- New Chief will lead Defence Medical Command as it delivers Strategic Defence Review commitments and £50m Defence Investment Plan funding to ensure stronger medical readiness.
- Operational plans, life-saving technology and deeper NHS and allied partnerships will help save more lives on future operations.
Professor Jason Leitch CBE will take charge of Defence Medical Command as it drives through the delivery of the Strategic Defence Review and the Defence Investment Plan, both of which place a renewed emphasis on closer collaboration with the health services across the UK, academia, industry, NATO allies and international partners.
He brings extensive experience in clinical leadership, health policy and organisational transformation. As Scotland’s National Clinical Director from 2015 to 2024, Professor Leitch advised ministers on health policy and patient safety, becoming a trusted public voice during the COVID-19 pandemic. He has also worked as an independent healthcare adviser and leadership consultant in the UK and internationally.
Professor Jason Leitch, who will formally take up the post on Monday 2 November, said:
It is a real privilege to be joining Defence Medical Command. I have spent my career improving healthcare and helping the people who deliver it to do their best work, and I am excited to bring that experience into Defence.
My first priority will be to listen and learn - understanding our people, our patients and the operational needs of the Armed Forces. I look forward to working across Defence and with our partners to ensure Defence Medical is ready for whatever is asked of it. Professor Leitch joins as Defence invests £50 million to transform frontline medical care, bringing life-saving technologies such as dried blood products and tranexamic acid autoinjectors which resupply blood and reduce blood loss to the battlefield, alongside modern field hospital equipment to care for casualties.
General Sir Rob Magowan, Commander of Cyber & Specialist Operations Command, said:
Jason’s appointment marks an exciting new chapter for military medicine. His proven leadership will be vital as we modernise Defence healthcare and deliver the best possible care for those who serve.
As Defence responds to growing and more complex threats, Defence Medical will be central to ensuring our Armed Forces are ready for the challenges ahead.
Surgeon General Major General Phil Carter, who has served as Interim Chief of Defence Medical, since former Chief of Defence Medical Air Marshal Clare Walton retired in July, said:
Professor Leitch joins us with extensive experience of managing health and healthcare and a strong record of leadership at the very top of government. He will bring a fresh vision at an important moment for the Defence Medical system, as we develop our readiness to support warfighting.
I look forward to introducing him to the amazing work being done by medics across Defence to sustain and promote health and provide care on operations and to working with him to modernise and optimise our model of care, keeping pace with the changing demands on the battlefield, civilian healthcare, and the needs of our patients.
Professor Leitch will lead Defence Medical as it continues to draw on lessons from Ukraine including strengthening battlefield trauma training, medical supply chains and the protection of field hospitals, while exploring new medical technologies.
Following his start in November, Professor Leitch will visit teams across Defence Medical, meeting its people and seeing their work first-hand as he shapes his priorities.
Professor Jason Leitch CBE (Biography)