Nottingham hospitals trust starts search for new communications director

The QMC
By Anna Whittaker, Local Democracy Reporter

Nottingham University Hospitals Trust has begun the search for a new director of communications following the resignation of Tiffany Jones.

Ms Jones was suspended in August 2022 after a number of parents whose babies had died in the care of the trust discovered they had been blocked by her on Twitter.

At the time Ms Jones, who also sat on the trust’s board, apologised and deleted her Twitter account.

She later resigned from the role in December 2022, with the trust saying no disciplinary investigation or action was taken against her. Jack Adlam has since worked as acting director of communications.

Now, an advert for the role of Director of Communications and Engagement at the trust, which runs the City Hospital and Queen’s Medical Centre, has gone live.

The job references an “attractive salary” dependent on experience.

The trust has hired Birmingham-based consultants Gatenby Sanderson to carry out the selection process.

The business says it “finds and developers leaders that shape a better society”.

Tiffany Jones, Former Director of Communications and Engagement at NUH

The search for Ms Jones’ replacement is taking place while the trist remains under heavy levels of scrutiny.

It faces three different interventions for improvement.

Maternity services are rated ‘inadequate’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the trust as a whole is rated as ‘requires improvement’.

There is also an ‘inadequate’ rating in relation to how ‘well led’ the trust is.

Senior midwife Donna Ockenden is also undertaking a huge independent review into the trust’s maternity services following baby deaths and injuries.

Jack and Sarah Hawkins, whose baby Harriet died at Nottingham City Hospital in 2016, were among a number of parents who discovered in August they had been blocked by Ms Jones’s Twitter account.

They told the Local Democracy Reporting Service the new job opening marked a “real opportunity for NUH to start changing their culture”.

Both said they felt the organisation needed “a pair of fresh independent eyes to reassess, to stop the repeated damaging communications from NUH with the bereaved and harmed”.

They added: “Now is the time for patient safety to be paramount and for this to surpass reputation management.”

The job advert states: “We are operating in a challenging environment and under significant scrutiny including an ongoing Independent Review into our Maternity Services led by Donna Ockenden.

“We recognise that there have been failings in our services and we are proactively and openly addressing improvements needed to achieve the safe, high quality experience and outcomes that our staff and our patients deserve.

“We are absolutely committed to our values and to working in partnership with staff, patients, volunteers and stakeholders in our system to reset our direction for the future and deliver new models of care that meet our populations’ health and care needs and improve their wellbeing.”

The Director of Communications will work closely with the newly-appointed Chief Executive Anthony May.

The job advert closes on February 27 and the final panel interview will take place on March 27.