Role of the Board
The role of the NHS Lothian Board is to make the best use of its allocated resources to deliver high-quality, person-centred care and improve the health and wellbeing of the residents of the local authority areas of East Lothian, Edinburgh, Midlothian and West Lothian, as well as a wide range of specialist services for people from across Scotland. In doing so, NHS Lothian provides a comprehensive range of primary, community-based and acute healthcare services for the second largest residential population in Scotland.
The full breadth of the Board’s ambition and strategic vision for the next five years is set out within the Lothian Strategic Development Framework. The Board develops and delivers a number of supporting strategies and plans within this Framework, including an Annual Delivery Plan agreed with the Scottish Government. Collectively, these documents detail the actions pursued by the Board to deliver improved outcomes for the people of NHS Lothian.
The NHS Lothian Board takes forward its role by working with integration joint boards (IJBs), health and social care partnerships (HSCPs), community planning partnerships (CPPs), other NHS bodies, and other organisations in the public and third sector. NHS Lothian is committed to putting the patient at the heart of everything it does, and its quality approach ensures that it is working with staff and patients to improve care, reduce waste and deliver sustainable healthcare services.
Composition of the Board
The Board includes publicly appointed non-executive members, stakeholder members and executive members. All Board members are appointed by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care and are accountable to Scottish Ministers. The NHS Lothian Board membership currently comprises:
- One publicly appointed non-executive Board Chair
- 14 publicly appointed non-executive members
- Seven stakeholder members (representing partners and staff)
- Five executive members (i.e., senior employees of the Board)
Board Meetings
The Board meets in public every two months and members of the public may attend these meetings to observe proceedings. For information on Board meeting dates, agendas, papers and how to attend, please refer to the Board Papers section of the Board’s website
Further Information
The NHS Lothian Board Member’s Handbook on the NHS Lothian website may provide you with a more detailed picture the Board and how it works.
