ePath Programme Director

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust; North Tyneside; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust seeks an experienced Programme Director to lead the ePath digital transformation, delivering a shared LIMS across three NHS Trusts. You will oversee strategic and operational delivery, governance, financial management and readiness for live deployment.

You will engage senior clinical and digital leaders, manage complex interdependencies and ensure patient safety and regulatory compliance throughout the programme lifecycle.

Qualifications

• Evidence of significant continuing professional development in programme leadership, digital transformation or healthcare informatics.
• Extensive experience managing complex multi‑organisational programmes involving multiple stakeholders and workstreams.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for design, build, implementation and optimisation of network ePath LIMS across three NHS Trusts.
• Lead development and delivery of the programme plan aligned with priorities.
• Establish governance, reporting, risk management and assurance arrangements.
• Coordinate interdependent workstreams covering LIMS, middleware, interfaces and data migration.
• Oversee programme finances, resources, procurement and implementation activities.
• Develop relationships with senior clinical, operational, digital and executive stakeholders.
• Lead risk management, mitigation and escalation of issues and dependencies.
• Ensure regulatory compliance and patient safety during transition to live services.

Education

Masters degree or equivalent in relevant discipline

Management or leadership qualification

Continuing professional development in programme leadership/digital transformation/healthcare informatics

Job description

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

ePath Programme Director

The closing date is 18 November 2026

An exciting opportunity for an experienced and highly motivated individual to join Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust as ePath Programme Director, leading a major digital transformation programme across the North East and North Cumbria.

The ePath Programme will deliver a shared Pathology Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) across Northumbria Healthcare, North Cumbria Integrated Care and Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trusts.

This is a significant, complex programme that will support the modernisation, standardisation and integration of pathology services across participating organisations, improving diagnostic pathways and supporting safe, efficient patient care.

The successful candidate will provide strategic and operational leadership, overseeing programme delivery, governance, financial management, workforce planning, supplier relationships and implementation readiness.

Working closely with senior clinical, operational, digital and executive leaders, the Programme Director will play a pivotal role in delivering this ambitious programme and shaping the future of networked pathology services.

Please note we reserve the right to close this vacancy prior to the closing date once sufficient suitable applications have been received.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will provide strategic and operational leadership for the design, build, implementation and optimisation of the network ePath LIMS across three NHS Trusts.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Leading a complex, multi-organisational digital transformation programme, ensuring delivery against agreed milestones, budgets and objectives.
• Establishing robust programme governance, reporting, risk management and assurance arrangements.
• Coordinating interdependent clinical, operational, digital and technical workstreams across participating organisations.
• Managing programme finances, resources, supplier relationships and contractual dependencies.
• Engaging and influencing senior stakeholders, including executive sponsors, SROs, clinical leaders and digital teams.
• Overseeing implementation planning, testing, validation, operational readiness and safe transition into live services.
• Managing programme risks, issues and dependencies, ensuring appropriate mitigation and escalation.
• Supporting standardisation, interoperability, organisational change and benefits realisation across the network.
• Providing clear programme assurance and strategic recommendations to the ePath Programme Board.

About us

We manage three major locality hospitals at North Tyneside, Wansbeck and Hexham, plus a number of smaller community hospitals and clinics from Tynemouth to Berwick on Tweed, in addition to our state-of-the‑art Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, the first of its kind in England. We also care for people in their homes and provide services from facilities in local communities such as health centres. We give people greater choice and control over their care to help them to live independently at home and avoid hospital admission where appropriate. High quality patient care is at the heart of everything we do and we strive to ensure every single patient and service user has an exceptional experience with us. We have one of the most extensive patient experience programmes of any trust in England.

Job responsibilities

PLEASE NOTE: To view the full Job Description and Person Specification, please click the supporting document on the right‑hand side.

The post holder will have significant strategic and operational autonomy and will be responsible for directing the delivery of a highly complex, multi‑organisational pathology digital transformation programme.

The post holder will:

• Provide strategic leadership for the design, build, implementation and optimisation of the network ePath LIMS across Northumbria Healthcare, North Cumbria Integrated Care and Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals.
• Lead the development and delivery of the programme plan, ensuring alignment with organisational, network and NHS digital transformation priorities.
• Establish and maintain effective programme governance, reporting, risk management, change control and assurance arrangements.
• Coordinate multiple interdependent workstreams covering LIMS, middleware, analyser interfaces, electronic requesting, data migration, interoperability and associated digital infrastructure.
• Provide oversight of programme finances, workforce resources, procurement, supplier contracts and implementation activities.
• Develop effective working relationships with senior clinical, operational, digital and executive stakeholders across participating organisations.
• Lead programme risk management, ensuring timely identification, mitigation and escalation of risks, issues and dependencies.
• Oversee testing, validation, verification and implementation readiness, ensuring patient safety, data integrity, service continuity and regulatory compliance.
• Provide strategic oversight of implementation sequencing, deployment planning, business continuity and transition to business‑as‑usual support arrangements.
• Lead organisational change, promoting collaboration, standardisation and improved ways of working across pathology services.
• Ensure compliance with relevant UKAS, MHRA, information governance, cybersecurity and NHS digital requirements.
• Provide regular programme performance, financial, risk and benefits realisation reports to the ePath Programme Board, SROs and executive stakeholders.
• Lead, support and develop multidisciplinary programme teams, fostering an inclusive, collaborative and accountable leadership culture.
• Ensure programme objectives, agreed milestones and benefits are delivered within available resources and timescales.
• The Programme Director will be accountable to the Network ePath Programme Board and will work closely with the Chief Information Officer, Senior Responsible Officer and senior leaders across the three participating organisations to ensure successful programme delivery.

Qualifications / Professional Registration

• Educated to Masters level or equivalent experience in a relevant discipline
• Evidence of significant continuing professional development in programme leadership, digital transformation or healthcare informatics
• Extensive experience managing complex multi‑organisational programmes involving multiple stakeholders and workstreams
• Management or leadership qualification
• Professional registration relevant to healthcare, digital, scientific or informatics practice
• Experience working within network pathology networks

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust