Tower Hamlets GP Joins NHS England Board to Champion 'Neighbourhood Health'

A well-known East London GP, Professor Sir Sam Everington, has been appointed as a non-executive director on the NHS England board. Sir Sam, who has been a practising GP at the Bromley By Bow Centre in Tower Hamlets since 1989, will use his new role to champion "neighbourhood health" and a greater focus on community-based care.

Sir Sam, also the honorary vice president of the British Medical Association (BMA), will bring his expertise in pioneering initiatives like social prescribing and virtual wards to the national stage. His work in Tower Hamlets has long been considered a model for how to address the social factors that impact health, an approach that is now central to the government's healthcare reforms.

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The appointment, effective August 1, positions Sir Sam to play a key part in the government's plans to shift care away from hospitals and into local communities. His experience in one of London's most diverse boroughs, where he has helped develop over 100 projects to support wider determinants of health, will be invaluable as NHS England prepares to merge its headquarters with the Department of Health and Social Care.