Professor Em Wilkinson-Brice qualified as a nurse in 1992 in Exeter.

She then worked in Oxford, specialising in cardiology and high dependency care, and a firm interest in facilities management later resulted in Em taking the post of Director of Nursing and Facilities at Derby Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, before coming back to Exeter in July 2010.

During her time at the RD&E, Em has undertaken numerous roles alongside the Chief Nurse role, including leading the Trust’s five year Transformation Programme to deliver a new model of care in partnership with local agencies.

In recognition of the close working partnership between the Trust and Plymouth University, Em was appointed Associate Professor Faculty of Health and Human Sciences. She was in the first cohort of the national NHS Leadership Academy Aspiring Chief Executive programme, completing it in February 2017.