Dr Dave Caesar

David was appointed as a Deputy Director within the Scottish Government Health Workforce, Leadership and Service Reform Directorate as Head of Leadership and Talent Management in July 2018, having had a strong interest in clinical and system leadership within NHS Scotland and the wider public sector. This builds on his work as the Chair of the Project Lift team (www.projectlift.scot), established as a collaborative in September 2017, which is pioneering a novel approach to talent management and leadership development within NHS Scotland.

He had previously been National Clinical Advisor to the Chief Medical Officer (Scotland) since February 2016, advising on secondary care services including establishing the Scottish Trauma Network in 2017, as well as engaging with the clinical workforce and civil service on the National Clinical Strategy, Realistic Medicine, workforce issues and leadership. He is a Senior Fellow of the Faculty of Medical Leadership and Management, a Fellow of the Royal Society for the encouragement of the Arts, and is a trustee of the Medic 1 Trust and Save a Life for Scotland charities.

He continues to work clinically at the Emergency Department in the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, where he has previously been the Training Programme Director and Clinical Director. Prior to taking up his current role in the Scottish Government, he was Associate Medical Director at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh.

This portfolio affords him some time away from being out-negotiated by his 3 children.