Please tell us about yourself
Hello, my name is Mark Heath and I’m a registered nurse.
I live in a village in Suffolk with my wife Helen, who I met just after we both trained at a hospital in Surrey. We have two children called Laurence and Adelaide and a one year old yellow Labrador called Hazel who takes up a lot of our time but we are definitely benefiting from the countryside walks!
I have a number of hobbies including growing various exotic plants, some more successfully than others. I enjoy cricket though I no longer play, as well as being a member of the Campaign for Real Ale.
Please tell us about your role at NHS Resolution
I have been working at NHS Resolution since December 2021, so still learning lots!
I work in the Safety and Learning Team, engaging with members regarding their claims, supporting learning events and forums as well as contributing to some of the excellent learning resources the team produces.
We support members with to learn from claims and work with other ALB’s and regulators to support this work.
Please describe your nursing background
I have a varied clinical experience. I started my career in general surgery which I thoroughly enjoyed before I switched to primary care nursing for the next seven years. We relocated to Suffolk at this time which prompted a change and I worked in a number of roles before taking up positions in research and haematology.
Following this I moved to the Care Quality Commission and worked in regulation for around nine years, working in and leading within the acute hospital team for the East of England before moving to NHS Resolution.
One of the many privileges of being a nurse is the breadth of opportunity it offers. There are so many interesting roles out there that contribute to patient care.
What inspired you to become a nurse?
I am from a long line of nurses so there was always an air of inevitability, or so it seemed. Nursing stories were frequently part of my mother and grandmothers conversations so I already felt like part of the club in funny kind of way.
As an undergraduate I worked in a care home during vacations and quickly realised how much I enjoyed working with people, it was a privilege to care for them and it gave me great personal satisfaction. I opted for nursing for these reasons as well as professional interest and the opportunities I knew it would give me.
Why is it so important to have colleagues working with a clinical background at NHS Resolution?
Colleagues in the Safety and Learning and Early Notification teams at NHS Resolution have a huge variety of skills and experience which I believe is a huge strength.
Interpreting claims data and recognising themes in terms of their clinical meaning is hugely important in my role.
My experience in healthcare and regulation has also been really valuable when thinking about some of our other key work including Being Fair and just cultures. Following a number of high profile cases including the Ockenden report, this is going to be key work for the NHS and us moving forward.
I have presented our work around learning from claims and Being Fair and I have found that clinicians respond positively to us. I think this is partly as we speak the same clinical language, which has built and cemented relationships.
Why do you think your nursing experience brings value to your role at NHS Resolution?
I have been able to get to grips quickly with the information available to us on the scorecards and align that to clinical pathways and priorities. Being a credible clinician is really important in engaging with clinical staff and understanding how our member trusts systems work.
The team has an excellent depth and breadth of experience across the clinical and non-clinical space that gives a real strength to what we do, I hope I contribute fully to that.
Page last updated on:
