Health board welcomes new duo
IAN BUNTING
NHS Lanarkshire has announced the appointment of two new nonexecutive members to its board.
Lesley McDonald and Alastair Boyle MBE have been appointed by the Scottish Government through its public appointments process.
Lesley, who graduated from the University of Glasgow and worked as a solicitor, is one of a number of NHS Scotland non-executive whistleblowing champion board members.
She has spent 25 years in the Western Isles in various roles, and has been appointed with a specific role in having oversight of the processes and support available for staff who raise concerns under whistleblowing.
As head of executive office at Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, Lesley had responsibility for legal services, democratic services, community planning, corporate policy and members’ services.
After retiring as a solicitor Lesley became a volunteer with Clydesdale Foodbank and a legal services charity representing people who may not otherwise obtain access to legal advice.
Alastair, who is known as Ally, joined the fire service in 1993 and led the team working on community safety during the process that saw the creation of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
He quickly rose through the ranks and held a number of senior positions across the West of Scotland, including area commander in charge of several different local authority areas, including
South Lanarkshire.
Prior to the reform of Scottish Fire and Rescue services he was the head of community safety for Strathclyde Fire and Rescue and a member of the corporate management team.
Ally was diagnosed with a blood cancer in 2008 and has received treatment since then from NHS Lanarkshire.
He established a partnership between the fire and rescue service and the Anthony Nolan charity.
The partnership has volunteers across Scotland who go to secondary schools to educate young people about stem cell, blood and organ donation; he was awarded an MBE in the 2018 Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to charity.
Ally will join NHS Lanarkshire as a nonexecutive director elect until he becomes a formal voting member on April 1.
NHS Lanarkshire chair Neena Mahal, said: “I am delighted that Lesley and Ally are joining the board of NHS Lanarkshire. They both bring a wealth of knowledge and experience and will be a great asset to the board.”