NHS England London has appointed a new Regional Lead for Dentistry, Optometry and Pharmacy in London.

Donal Markey has responsibility for the strategic commissioning of NHS services across all community pharmacies, dental practices and community optometry practices in the capital. He will also lead on the commissioning of all acute, community and urgent care dental services within the London region.

In addition, Donal will be working within the London NHS transformation programme, the Healthy London Partnership as the Pharmaceutical Advisor supporting the Children and Young People programme. He is part of the Asthma Clinical Leadership Group and recently led on an audit of pharmacies across the capital of asthma management in children. The results of this audit have been presented at national conferences and are currently being shared with London CCGs to inform service design for children with asthma.

Donal, who still practices as a community pharmacist in Berkshire, said: “I am delighted to take up this new position within NHS England (London). The capital’s pharmacists, dentists and optometrists all do a fantastic job helping thousands of people every single day and have a crucial role to play in keeping Londoners healthy.”

Donal graduated from Liverpool John Moore’s University, UK with a BSc (hons) in Pharmacy and holds a Masters degree in Public Health from University of Manchester, UK. His early career was in clinical practice within the UK pharmacy sector and he has also spent 16 years working in London for NHS Primary Care Organisations as a pharmacist, commissioner, public health specialist and as an independent healthcare consultant.

He has a keen interest in health technology, and worked for 3 years as Clinical Director for an assistive health technology provider (telehealth & telecare) developing solutions and apps for the NHS, social care sector and pharmaceutical sectors. Donal has also earned national recognition for work in telehealth for Local Authorities including a national healthcare award in service innovation for his work in redesigning NHS immunisation services and in designing a telehealth intervention for COPD management.

Since 2013 he has worked as an independent health and social care consult which included supporting an access to medicines project for RSA government and working part time as a pharmacy advisor for NHS England.