Scotland’s new Chief Medical Officer is a former Larkhall GP.
Dr Gregor Smith has been appointed to take over from shamed health expert Catherine Calderwood who resigned last night (Sunday, April 5) after admitting flouting her own social distancing rules.
He was already acting as deputy chief medical officer for Scotland, since 2015, but has been asked to step in less than 24 hours after Dr Calderwood’s resignation.
Prior to Dr Smith’s deputy CMO role he combined roles as a senior medical officer in the Scottish Government and medical director for primary care in NHS Lanarkshire where he spent most of his clinical career as a GP in Larkhall.
He is an Honorary Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Glasgow and Fellow of both the Scottish Patient Safety Programme and Salzburg Global.
Dr Smith’s profile on the Realistic Medicine website describes him as a “passionate advocate of person-centred approaches to care”.
It also states: “He is a resolute advocate of the values that define the NHS, of universal healthcare, and of widening access to medical careers to those from all backgrounds.
“When not working, he tries very hard, but not so successfully, to use his quality improvement skills to improve his cycling, triathlon and guitar.”
