Ara Darzi
Encyclopedia
Ara Warkes Darzi, Baron Darzi of Denham, KBE
, PC
MD FMedSci
, HonFREng
, FRCS
, FRCSI
, FRCSEd
, FRCPSG
, FACS
, FCGI
, FRCPE
FRCP HonFRCPI (born 7 May 1960), is one of the world's leading surgeon
s at Imperial College London
where he holds Hamlyn Chair of Surgery, specialising in the field of minimally invasive and robot
-assisted surgery
, having pioneered many new techniques and technologies.
origin. He was born in Iraq
and then moved to Ireland
. Although he has become strongly identified with reform of the National Health Service
(NHS) in England, Darzi did not initially train within the NHS, as he studied medicine in the Republic of Ireland, at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
, and subsequently obtained the postgraduate degree of MD
at Trinity College, Dublin
.
He moved to the UK from Ireland in 1990 to further his career in Surgery. In 1991 he was appointed as a consultant surgeon at Central Middlesex Hospital
at the age of 31 and then moved to St. Mary's Hospital in 1994. In 2002 He was awarded a knighthood for his services to medicine
and surgery and subsequently elevated to peerage
in 2007. He was appointed to Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council in June 2009.
He is married to Wendy with whom he has two children, Freddie and Nina.
in 1994, obtained his Professorship in 1996 and became the Chair of Surgery and Head of Department in 1998. Darzi holds the Paul Hamlyn Chair of Surgery at Imperial College London
and the Institute of Cancer Research
. He is also an honorary consultant surgeon at St Mary’s Hospital, and the Royal Marsden Hospital. He has held many senior administrative appointments within the Faculty of Medicine at Imperial College, Research Council
, Editorial Board of Scientific Journals, and medical royal colleges
.
Darzi was educated in Ireland, awarded an MD from Trinity College Dublin and the Fellowships of essentially all the Royal Colleges in the British Isles (Ireland FRCSI, England FRCS, and both Scottish Colleges FRCSed, FRCPSG). He also holds the Fellowship of the American College of Surgeons
and has been elected as a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences
and more recently an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering
as the first Surgeon ever granted this honour. From 2005 to 2008 he was president of Bath Institute of Medical Engineering (BIME). In December 2008 he received an Honorary degree
(Doctor of Engineering) from the University of Bath
. In 2010 he was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, and an Honorary Fellow of the National Institute of Clinical Excellence.
Darzi’s main clinical and academic interest is in minimally invasive surgery and allied technologies in which he and his team are internationally recognized. He leads a team of researchers covering a wide spectrum of engineering and basic sciences research topics including Medical Image Computing, Biomedical Engineering, Clinical Safety, and Robotics. He has published more than 450 peer review papers and published 7 books.
This work has received international recognition including the Queens Anniversary Prize for Excellence in Higher and further education 2001, the Hamdan Award for Medical Research Excellence in 2004. In 2006 Darzi and his department were awarded the highly prestigious Rector’s Research Excellence Award for their work on Surgical Robots. He has also delivered many prestigious and named lectures around the globe.
at the Department of Health
by the Prime Minister
, Gordon Brown
. He was duly raised to the peerage on 12 July 2007 as Baron Darzi of Denham, of Gerrards Cross in the County of Buckinghamshire
. His appointment was part of Gordon Brown's "Government of all talents."
Prior to his appointment in the House of Lords, in December 2006 NHS London asked Darzi to "develop a strategy to meet Londoners' health needs over the next five to ten years". The report Healthcare for London: A Framework for Action was published on 11 July 2007. Recommendations included the development of academic health science centres and the introduction of polyclinics.
As Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department of Health, Darzi was charged with leading a Review to determine the course of the NHS over the decade ahead, reporting back to the Prime Minister, Chancellor, and Secretary of State for Health in June 2008. The process was described as the “NHS Next Stage Review”.
Professor Darzi was quoted in The Times Newspaper as saying that “…his Review should be both clinically-led and evidence-based”. The final report of the Review, High Quality Care for All, was published in June 2008 to considerable public and academic acclaim. The Financial Times noted that it was “the world’s most ambitious attempt to raise the quality and effectiveness of an entire nation’s healthcare”. The Lancet acknowledged that:
"Darzi has wisely thrown out regulation as the organising principle of the NHS. He has replaced it with quality…This cultural shift is a radical re-visioning of purpose for the NHS—away from the political command and control of processes and towards professional responsibility for clinical outcomes."
Through his report, academics have suggested that Professor Darzi has updated traditional notions of professionalism and described a new accountability in clinical practice. Following publication, Professor Darzi remained in his ministerial post. At that time a Department for Health spokesperson was quoted as saying that his revised role would “…ensure the successful implementation of the Review’s conclusions. Notably, frontline clinical staff will be given more control over budgets, and his proposals will mean that every provider of NHS services will be required to publish Quality Accounts from April 2010”.
As a government minister, Professor Darzi found himself responsible for leading the passage of health-related legislation through the House of Lords.
Professor Darzi’s leadership as a health minister was the culmination of many years of involvement in health policy. Immediately prior to joining the government, Professor Darzi led a review of health services in London, identifying the opportunities to raise clinical quality across the capital. He was also National Advisor in Surgery to the Department of Health. Professor Darzi’s report in this role ‘Saws and Scalpels to Lasers and Robots: Clinical case for change’ (April 2007), argued for a change to the way surgery is organised in order to maximise patient benefits.
In June 2009 Professor Darzi was appointed as a member of Her Majesty’s Most Honourable Privy Council.
In July 2009, Professor Darzi relinquished his post as Parliamentary Under-Secretary in the Department of Health. The Prime Minister praised his “outstanding contribution”. and the Guardian noted that:
"Instead of waging war on the medics, as his Blairite predecessors had done, Darzi invited them to take a hand in designing their own targets and bound them into reform. He stressed the quality of care after Labour's decade-long obsession with quantity. And while the drive for private involvement continued, it took a less dogmatic turn. The NHS's morale improved, as did its public standing."
Following his resignation from Government, Professor Darzi returned to his clinical and academic work and has expanded his involvement in global health issues. In June 2010 he was appointed Chairman of the Institute for Global Health Innovation at Imperial College, a body dedicated to improving healthcare around the world and reducing health inequalities in developed and developing countries. In November 2010 he was appointed as a Business Ambassador for the UK by Prime Minister David Cameron.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, PC
Privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...
MD FMedSci
Academy of Medical Sciences
The Academy of Medical Sciences is the United Kingdom's national academy of medical sciences. It was established in 1998 on the recommendation of a group that was chaired by Michael Atiyah. Its president is John Irving Bell....
, HonFREng
Royal Academy of Engineering
-Overview: is the UK’s national academy of engineering. The Academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors for a shared purpose: to advance and promote excellence in engineering....
, FRCS
Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons
Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons is a professional qualification to practise as a surgeon in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland...
, FRCSI
Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland , is a Dublin-based medical institution, situated on St. Stephen's Green. The college is one of the five Recognised Colleges of the National University of Ireland...
, FRCSEd
Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh is an organisation dedicated to the pursuit of excellence and advancement in surgical practice, through its interest in education, training and examinations, its liaison with external medical bodies and representation of the modern surgical workforce...
, FRCPSG
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, is an institute of physicians and surgeons in Glasgow, Scotland.Founded by Peter Lowe after receiving a royal charter by James VI in 1599, as the Glasgow Faculty, this institution originally existed as a regulatory authority to ensure that...
, FACS
Fellow of the American College of Surgeons
Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, often listed as "FACS", is a post-nominal title used to indicate that the surgeon's education and training, professional qualifications, surgical competence, and ethical conduct have passed a rigorous evaluation, and have been found to be consistent with...
, FCGI
City and Guilds of London Institute
The City and Guilds of London Institute is a leading United Kingdom vocational education organisation. City & Guilds offers more than 500 qualifications over the whole range of industry sectors through 8500 colleges and training providers in 81 countries worldwide...
, FRCPE
Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh was established in the 17th century. While the RCPE is based in Edinburgh, it is by no means just a Scottish professional body - more than half of its 7,700 Fellows, Members, Associates and Affiliates live and practice medicine outside Scotland, in 86...
FRCP HonFRCPI (born 7 May 1960), is one of the world's leading surgeon
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
s at Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
where he holds Hamlyn Chair of Surgery, specialising in the field of minimally invasive and robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
-assisted surgery
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
, having pioneered many new techniques and technologies.
Personal details
Darzi is of ArmenianArmenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
origin. He was born in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and then moved to Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Although he has become strongly identified with reform of the National Health Service
National Health Service (England)
The National Health Service or NHS is the publicly funded healthcare system in England. It is both the largest and oldest single-payer healthcare system in the world. It is able to function in the way that it does because it is primarily funded through the general taxation system, similar to how...
(NHS) in England, Darzi did not initially train within the NHS, as he studied medicine in the Republic of Ireland, at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland , is a Dublin-based medical institution, situated on St. Stephen's Green. The college is one of the five Recognised Colleges of the National University of Ireland...
, and subsequently obtained the postgraduate degree of MD
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
at Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
.
He moved to the UK from Ireland in 1990 to further his career in Surgery. In 1991 he was appointed as a consultant surgeon at Central Middlesex Hospital
Central Middlesex Hospital
Central Middlesex hospital is in the centre of the Park Royal business estate, on the border of two London boroughs, Brent and Ealing.-Hospital role:CMH is a teaching hospital of Imperial College School of Medicine and part of the...
at the age of 31 and then moved to St. Mary's Hospital in 1994. In 2002 He was awarded a knighthood for his services to medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
and surgery and subsequently elevated to peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
in 2007. He was appointed to Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council in June 2009.
He is married to Wendy with whom he has two children, Freddie and Nina.
Medical career
Darzi joined Imperial College LondonImperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
in 1994, obtained his Professorship in 1996 and became the Chair of Surgery and Head of Department in 1998. Darzi holds the Paul Hamlyn Chair of Surgery at Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
and the Institute of Cancer Research
Institute of Cancer Research
The Institute of Cancer Research is a cancer research institute located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. The ICR was founded in 1909 as a research department of the Royal Marsden Hospital and joined the University of London in 2003...
. He is also an honorary consultant surgeon at St Mary’s Hospital, and the Royal Marsden Hospital. He has held many senior administrative appointments within the Faculty of Medicine at Imperial College, Research Council
Research Council
The UK Research Councils, of which there are currently seven, are publicly-funded agencies responsible for co-ordinating and funding particular areas of research, including the arts, humanities, all areas of science and engineering...
, Editorial Board of Scientific Journals, and medical royal colleges
Medical Royal Colleges
There are a number of medical royal colleges in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Each is responsible for a different speciality within the medical field...
.
Darzi was educated in Ireland, awarded an MD from Trinity College Dublin and the Fellowships of essentially all the Royal Colleges in the British Isles (Ireland FRCSI, England FRCS, and both Scottish Colleges FRCSed, FRCPSG). He also holds the Fellowship of the American College of Surgeons
American College of Surgeons
The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913 to improve the quality of care for the surgical patient by setting high standards for surgical education and practice.-Membership:...
and has been elected as a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences
Academy of Medical Sciences
The Academy of Medical Sciences is the United Kingdom's national academy of medical sciences. It was established in 1998 on the recommendation of a group that was chaired by Michael Atiyah. Its president is John Irving Bell....
and more recently an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering
Royal Academy of Engineering
-Overview: is the UK’s national academy of engineering. The Academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors for a shared purpose: to advance and promote excellence in engineering....
as the first Surgeon ever granted this honour. From 2005 to 2008 he was president of Bath Institute of Medical Engineering (BIME). In December 2008 he received an Honorary degree
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
(Doctor of Engineering) from the University of Bath
University of Bath
The University of Bath is a campus university located in Bath, United Kingdom. It received its Royal Charter in 1966....
. In 2010 he was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, and an Honorary Fellow of the National Institute of Clinical Excellence.
Darzi’s main clinical and academic interest is in minimally invasive surgery and allied technologies in which he and his team are internationally recognized. He leads a team of researchers covering a wide spectrum of engineering and basic sciences research topics including Medical Image Computing, Biomedical Engineering, Clinical Safety, and Robotics. He has published more than 450 peer review papers and published 7 books.
This work has received international recognition including the Queens Anniversary Prize for Excellence in Higher and further education 2001, the Hamdan Award for Medical Research Excellence in 2004. In 2006 Darzi and his department were awarded the highly prestigious Rector’s Research Excellence Award for their work on Surgical Robots. He has also delivered many prestigious and named lectures around the globe.
Political career
On 29 June 2007 Darzi was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the House of LordsHouse of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
at the Department of Health
Department of Health (United Kingdom)
The Department of Health is a department of the United Kingdom government with responsibility for government policy for health and social care matters and for the National Health Service in England along with a few elements of the same matters which are not otherwise devolved to the Scottish,...
by the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
, Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
. He was duly raised to the peerage on 12 July 2007 as Baron Darzi of Denham, of Gerrards Cross in the County of Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
. His appointment was part of Gordon Brown's "Government of all talents."
Prior to his appointment in the House of Lords, in December 2006 NHS London asked Darzi to "develop a strategy to meet Londoners' health needs over the next five to ten years". The report Healthcare for London: A Framework for Action was published on 11 July 2007. Recommendations included the development of academic health science centres and the introduction of polyclinics.
As Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department of Health, Darzi was charged with leading a Review to determine the course of the NHS over the decade ahead, reporting back to the Prime Minister, Chancellor, and Secretary of State for Health in June 2008. The process was described as the “NHS Next Stage Review”.
Professor Darzi was quoted in The Times Newspaper as saying that “…his Review should be both clinically-led and evidence-based”. The final report of the Review, High Quality Care for All, was published in June 2008 to considerable public and academic acclaim. The Financial Times noted that it was “the world’s most ambitious attempt to raise the quality and effectiveness of an entire nation’s healthcare”. The Lancet acknowledged that:
"Darzi has wisely thrown out regulation as the organising principle of the NHS. He has replaced it with quality…This cultural shift is a radical re-visioning of purpose for the NHS—away from the political command and control of processes and towards professional responsibility for clinical outcomes."
Through his report, academics have suggested that Professor Darzi has updated traditional notions of professionalism and described a new accountability in clinical practice. Following publication, Professor Darzi remained in his ministerial post. At that time a Department for Health spokesperson was quoted as saying that his revised role would “…ensure the successful implementation of the Review’s conclusions. Notably, frontline clinical staff will be given more control over budgets, and his proposals will mean that every provider of NHS services will be required to publish Quality Accounts from April 2010”.
As a government minister, Professor Darzi found himself responsible for leading the passage of health-related legislation through the House of Lords.
Professor Darzi’s leadership as a health minister was the culmination of many years of involvement in health policy. Immediately prior to joining the government, Professor Darzi led a review of health services in London, identifying the opportunities to raise clinical quality across the capital. He was also National Advisor in Surgery to the Department of Health. Professor Darzi’s report in this role ‘Saws and Scalpels to Lasers and Robots: Clinical case for change’ (April 2007), argued for a change to the way surgery is organised in order to maximise patient benefits.
In June 2009 Professor Darzi was appointed as a member of Her Majesty’s Most Honourable Privy Council.
In July 2009, Professor Darzi relinquished his post as Parliamentary Under-Secretary in the Department of Health. The Prime Minister praised his “outstanding contribution”. and the Guardian noted that:
"Instead of waging war on the medics, as his Blairite predecessors had done, Darzi invited them to take a hand in designing their own targets and bound them into reform. He stressed the quality of care after Labour's decade-long obsession with quantity. And while the drive for private involvement continued, it took a less dogmatic turn. The NHS's morale improved, as did its public standing."
Following his resignation from Government, Professor Darzi returned to his clinical and academic work and has expanded his involvement in global health issues. In June 2010 he was appointed Chairman of the Institute for Global Health Innovation at Imperial College, a body dedicated to improving healthcare around the world and reducing health inequalities in developed and developing countries. In November 2010 he was appointed as a Business Ambassador for the UK by Prime Minister David Cameron.
External links
- Profile from Department of Health
- Department of Health Patient Access Survey
- http://www.netmums.com/coffeehouse/showthread.php?s=2025d0397511129b76dc842e7ca93ea2&t=104930Lord Darzi's involvement in internet discussion group NetmumsNetmumsNetmums is a UK based family of local websites set up and run by mothers. It includes a discussion forum and provides support and advice for parents on a national level...
] - Biography at the House of Lords
- NHS Confederation reports on The Next Stage Review
- NHS Employers report on workforce issues relevant to the Next Stage Review