Head of Service

WestMARC

John has over 30 years experience working for the NHS and has been Chair of the Scottish Forum for Healthcare Science since December 2014.

Born and raised in Northern Ireland, he moved to Wales to study Electrical and Electronic Engineering. He first discovered his interest in bioengineering as an undergraduate trainee in the Medical Physics Department in Salisbury where he helped establish their Functional Electrical Stimulation Service. After graduating he moved to Dundee to work with a small research team at the University of Dundee developing and evaluating software for communication aids. At the end of this project he established the NHS Electronic Assistive Technology Service in Tayside providing clinical engineering support for the provision of the Communication Aids Service, specialist controls for powered wheelchair users and the Environmental Controls Service. He also worked closely with the White Top Research Unit at the University of Dundee and with the charity PAMIS helping people with multiple physical, intellectual and sensory impairments.

He spent six years in Aberdeen managing the Wheelchair and Seating Service for Grampian, Orkney and Shetland and during this period he was involved in the design and delivery of the MSc in Medical Physics and Bioengineering at the University of Aberdeen. In October 2002 he moved to Glasgow to take up the post of Head of Service for WestMARC delivering a wide range of rehabilitation technology services to the West of Scotland. During this period he has contributed to many national groups and has been a key individual in the main national rehabilitation technology service redesign projects such as the Wheelchair and Seating Service Modernisation Project and in the planning and delivery of the national Specialist Prosthetic Service.

Back to previous page