Newly inaugurated SCoR president for 2016/17, Steve Herring, has been honoured by South East Region at a reception held at Maidstone Hospital, where he works as an advanced practitioner.
As well as friends and colleagues, other attendees included Dr Sara Mumford, clinical director for diagnostics at Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust; Professor John Schofield, immediate past president of the Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association; Sue Webb, the vice-president of the SCoR; Richard Evans, Society chief executive officer; and David Goulds, director of finance.
“Over the next year my primary goal is to meet as many members as I can and to understand their hopes and concerns,” Steve said in short speech.
He admitted, “Taking on my new role as the Society’s president hasn’t sunk in yet. It is only through the support of colleagues that I will have the time to do the job.
“UK Council is under no illusion as to the scale of the challenges we face and we are ready.
“Ours is a lean and fit organisation with a small team of directors, officers and support staff providing services all across the UK. They can provide information, support and advice, but many of the issues that arise must be dealt with locally. That means through local reps and the regional and national councils.”
Steve continued, “For our structure to continue functioning effectively, it is vitally important members involve themselves locally in their departments and hospitals and in their regions and countries.
“It is sometimes felt that the health service hierarchy exists within ivory towers, out of touch with employees. The same has also been said of the SoR. This is not the case. UK Council and some of the directors and others working for the organisation are and have been radiographers at all levels of the profession.
"Council members continue to care for patients on a daily basis, working with colleagues on the coal face. Our current presidential team also work alongside members every day. We are ordinary people who feel we want to do more for the profession and our patients.
“We do all we can to support each other as members and this is so that we can have a healthy profession that is able to provide a caring and high quality service to our patients, because at the end of the day it is all about them. In the SCoR strategy, patients take centre stage.”
John Schofield offered Steve huge congratulations on his election and reminded him that they had shared a platform at the TUC Conference several years earlier when the HCSA and the Society had vigorously supported a motion.
Richard Evans said that his job was different than most people’s because his line manager - the president - changed every year.
He emphasised that every full member of the SCoR can be elected to UK Council and has the potential to become president of the organisation.