Dr. George Crooks

OBE MBChB MRCGP

Dr George Crooks is currently the Medical Director/Chief Operating Officer for NHS 24 and Director of the Scottish Centre for Telehealth & Telecare. He is also Medical Director for the Scottish Ambulance Service where he is responsible for the quality, safety and effectiveness of all clinical services and the development of new services in partnership with other NHS organisations. NHS 24 is the national provider of telehealth services for the whole of Scotland currently providing the majority of its services via telephony or the web. The Scottish Ambulance Service provides accident and emergency and patient transport services for the whole of Scotland, covering a population of circa 5 million people.

George was a General Practitioner in Aberdeen for 22 years and his past appointments have included Director of Primary Care with NHS Grampian with responsibility for all community-based independent contractor services. George has a particular interest in the appropriate use of technology to support the delivery of high quality patient care, using it as a vehicle to empower patients to actively participate in their care. He also is involved in the development of common assessment and triage processes across the NHS in Scotland as a better way to manage unscheduled and emergency care provision.

He was awarded an OBE in the Queens New Years Honors List 2011 for services to healthcare.