Stuart Bell receives highest honour

SLaM's Chief Executive, Stuart Bell, was awarded the Royal College of Psychiatrist's (RCPsych) highest honour at their International Conference in Brighton last night.

Stuart was made an Honorary Fellow of the professional body for psychiatrists, which has been in existence in some form since 1841.  Although Stuart is not a psychiatrist by background, the RCPsych can grant the honour to someone considered to have rendered distinguished service in relation to the study, prevention and treatment of mental illness.

The RCPsych's citation states that:

'Stuart Bell has shown outstanding leadership of the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust for the past eleven years. He led the Trust through its inception and merger, and then achievement of Foundation Trust status. He has recently been instrumental in the development of King's Health Partners - the only academic health sciences centre with major mental health involvement…

He is a tireless advocate of mental health in the wider NHS and was one of the 2010 Health Service Journal top fifty NHS leaders. He has encouraged and supported consultants from the Trust in applying for important positions in the College. He is chair of the Department of Health's Expert Advisory Group on Payment by Results in Mental Health.

Stuart was a member of the WHO Missions to review mental health services on behalf of the governments of Romania (2006) and Lithuania (2007). He is very interested in developing psychiatrists as leaders, and is co-author of Management for Psychiatrists (3rd edition), published by the Royal College of Psychiatrists in 2007.'

SLaM's Chair, Madeliene Long, said: "It has been a pleasure to work with Stuart for the past decade - a period which has seen SLaM develop into a truly world class provider of quality mental health care.  I am delighted that his skills have been acknowledged with this distinguished honour and on behalf of the Board I would like to extend my warm congratulations. "

SLaM provides the widest range of mental health and substance misuse services in the UK. The Trust treats people in South London and offers specialist services for people from across the country.