Dr Sohail Bhatti GMH appointed as new Director of Public Health

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Dr Sohail Bhatti as Director of Public Health at NHS Borders.

Dr Bhatti has over 30 years experience working in the field of public health; initially as a Consultant in Public Health Medicine and for around nearly fifteen years as a Director of Public Health in various locations including Huddersfield, East Lancashire, the City of Bristol and the City of London. Dr Bhatti was also the Medical Director for the two Huddersfield Primary Care Trusts.

Between 2018 and 2021 Dr Bhatti worked as Chief Medical Officer and Director of Public Health in Gibraltar, during which time he helped lead the territory in its battle against Covid-19, overseeing their world-leading screening efforts and its vaccination programmes. His contribution to public health was recognised when he was awarded with the Gibraltar Medallion of Honour (GMH), its highest civilian award by Gibraltar’s Parliament on his departure back to the UK.

Commenting on his move to the Borders, Dr Bhatti said “I am really looking forward to joining NHS Borders. I qualified in medicine at the University of Glasgow, having gone to school in the city, and am excited to return to Scotland. All my work in public health has been in settings outside of Scotland, so I look forward to applying my knowledge and experience to help improve the health and wellbeing of the wonderful people of the Scottish Borders and the peerless NHS in its tireless task of preventing, treating and managing illness.

“I have a special interest in remote and rural communities, and am passionate about health inequalities and improving quality in healthcare.”

Dr Bhatti will join NHS Borders on Monday 26 September 2022. His appointment follows the retirement of Dr Tim Patterson.