James Risley
Deputy Executive Medical Director @Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board
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WORK HISTORY
Deputy Executive Medical Director @Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board
Deputy Executive Medical Director within one of the largest and complex healthcare organisations in the UK, with a £2.2bn budget, a workforce of and responsibility for healthcare services for a population of more than across North Wales.Operating at board and system level, I hold executive responsibility for clinical governance, medical workforce, quality improvement, patient safety, digital-enabled clinical transformation, and regulatory assurance across acute, community, and primary care services.I provide senior leadership during periods of operational pressure and organisational risk, including acting as Gold On-Call Executive, supporting organisational recovery, performance improvement, and the delivery of safe, effective care across multiple hospital sites and community settings.I serve as Senior Responsible Officer (SRO) for major clinical and digital programmes, including the Welsh Intensive Care Information System (Digital Health and Care Wales) and medical optimisation and workforce efficiency initiatives.I chair multiple board-level and executive committees spanning medical workforce strategy, clinical effectiveness and quality improvement, medicines optimisation and antimicrobial stewardship, and information governance, data protection, and digital assurance.At national and regional level, I contribute to appraisal, commissioning, and oversight bodies covering health technology assessment, advanced surgery, rare diseases, patient safety, and NICE assurance.Additional responsibilities include Deputy Caldicott Guardian, executive leadership for organisational sustainability and green strategy, organ donation, and oversight of services in regulatory escalation or special measures.This role has required sustained executive leadership through periods of regulatory scrutiny and operational pressure, with a focus on stabilisation, recovery, and long-term transformation across quality, access, workforce, and digitally enabled care.
EDUCATION
University of Nottingham
Bachelor's Degree, BMedSci(Hons) Biomedical Science
Cambridge Judge Business School
Master of Business Administration - MBA, Executive MBA
University of Nottingham
BMBS; Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery, Medicine
Royal College of Surgeons
Diploma of the Royal College of Surgeons (MRCS), Surgery
Harvard Medical School
AI in Health Care: From Strategies to Implementation
Nottingham Law School
Master's Degree, Distinction., Law LLM
Nottingham Law School
Graduate Diploma in Law, Law
Royal College of Surgeons
Diploma of Otorhinolarynology and Head and Neck Surgery (DOHNS), Surgery
Royal College of Emergency Medicine
Fellowship by Examination (FRCEM), Emergency Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Health Care Transformation
Harvard Medical School
Leading Digital Transformation in Health Care
SKILLS
ABOUT JAMES RISLEY
I am a national healthcare leader and Consultant in Emergency Medicine, with senior leadership experience across complex health systems, focused on improving access, quality, and outcomes at scale.My work sits at the intersection of clinical leadership, strategy, and operational delivery — translating policy, evidence, and innovation into practical change across healthcare pathways. I have led organisational and system-level transformation, working with clinicians, executives, and national stakeholders.Alongside my clinical and executive roles, I lead and advise on digital and AI-enabled transformation, with a particular interest in how technology can be used responsibly to improve access, decision-making, and patient navigation — without adding burden or risk to frontline teams. My approach is grounded in safety, governance, and real-world implementation, rather than hype.I hold an Executive MBA and qualifications in law, which shape a pragmatic, commercially literate, and governance-focused approach to healthcare leadership and innovation.I regularly contribute to conversations on healthcare transformation, digital health, and the future of urgent and emergency care, and I am regularly in dialogue with boards, executives, and policymakers exploring system improvement, digital strategy, and responsible innovation in healthcare.
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