Peter Carter

Peter Carter, OBE, MCIPD is the General Secretary and Chief Executive of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) the world’s largest professional union of nurses and health care support workers. The RCN has a membership of 400,000 nurses, midwives, health visitors, nursing students, cadets and health care support workers.

Career

Before assuming the post of RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive in January 2007, Peter spent almost twelve years as the Chief Executive of the Central and North West London Mental Health NHS Trust, one of the largest mental health trusts in the UK with an operating budget of over £180 million and an international reputation. CNWL was awarded three stars by the Healthcare Commission and in Peter’s final year was awarded a rating of excellent for quality of care and good for use of resources. The Trust was the recipient of several awards related to standards of patient care and innovative staff initiatives. In January 2007, CNWL was voted in a poll by readers of the "Nursing Times" as the best mental health trust to work for the in UK.

Peter commenced his career by training as a psychiatric nurse at Hill End Hospital in St Albans for six years. He moved on to work at the then regional adolescent unit at Hill End Hospital where he undertook further training in family therapy and crisis intervention. Peter is also a general nurse and trained at St Albans City Hospital and the Institute of Urology in London. In addition he has held a number of clinical and managerial posts in Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and London.

Peter is a graduate and a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. He has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and a PhD – both from the University of Birmingham.

Peter has medico legal experience in a wide range of health related litigation issues, specialising in bio-mechanical injuries, homicides and suicides. He was co-author of an inquiry report into the homicide of a young woman in east London. Peter’s PhD thesis is entitled "Understanding reasons why nurses abuse patients in their care" and has lectured extensively on this issue. He has also lectured on leadership issues.

Peter was awarded the OBE for services to the [National Health Service|NHS] in the 2006 New Year’s Honours list.

Royal College of Nursing

Since becoming the General Secretary and Chief Executive of the RCN, Peter has restructured his top team and re-focused the organisation to address outstanding issues and the RCN will shortly produce its new strategic plan.

He succeeded Beverly Malone as General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing in January 2007.