Dr Stephen Harden

Who Dr Stephen Harden is

Dr Stephen Harden is President of The Royal College of Radiologists (RCR), having taken up the role on 1 September 2025 for a three-year term. He is concurrently a consultant in cardiothoracic radiology at University Hospital Southampton, a post he has held since 2005. He completed undergraduate medical training at the University of Cambridge and St Thomas's Hospital, University of London, and trained in clinical radiology in Wessex with further training in Germany and the USA. Within the RCR he previously served as Vice-President for Clinical Radiology (2023–2025) and as Medical Director for Education and Training in Clinical Radiology (2019–2022). He is publicly known for arguing that NHS reliance on outsourcing radiology to private firms is unsustainable and that expanding clinical radiologist training is the single best investment the NHS could make to reduce diagnostic waiting lists.

References for this biography

1. 1.Our President | The Royal College of Radiologists — Confirms Dr Stephen Harden is current RCR President; clinical post at University Hospital Southampton since 2005; undergraduate training at Cambridge and St Thomas's; radiology training in Wessex, Germany and USA; prior RCR roles.
2. 2.Dr Stephen Harden elected as RCR President | The Royal College of Radiologists — Confirms election as incoming President from 1 September 2025 for three years; prior roles as RCR Vice-President Clinical Radiology and Medical Director for Education and Training.
3. 3.NHS spent record £1.4bn on short-term fixes to radiologist shortage in past 5 years | The Royal College of Radiologists — Evidences Dr Harden's public advocacy on radiology workforce shortages, NHS outsourcing unsustainability, and training expansion as preferred policy solution.
4. 4.An interview with Dr Stephen Harden | The Royal College of Radiologists — Evidences leadership of UK-wide cardiac CT radiation dose audit as BSCI President; identifies workforce shortages as biggest specialty challenge.
5. 5.Stephen Harden – Consultant Cardiothoracic Radiologist – University Hospital Southampton | LinkedIn — Confirms first RCR Travelling Cardiac Professor 2015–17; Head of Wessex School of Radiology 2013–2019; BSCI President 2012–2015; senior cardiac editor British Journal of Radiology 2014–2018.
6. 6.Staff shortages delaying diagnosis and cancer care – Healthcare Today — Press quote from Dr Harden as RCR President on workforce shortages causing patient harm (July 2026); corroborates his role as primary RCR spokesperson.
7. 7.Contact information – THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF RADIOLOGISTS | Charity Commission — Confirms RCR head-office address (63 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London WC2A 3JW) and general enquiries email from the official charity register.

Notable achievements

• Elected President of the Royal College of Radiologists, beginning a three-year term from 1 September 2025, succeeding Dr Katharine Halliday. Source ↗
• As President of the British Society of Cardiovascular Imaging, led the first UK-wide prospective audit of radiation dose data in cardiac CT, establishing national standards of practice and standardised radiation dose levels. Source ↗
• Was the first RCR Travelling Cardiac Professor (jointly with the British Society of Cardiovascular Imaging), 2015–17. Source ↗
• Served as Head of Wessex School of Radiology from 2013–2019; the School was ranked the top UK radiology school for trainee satisfaction in three of the last five years of his tenure. Source ↗
• Publicly called for the NHS to train 10% more clinical radiologists per year, citing RCR modelling showing this would save £100 million over 10 years compared with reliance on outsourcing. Source ↗

What Dr Stephen Harden has said

• “For the first time, our census shows that patients' conditions are deteriorating because of workforce shortages. Delays to diagnosis and cancer treatment are extremely dangerous, particularly in deprived and rural communities where shortages are worst. Despite our members' extraordinary efforts, we simply don't have enough clinical radiologists and clinical oncologists to meet rising demand.”

  President of the Royal College of Radiologists · NHS & care workforce/staffing · 30 Sept 2026 · Cancer and scan delays worsening as staff shortages hit Welsh NHS, doctors warn ↗

• “For the first time, our census shows that patients' conditions are deteriorating because of workforce shortages. Delays to diagnosis and cancer treatment are extremely dangerous, particularly in deprived and rural communities where shortages are worst.”

  President of the Royal College of Radiologists · NHS & care workforce/staffing · 30 Sept 2026 · 'Dangerous' delays to cancer care due to staff shortages, doctors warn ↗

• “For the first time, our census shows that patients' conditions are deteriorating because of workforce shortages. Delays to diagnosis and cancer treatment are extremely dangerous, particularly in deprived and rural communities where shortages are worst. Despite our members' extraordinary efforts, we simply don't have enough clinical radiologists and clinical oncologists to meet rising demand. Recruitment freezes and growing reliance on outsourcing are making the situation worse not better. Alarm bells should be ringing for governments across the UK. Without urgent action to train, recruit and retain more doctors, more patients will suffer.”

  President of the Royal College of Radiologists · NHS & care workforce/staffing · 30 Sept 2026 · NI staff shortages causing ‘extremely dangerous’ delays to diagnosis and cancer care ↗

• “Getting a scan during daytime hours won't suit everyone. Offering more scans after 8pm could help tackle the backlog of people waiting for answers about their health. But increasing the number of MRI scans needs more doctors to interpret them, at a time when the UK is already short of almost 2,000 (1,953) radiologists.”

  president of the Royal College of Radiologists · NHS waiting lists · 30 Sept 2026 · MRI scans late at night could help ‘cut NHS waiting list’ ↗

• “AI should support doctors by helping them work more effectively, rather than replacing the expert judgement that patients value and expect. Radiologists will remain central to diagnosis, clinical decision-making, and patient care.”

  president of the Royal College of Radiologists · Cancer · 10 Sept 2026 · Chest X-ray AI tool to be rolled out across NHS to speed up lung cancer diagnosis ↗

• “Amid soaring demand for cancer care, staff shortages and patient delays will only get worse if nothing is done to increase the workforce.”

  president of the Royal College of Radiologists · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · More than 60,000 cancer patients in England ‘not getting necessary radiotherapy’ ↗

• “These chronic and widespread delays for tests are highly alarming. Far too many patients are facing long, anxious waits for answers about their health. Without action, these delays will continue to put patients at risk.”

  President of the Royal College of Radiologists · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · NHS test delays putting hundreds of thousands at risk, say doctors ↗

• “Boosting the cancer workforce and embracing the latest technology to help spot cancer earlier are important steps to speed up diagnosis and treatment. To ensure patients in underserved areas benefit in the long term, it will be essential that permanent consultant posts are available so cancer doctors can stay and build fulfilling careers locally once training is complete.”

  president of the Royal College of Radiologists · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Rural and coastal areas of England to get more cancer doctors ↗

• “Recruitment freezes worsen the already chronic shortage of doctors that has led to long waits, late diagnoses and delays, causing patients to have more limited treatment options, and some presenting too late to receive treatment at all. Any delay can be distressing. But for patients with suspected cancer it is particularly dangerous [as] each month's delay to starting cancer treatment can increase the risk of death by around 10%.”

  President of the Royal College of Radiologists · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · NHS hiring bans in cancer units shortsighted and dangerous, doctors warn ↗

• “Increasing NHS reliance on outsourcing in radiology is not sustainable and the costs of this are spiralling out of control. In the short term, outsourcing can help to manage diagnostic backlogs, but it cannot be a long-term solution to workforce shortages.”

  President of the Royal College of Radiologists · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · NHS spends record £241m outsourcing scan analysis to private firms ↗

Where Dr Stephen Harden has been quoted

1. 'Extremely dangerous' cancer care delays due to lack of staffnews.sky.com · 4 Oct 2026
2. Cancer and scan delays worsening as staff shortages hit Welsh NHS, doctors warnnation.cymru · 30 Sept 2026
3. 'Dangerous' delays to cancer care due to staff shortages, doctors warnscotsman.com · 30 Sept 2026
4. NI staff shortages causing ‘extremely dangerous’ delays to diagnosis and cancer carebelfastlive.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
5. MRI scans late at night could help ‘cut NHS waiting list’independent.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
6. Chest X-ray AI tool to be rolled out across NHS to speed up lung cancer diagnosispulsetoday.co.uk · 10 Sept 2026
7. More than 60,000 cancer patients in England ‘not getting necessary radiotherapy’theguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
8. NHS test delays putting hundreds of thousands at risk, say doctorstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
9. Rural and coastal areas of England to get more cancer doctorstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
10. NHS hiring bans in cancer units shortsighted and dangerous, doctors warntheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
11. NHS spends record £241m outsourcing scan analysis to private firmstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026

Related media coverage

Recent UK press coverage of their topics — not necessarily citing them directly.

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• An important step forward in ending corridor care - Colin Poolman | Blog | RCN ScotlandRoyal College of Nursing

Contact & links

• Staff pagehttps://www.rcr.ac.uk/about-us/who-we-are/our-president/
• LinkedInhttps://uk.linkedin.com/in/stephen-harden-813257178
• Xhttps://x.com/DrStephenHardenpublished here ↗
• Press office emailenquiries@rcr.ac.ukpublished here ↗

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