their delivery and tracking the effectiveness of the OPSCs actions while managing the units budget.

• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to establish networks and reciprocal working relationships across Government, the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), parliamentarians, patient groups, the wider health network and with the private sector.
• Significant experience of supporting senior leadership with a focus on delivering strategic priorities and strong strategic judgement.
• Experience of managing and leading a small team to support a senior member of an organisation. Private office experience would be an advantage.
• Excellent communication skills with a clear written and verbal communication style with the ability to bring people on board communicating in an open empathetic way and an ability to connect with audiences of varying degrees of knowledge.
• Experience of managing projects and handling sensitive issues and horizon scanning to identify and monitor any potential problems that may arise and to work with others to try and resolve these early on. Experience of working flexibly and at pace across diverse tasks with changing priorities.

We use the Civil…