The chairman of NHS Tayside board is to retire after almost half a century of public service.
Sandy Watson will stand down on May 31, bringing to a close a 48-year career that spanned three different parts of the public sector and a lifetime in communities across Scotland.
Mr Watson taught at Morrison’s Academy before becoming director of education for the then Tayside Regional Council.
He went on to become chief executive of Tayside Regional Council then Angus Council before spending the last decade as non-executive board member and chairman of NHS Tayside.
Announcing his retirement, Mr Watson, who was awarded an OBE in 2003 and appointed deputy lieutenant for Angus in 2007, said he had been convinced to apply for his current role by Nicola Sturgeon, who was the cabinet secretary for health and wellbeing at the time.
“I have been privileged to work with a group of talented board members who are committed to that direction of travel, and I believe that significant steps have been taken in respect of both community engagement and staff engagement in shaping policy,” he said.
“I salute the hard work that staff undertake day in, day out, and the way in which they have risen to the challenges of transforming services to make them better for patients, their families and carers.”
Paying tribute to Mr Watson’s tenure, Lesley McLay, chief executive of NHS Tayside, said: “Over these past nine years Sandy has made an immense contribution to health services here in Tayside.
Health secretary Shona Robison said: “Sandy Watson has provided lmost 50 years of highly professional public service, including almost a decade of dedicated service to the NHS, and for that I am extremely grateful.
“Sandy has worked closely with executives and non-executives alike to ensure Tayside has developed and maintained a strong emphasis on patient safety and performance management.