Consultant Profiles
Mary White (Director of Operations)
Mary has had many years experience as a nurse trainer working in primary care, and in the development of practice nursing. She has a Masters degree in Health Care and was involved in facilitation work at Health Authority level for three years before joining the University of Exeter as a tutor and course organiser.
She has taught widely throughout the UK and has also been involved in nurse development and training programmes in Bosnia, Egypt, Slovakia, Uzbekistan, China and Thailand. She has a special interest in asthma, teamwork, personal and professional development, training of trainers, and provides educational support both in groups or individually and study skills for students at post graduate level up to Masters Level.
“As Director of Operations, I strive to maintain the excellent reputation of PDI. Naturally, this means that customer satisfaction is my priority, and I aim to ensure that PDI delivers only the highest quality service. All PDI consultants are highly experienced professionals who are known personally to PDI. Each programme is individually developed according to the clients’ requirements, so PDI recognises the need for flexibility and innovation. Finally, PDI believes that learning should be fun.
So why not let PDI take the strain out of planning and organising your professional development? Contact me through the PDI office and I shall be delighted to discuss your requirements.”
Dr Graham Richardson (MD.Lond., MRCP., MBBS., LRCP., MRCS., Honorary Emeritus Consultant Physician Torbay Hospital)
Graham is a highly experienced doctor who worked for over 40 years in acute and general medicine. His work at national and international level in the area of tuberculosis and other respiratory diseases involved the assessment of patients with pneumoconiosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. His main areas of interest are in smoking related diseases and their prevention, and in the strategic planning of occupational and public health requirements for the prevention and control of respiratory diseases. He works for PDI in an advisory capacity in general medicine including respiratory diseases.
Dorf Ruscoe M.A. RGN. FHEA
Dorf has wide and extensive experience of many different fields of nursing. She started working in Primary Care in 1980 and in the mid 1990s became involved in General Practice Education working both nationally and internationally for the School of Postgraduate Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Exeter. Between 2003 and 05, whilst working in a strategic role with the South West Deanery she co-led the development of a competency framework for General Practice Nursing. This major work has now been adopted by Skills for Health and is the cornerstone of the ‘toolkit’ developed by the NHS, Working in Partnerships Programme. (WIPP). She currently works as General Practice Lead with the Faculty of Health and Social Work, University of Plymouth and as Short Programmes Lead with the Peninsula Postgraduate Health Institute. (PPHI). She is the nurse representative on the Professional Development Board of the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP). Dorf recently provided management and leadership training to middle level nurse managers in Oman. This consultancy, requested by The Ministry of Health was to support the development of management and leadership for implementation in primary care. Feedback to Dorf's programme was excellent- so much so that she has been asked to return in 2009.
Dr Rosie Tope (PhD, M.Ed, RGN, RNT, RCNT, CertEd, DN)
Rosie is a senior partner in HERC Associates, a company that specialises in health, education and research at local, national and international levels. Rosie continues her research and teaching through the Universities of Exeter and Glamorgan and is a visiting Professor at Universities in Finland and Greece She has extensive experience in project management and has extended her knowledge and skills towards facilities and resource management in a variety of clinical settings in the acute and community sectors both in the UK and abroad.Among the projects that Rosie has been involved in are:
An evaluation for the NHS of seventeen interprofessional education and training initiatives in the South West of England.
Project Facilitator for developing education and training leaders in the primary health and independent sector (pharmacists, optometrists, dental surgeons, dental nurses).
European partner for Infopark (Parkinson’s Disease related) Working with Finland, Estonia, Spain, Portugal and Greece on a European Study that explores the information And resource needs of patients with Parkinson’s Disease and their non-professional carers.
Working in collaboration with a palliative care centre in Wales on tele medicine links for people with cancer in rural communities.
Development of distance learning packages for dentists and the professions complementary to the dental professions.
Gerry Hinton
Gerry has experience at national and international level in business consultancy and adult education. He currently works part time as a tutor and lecturer in management, leadership and educational topics with various academic establishments at postgraduate level. Among these establishments are the Peninsula Medical School (where he is lecturer in clinical education and postgraduate module lead on three modules), the University of Exeter and the NHS Executive, Bristol (the Deanery). The remainder of the time he also jointly runs projects for the NHS Executive, Bristol and acts in a business advisory capacity for private, public and charitable organisations.
Having gained over 20 years experience in management and leadership within the finance industry, including five years in Personnel, Training and Development, he decided on a change of career. Since 1996, he has been involved in various local and international development projects mainly for local Universities and the Deanery. His particular involvement with education and development stretches over 25 years. Since 1996 it includes postgraduate Train the Trainer programmes for the Egyptian Government family medicine project: working as national tutor for a marriage counselling organisation: postgraduate education programmes and as a problem based learning tutor for the Peninsula Medical School: working for the Deanery on train the trainer projects in General Practice Nursing and Public Health. In 1999 he completed both a two-year postgraduate staff development programme in education with the University of Exeter and a postgraduate diploma in management studies at the University of Plymouth.
Specialist interests include, change management: strategic planning and application of leadership: human resource management: adult education: communication: coaching and mentorship.
Sue Cross. Senior Research Fellow for Primary Care, London South Bank University
Sue's role at the South Bank University involves working with specific primary health care teams to identify training and educational needs and to put in place educational strategies and resources and to then follow the process through. She also researches the work of these teams to evaluate affectiveness to primary care and improvement of patient care
Over the years Sue has had experience as a school nurse, practice nurse, and nurse practitioner and as an Associate Director of Primary Care Nursing. During these years she also developed a love of teaching and became a Trainer for the National Respiratory Training Centre (now Education for Health) in Warwick and later a Director for the organisation. In 1992 she became the Chair of the RCN Nurse Practitioner Association and with other like minded individuals, laboured to make nursing in general practice recognised as a profession to be proud of. At this time she co-edited with Vanny Rimmer, the Nurse Practitioner Manual of Clinical Skills and the 2nd edition was published in July 2007
Sue along with an American advanced nurse (Madrean Schober) and the support of the RCN, set up the International Council of Nurses, Nurse Practitioner/Advanced Practice Nursing Network. This Network was founded to provide a means of sharing research, education, social policy, etc to nurses working in all countries of the world; the Network now boasts a membership from 49 countries, details of which can be found on the ICN website.
Sue has published widely on aspects of education, asthma, allergy and general practice nursing both in the placecountry-regionUK and abroad. She has also co-authored `Vital Asthma' with Dave Burns from the Respiratory UK Training Centre.
Annie Barr.
Annie provides case management training for senior staff includig district nurses, community matrons, practice nurses and advanced nurse practitioners in the management of long term conditions, mentoring (both telephonic and field monitoring ) and competency based assessments with expertise in observed practice.
Disease management Long term conditions, asthma, copd, stroke, heart failure, diabetes, coronary heart disease, end of life issues
Clinical. Respiratory and cardiac examinations. Courses include practical sessions. Muskuloskeletal and neurological examinations.
Telephone consultation triage skills.Includes assessment of urgent care and out of hours.