Appointments

Margaret C Smith
Dean, School of Nursing and Midwifery
Professor Margaret C Smith, Director of Nursing for Glasgow/Clyde Acute Services has been appointed Dean of The School of Nursing and Midwifery at the University. Ms Smith will take up the post at the end of November.

One of Scotland's most senior nursing leaders, Margaret Smith brings a strong clinical and management track record to the post and is recognised for her commitment to excellence in nursing education and as a great facilitator of research in the health service.

Margaret comes to Dundee from Glasgow where she has held a number of increasingly senior Director of Nursing posts within the NHS. She is currently Director of Nursing in a division with an income of £1.45 billion, 28,000 staff (including 11,000 nurses and midwives), delivering services from 15 hospital sites with 5,000 beds. In this post she has been very influential in integrating nursing with the Clinical Reference Facility and has recently completed a review of Research Nurses across Glasgow/Clyde. Her commitment to the educational development of nursing standards has been recognised by Glasgow University who awarded her an honorary professorship in 2006.

A registered nurse and midwife with a Master of Business Administration, Margaret has worked closely with universities chiefly in the West of Scotland to achieve excellence in education, practice and research. She has developed a strong network of alliances and external relationships within clinical, management and nursing education circles in Scotland and the UK.

She has served on a score of public bodies and committees including chairing the working group charged with developing a strategy for Cancer Nursing in Scotland in 2004; acting as Vice Chair of the UK University Trusts Executive Directors Forum; serving on the group for the implementation of a joint school of nursing between Glasgow University and Glasgow Caledonian University and is currently Chair of Modernising Nursing Careers Group (Scotland) and Vice Chair of Nursing Midwifery Advisory Forum Scotland.

Robert Kennedy BA(Hons) MBA FCMA
Director of Finance
Rob Kennedy has been appointed as Director of Finance and will take up post on 1 October 2007.

Rob is an experienced finance director with a track record of achievement in the communications, high technology manufacturing and food industries. He has also spent time with Pricewaterhouse Coopers providing financial consultancy services to public and private sector clients. He has experience of all aspects of financial management and accounting and has worked on joint ventures in Europe and Asia and other international projects. He also has an interest in the commercialisation of R&D.

Rob is an economics graduate from the University of Sheffield, is CIMA qualified and also has an MBA from the University of Manchester. Rob currently lives in Scotland and has plans to move to the Tayside area.

Catriona Blake will continue as Acting Director of Finance until Rob takes up post and will work closely with him thereafter.

Chris Barratt
Professor of Reproductive Medicine
Professor Chris Barratt, one of the world's leading experts in his field, has been appointed a new Chair of Reproductive Medicine within the College of Medicine, Dentistry and Nursing.

Professor Barratt, previously of the University of Birmingham, will be based in the Department of Maternal and Child Health Sciences.

He has worked in the field of reproductive medicine for over 20 years and in that time has developed the world's first over the counter fertility test, Fertell, which is now sold in the UK and USA.

Professor Barratt is also a member of the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority (HFEA), the governing body for human reproduction in the UK, dealing with regulating a wide variety of subjects form cloning to screening human embryos for diseases. (www.hfea.gov.uk)

"I am delighted to be joining an excellent set-up in the Medical School at Dundee," said Professor Barratt. "My aim in Dundee is to develop internationally leading teams in clinical and basic research in the field of reproductive medicine."

Professor Barratt is also a fanatical supporter of the Welsh rugby team but with the World Cup on the horizon is not being too vocal about it until he sees how Wales perform.