Chris Flatt

Chief Allied Health Professional for Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

Chris is currently the Chief AHP (Allied Health Professional) for Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. He is a Registered Dietitian with a wide variety of clinical experience across acute, community and private providers, as well as previous roles leading a ward, managing outpatients, diagnostics and endoscopy services and as a General Manager. He has a Master’s degree in Management, is a member of the Q Community and a wide range of experience in quality improvement and the recently completed the Flow Coaching Academy course. He completed the NHS Leadership Academy Nye Bevan Program in 2018. His current role is to strategically lead all AHPs in the Trust and support improvements for staff and patients through operational changes and staff development along clinical specialist, academic and leadership career pathways.

His fellowship with ARC is looking at how to improve the Smoking Cessation Program initially for hospital in-patients but in the longer-term looking to expand this to out-patients and staff support programs. With admission to hospital often being a missed opportunity (as a teachable moment) the aim is to improve the identification of smokers, offer advice and guidance on the benefits of quitting, to prescribe cessation treatment and referral to community-based support programs for on-going intervention. The project aligns to the ARC strategic aims to improving multi-morbidity and reducing unnecessary demands placed upon the local health and care system