Key NHS leader awarded Hallam honorary doctorate

17th November 2015

The Chief Executive of the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sir Andrew Cash, has been awarded an honorary doctorate from Sheffield Hallam University yesterday (16 November).

On collecting his award, Sir Andrew said: "I am deeply honoured to receive this Honorary Doctorate from Sheffield Hallam, a university I respect for their flair, forward thinking and character. "The next decade will hold many new challenges in healthcare. These include people living for longer who require different patterns of care, recognising the need to prescribe exercise rather than medicine in some cases and understanding the link between health and access to life opportunities in education and work. "An excellent health faculty, excellent courses, a great reputation in sport and developments such as the Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre all stand Hallam in good stead to help meet these challenges going forward." Andrew became the first Chief Executive of the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in July 2004. Prior to this, he led the merger between the major teaching hospitals in the city which was highly sensitive, political and ground breaking. The merger has proved to be one of the most successful in the NHS in terms of benefits to patients and staff. Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is the second largest NHS foundation trust in England with an annual budget in excess of £1billion and 16,000 staff. Under Andrew's leadership, the Trust has been awarded the independently assessed -Hospital of the Year three times. In 2001 Andrew was awarded an OBE and in 2009 was knighted for services to the health service. This year the Health Service Journal judged him as the second most influential provider Chief Executive in the National Health Service. Andrew continues to be a major figure within the NHS who is driving forward healthcare improvements for the benefit of patients, both locally and nationally.