Management Structure

The Royal Hospital Donnybrook (RHD) is one of the oldest continuously operating hospitals of its type in Ireland.  It is an independent, voluntary hospital run on a strictly no-profit basis.   Established in 1743, it became a corporate body with its Royal Charter in 1800.  The latest amendment to the charter was in 1991, which gave the hospital its current name and refined governance structures.

The primary governing body is the Board of Management.  This Board comprises a mix of Governors of the hospital and up to five members from public bodies such as Councillors of Dublin City Council (for their term of office).  This Board work in an entirely voluntary capacity, taking on corporate responsibility for the hospital whilst giving freely of their time and skills to fulfil the mission of the hospital. 

The Honorary Officers of the Board are:

Chairman:   Frank Cunneen
Vice-Chairman:   Jerry Kelly
Honorary Treasurer:  Michael Forde

Contact: CEO’s Secretary, Denise Heffernan at 01-4066629 or dheffernan@rhd.ie

Day to day management of the hospital is delegated by the Board to the Chief Executive Officer.

View / download organisational chart Organisational Chart

Management

Chief Executive Officer - Graham Knowles
Graham originally trained as a mental health nurse in the UK and specialised in rehabilitation.   He held various operational and strategic managerial positions in both provider Trusts and Health Authorities in South East England, and was Director of one of the largest Health Authorities in the country.   He moved to Ireland in 2002 and pursued various personal interests before returning to the health sector full time at The Royal Hospital Donnybrook in 2005.   He completed an MSc in Care Policy and Management at the London Guildhall University and MBA (Health Executive) at Keele University.

Contact: dheffernan@rhd.ie or 01-4066629

Medical Director - Dr. Lisa Cogan
Dr. Lisa Cogan joined the hospital in November 2009. She completed her training in Geriatric and General Internal medicine and is on the Specialist Registrar. Her clinical and research areas of interest have been into orthogeriatric rehabilitation, A&E avoidance for the elderly and falls. She has a Masters in Geriatric Medicine (Keele UK) and is completing a PhD programme at the Department of Gerontology at TCD. She is particularly interested long term care and adherence to HIQA standards, further utilisation of rehabilitation, and teaching of the medical students.

Contact: medicaladmin@rhd.ie or 01-4066639

Director of Nursing - Olivia Sinclair
Olivia Sinclair trained as a general nurse in St.Vincent’s University Hospital.  After qualifying, she worked as a staff nurse in St. Vincent’s in several areas including caring for patients with respiratory illness and Cystic Fibrosis.  She joined The Royal Hospital Donnybrook in 2002 as a staff nurse on continuing care and subsequently held the positions of Clinical Nurse Manager at Grade 1, 2 and 3.  She became Assistant Director of Nursing in 2008 and Director of Nursing in July 2010.  She has a BSc. in nursing management and an MSc in Healthcare Management.

Contact: osinclair@rhd.ie or 01-4066716  lhanrahan@rhd.ie or 01-4066640

Financial Controller - Paul Flood
Paul Flood, FCA, joined The Royal Hospital Donnybrook as financial controller in early 2009. A native of County Down, he graduated from Queens University Belfast in 1983 with a degree in mathematics, statistics and operational research. After this, he qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Deloitte & Touche in Dublin. On leaving Deloitte & Touche as an assistant manager, he worked in a variety of jobs. He was the financial director of a bloodstock, purchasing & sales, shipping & insurance company. He helped set up and was a shareholder and financial director in a travel agency in Kildare. Most recently, he worked in the not for profit sector as financial controller and company secretary of the registered charity, the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Ireland, a position he held for six years. During his time in the charity, he also held the position of acting chief executive for a number of months.

Contact: pflood@rhd.ie or 01-4066613

Human Resources Manager- Mary Hansell
Mary joined the organisation in June 2007.  Having completed her Bachelor of Commerce Degree in University College Dublin, specialising in Industrial Relations and Personnel Management. Mary worked in the areas of banking, law and industry, both at local and international level, before her move to the healthcare sector.

Contact: hr@rhd.ie or 01-4066743

Allied Health Services Manager - Heather Walsh
Heather, Manager of the Occupational Therapy Department, holds the post of Allied Health Services Manager, overseeing all the Allied Health Professions in The Royal Hospital Donnybrook.  She trained as an Occupational Therapist in Dublin before working in key positions in the UK NHS.  She brings a wide range of experience to her new post.

Contact: hwalsh@rhd.ie or 01-4066607

Conor Leonard
Conor Leonard was appointed Operations Manager at The Royal Hospital Donnybrook in 2000 and is currently on secondment to the HSE to work on the national implementation of new government policy.  Originally trained as an Occupational Therapist (OT) in Northern Ireland, he worked in the UK and Australia before coming to Dublin to undertake a Masters Degree in Public Health.   He subsequently worked in health services research in Ireland before returning to OT as Head of Department at the RHD.   He has an MBA in Health Services Management from the RCSI/UCD.