Paul WhiteingSector leader

Biography

Paul Whiteing has been Chief Executive of Action against Medical Accidents (AvMA) since January 2023, succeeding Peter Walsh who held the role for 20 years. AvMA is the UK charity for patient safety and justice, providing free independent advice and support to people affected by medical accidents through a helpline, written casework and inquest support services. Before joining AvMA, Whiteing was a Lead Ombudsman and Director of Casework at the Financial Ombudsman Service from 2014, and had previously served as Chief Executive of a telecoms regulatory body. He has argued publicly that NHS underfunding and a culture of cover-up contribute to avoidable patient harm, and has called for systemic reform of clinical negligence access and a stronger statutory duty of candour. He is regularly quoted in national press on patient safety, maternity harm and NHS accountability.

References

1. 1.Paul Whiteing – AvMA staff profile — Current role title, organisation, start date, prior roles at Financial Ombudsman Service and telecoms regulatory body
2. 2.AvMA announces its next Chief Executive — Appointment date (5 December 2022 / 1 January 2023), background at Financial Ombudsman Service since 2014
3. 3.Patient Safety Spotlight Interview with Paul Whiteing – Patient Safety Learning Hub — Role description, background, views on access to justice and compassionate engagement for harmed patients
4. 4.Thousands harmed and 87 dead after NHS equipment failures in England – PSL Hub — Press quote confirming role title; public statements on NHS underfunding and patient harm (June 2025)

Expertise

Cited on

• Hospital discharge / bed-blocking

Stated areas of expertise

• Patient safety
• Clinical negligence access
• Duty of candour
• NHS accountability
• Harmed patient support and justice
• Inquest support

Notable achievements

• Appointed Chief Executive of AvMA in December 2022, succeeding Peter Walsh after a 20-year tenure, and assumed full responsibilities on 1 January 2023. Source ↗
• Published a peer-reviewed article in 2024 arguing the Lucy Letby inquiry was a missed opportunity to address systemic NHS governance and whistleblowing failures beyond the individual case. Source ↗
• Submitted written evidence to Parliament on behalf of AvMA on access to justice in clinical negligence and inquest proceedings. Source ↗

What they’ve said

• “This judgment will undoubtedly add to an already significant cost of clinical negligence. But as parliament's public accounts committee recently said, preventing harm from happening in the first place is the most effective way to reduce the widespread impact of clinical negligence.”

  chief executive of the patient safety charity Action Against Medical Accidents · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · NHS to spend more to settle lawsuits over negligence during childbirth after court ruling ↗

• “The evidence that Baroness Amos has uncovered shows the shocking lengths that some staff are going to, such as hiding or falsifying medical records, in order to cover their tracks. This shows the scale of the challenge to improving maternity and neonatal services and care.”

  Chief Executive of patient safety charity Action against Medical Accidents (AvMA) · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · NHS maternity units often cover up harmful errors in childbirth, report finds ↗

• “Too often the people we support still tell us about the culture of defend and deny that they face when they ask questions or raise concerns about their treatment. If this rule is challenging that culture, then its use must be expanded as soon as is possible.”

  chief executive of the patient safety charity, Action against Medical Accidents · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Martha’s rule may have saved more than 500 lives in England since 2024 ↗

Source references

1. NHS to spend more to settle lawsuits over negligence during childbirth after court rulingtheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
2. NHS maternity units often cover up harmful errors in childbirth, report findstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
3. Martha’s rule may have saved more than 500 lives in England since 2024theguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026

Contact & links

• Staff pagehttps://www.avma.org.uk/about-us/staff-and-trustee-profiles/our-staff/paul-whiteing/
• Xhttps://twitter.com/avma_ceo
• LinkedInhttps://uk.linkedin.com/in/paul-whiteing

Organisational contact points only, each taken from a page the organisation publishes itself. No personal or direct contact details are held or shown.