Professor Sir Stephen Powis, National Medical Director of NHS England, recently visited Warwick Medical School to learn more about what we do within the School and the University’s Health Innovation activities, including the plans for a new Health Tech Campus at Arden Cross. He also gave a Dean’s Distinguished Lecture on the future of the NHS to our staff and students.

Sir Stephen spent a day on campus on Monday 4 November, during which he toured the new facilities at the School’s Clinical Education Hub before delivering his distinguished lecture and answering questions from staff and students.

Speaking about the new Clinical Education Hub at Warwick Medical School, Sir Stephen commented on how teaching has changed since he was a medical student, saying: “It’s very different from the days in the 1970s when I was doing anatomy at medical school. The methods of teaching have evolved over the decades. I think it’s a fantastic facility.” He also encouraged the audience to embrace innovation and new technologies in medical teaching in the years ahead.

During the lecture, Sir Stephen spoke about current challenges facing the NHS and ways to tackle them, such as placing a greater emphasis on prevention, increasing the use of technology and empowering patients. He also paid tribute to the efforts all those who work in the NHS, commenting "Every day I see something incredible and inspiring happening in the NHS."

Colleagues from the University’s Health Innovation team highlighted their work and discussed early plans for Arden Cross, which include national centres of excellence and platforms to support Health and Med Tech companies succeed and scale, as well as facilitating healthcare innovation in the NHS.

Professor Gavin Perkins, Dean of Warwick Medical School, said: “We were delighted to host Sir Stephen Powis this week. We welcomed his visit, and his positive comments on our facilities, our work and our people. It was great to hear his insights, and his future plans for the NHS.”

Penny Triantafillou, Associate Director from the Warwick Business Partnership, team added: “We were thrilled to host Sir Stephen Powis and facilitate connections across the university. We look forward to further discussions on advancing our shared goals.”

You can watch the recording of the lecture here.