NHS 24 is delighted to announce the appointment of an NHS 24 employee as a Professor of Nursing Practice within the Centre for Future Hospital initiative at the University of Strathclyde. Dr Dawn Orr, a Nurse Consultant for Telecare and Telehealth within NHS 24, will begin her secondment in September 2023 and will be dedicating one day per week for the next two years to collaborate with the university in advancing innovation and transformation in the NHS and Care sectors.
After previously working in the Southern General Hospital (now the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital), Dr Orr’s NHS 24 career began in September 2002, fulfilling the role of Nurse Advisor. Career progression since then has included being promoted to Team Leader, and into her current role. She has also successfully completed an MSc Primary Care and Professional Doctorate within Nursing, which was supported by NHS 24 through its bursary scheme.
Dr Orr’s new additional role will involve fostering collaborations between the University of Strathclyde’s Health & Cares Futures Initiative, the Health Tech Cluster (Wearables, AI), the Health and Wellbeing Research Theme, and various Heads of Departments across the university. Her expertise will be utilized to combine knowledge and drive development in the fields of diagnostics and wearables, digital health and AI, as well as advanced rehabilitation and assisted living.
Under University of Strathclyde’s collaborative model, which aligns academic research, commercial enterprise, and government, Dr Orr will also identify business and research opportunities in conjunction with academic colleagues. This collaborative effort aims to drive advancements in health and care by seeking additional funding streams and strengthening connections with both the UK and Scottish governments.
“It’s both a delight and an honour to be appointed as Professor of Nursing Practice within University of Strathclyde”, said Dr Orr.
“My new role includes focusing on long-term solutions such as disease prevention, remote monitoring, and early diagnosis and detection, and due to the speed at which health technologies are advancing, it is an exciting time to be involved within a workstream such as this. I’m eager to get started and maximise all opportunities to improve patient experience and outcomes, while also empowering individuals and communities to lead healthier lives in their own environments.”
Professor Roma Maguire, Director of the Health and Care Futures initiative at Strathclyde, said: “Dr Orr’s appointment will play a crucial role in shaping the University of Strathclyde’s strategy for enhancing health and care research, nurturing talent pipelines, and designing education programmes and ultimately driving innovation and transformation in the NHS and Care sectors.”
