Meet our team
Chairman
Dr Geoffrey W Guy - MB BS, LRCP MRCS, LMSSA, BSc, Dip Pharm Med.
Having qualified in medicine at St Bartholomew’s Hospice in London in 1979 Dr Guy has a wealth of experience in pharmaceutical medical research. He is Executive Chairman and Founder of GW Pharmaceuticals plc which he established to develop a portfolio of non-smoked, prescription cannabis-based medicines. Dr Guy lives with his wife and two children near Sherborne.
Chief Executive Officer
Ms Alison Ryan - MA (Oxon) MCMI
Ms Ryan obtained an MA in Philosophy, Politics and Economics at St Hilda’s College, University of Oxford and is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management. She initially worked in the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority but since1985 has held a number of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) roles within voluntary sector health and social care agencies, most recently as head of the Princess Royal Trust for Carers. She has been a non Executive Director of Somerset Partnership NHS Mental Health Trust and is a Non Executive Director of NHS Southwest. She has been CEO of Weldmar Hospicecare Trust since 2004.
Medical Director
Dr Richard Sloan - MB, BS; LRCP, MRCS; MRCGP; DA; DRCOG; FP Cert.
Dr Sloan has been the Medical Director at Joseph Weld Hospice since opening in1993. He attended Medical School at St Mary’s Hospital, London 1971-76, then trained for general practice before obtaining a partnership in Merseyside. During this time, he developed special interests in asthma and palliative care and was a part-time lecturer in the Dept of General Practice, Liverpool. After 8 years, he decided to enter palliative medicine full-time and trained as a Registrar at St Christopher’s Hospice, London from 1992-3. He is particularly interested in palliative care for non-malignant diseases and teaching communication skills. He has spoken at conferences internationally and had work published in several books on motor neurone disease.
Registered Manager and Director of Nursing
Ms Ruth Burnhill - RN HV DN MSc
Ms Burnhill, trained at St. Thomas’ Hospital, London, has pioneered the establishment of Hospices in Italy and has considerable experience in the development of hospice, hospital and home care specialist palliative care services. Her qualifications include a Diploma in Health Visiting and a Master’s Degree in 'Advanced Clinical Practice (Cancer Nursing)' from the University of Surrey in 1999. She has also had a range of articles published and made presentations on palliative care at Italian National Conferences. She has worked at the Trust since autumn 2004.
Director of Fundraising
Caroline Nickinson
Caroline Nickinson moved into charity fundraising in 1981 when she joined the Dorset Health Trust, a registered charity whose aim was, and still is, to improve medical facilities for people living in Dorset. Having headed fundraising appeals for various initiatives, including the Children’s Centre at Dorset County Hospital and the establishment of a Mammography Service in West Dorset, she was one of the three founding Trustees of the Joseph Weld Hospice and was closely involved in its establishment. She was Appeal Director for the capital appeal for the hospice and became its Director of Fundraising when it opened in 1994. She has continued in this role throughout the two mergers and now holds this post for Weldmar Hospicecare Trust. Her work in fundraising in the county was recognised in 2002 when she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Arts by Bournemouth University.
Director of Finance
Sheena Keep
Sheena Keep has been Finance Director of Weldmar Hospicecare trust since 2004, having previously been Finance Manager of CancerCare Dorset since April 2002. A chartered accountant, she trained with Ernst & Young in Birmingham where she qualified in 1986. After a few years in their small business department, where she gained experience in all areas of accountancy and taxation, she became company accountant with a manufacturing company in Warwickshire for 12 years. She relocated to Dorset in 2002 for family reasons.
Human Resource Director
Elaine Cromwell
In her early working life Mrs Cromwell held a number of senior secretarial/personal assistant and office management roles, which gradually became increasingly focused on HR. She now brings fifteen years of HR experience to Weldmar, eleven of which were spent in the commercial sector working for an international Danish company. In 2005, she joined St Margaret’s Somerset Hospice, implementing a comprehensive HR strategy for the whole work force and centralizing the HR function. Since July 2006, her time and expertise has been shared between St. Margaret’s and Weldmar Hospicecare Trust.
