Award-winning tech-powered home healthcare
provider boosts political and clinical bench strength with
appointment of Lord Wood, Hilary Evans, Benjamin Wegg-Prosser and
Samantha Jones
Cera is renewing its focus on reducing
hospitalisations and shortening A&E waiting times through its
predictive, preventative technology
Cera, the award-winning digital home healthcare provider, today
announces the appointment to its Advisory Board of four new
members: Lord Wood of Anfield, Hilary Evans, Benjamin Wegg-Prosser
and Samantha Jones.
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New advisory board members will play a
vital role in guiding Cera as it continues to evolve and refine its
services to meet the needs of our ageing population and relieve the
mounting pressure on the NHS (Graphic: Business Wire)
Collectively, these four individuals bring unrivalled expertise
in clinical research, social care transformation, policy and
business strategy to Cera, strengthening its position at the
forefront of health and social care innovation.
These new advisors will play a vital role in guiding Cera as it
continues to evolve and refine its services to meet the needs of
our ageing population and relieve the mounting pressure on the
NHS.
Cera’s predictive, preventative technology reduces the need for
hospitalisations by up to 70%, by predicting 83% of health
deteriorations and events such as falls, tracking symptoms,
enabling carers and nurses to respond to 5,000 high-risk alerts
each day and treating common conditions like UTIs from the comfort
of patients’ own homes.
The company’s AI-led technology predicts health deteriorations
30-fold faster than traditional care companies, meaning it has the
potential to prevent A&E visits, shorten waiting times and keep
patients out of hospital, creating a bold new model for the future
of healthcare provision.
Lord Stewart Wood of Anfield brings 20 years’ experience
working at the most senior levels in Westminster and Whitehall,
including nine years as Senior Special Advisor to Gordon Brown and
five years as a Senior Advisor to Ed Miliband. He was appointed to
the House of Lords in 2011 and is a Fellow of Magdalen College,
Oxford, and Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government. Lord Wood will
advise Cera as it continues to work collaboratively with government
and the NHS to build a healthcare system fit for the future.
Hilary Evans brings more than a decade’s experience
working as CEO of Alzheimer’s Research UK, where she has overseen
significant income growth, advancing the organisation’s vital
research. Ms Evans has also led Age UK’s campaigning work, is a
Member of the World Dementia Council and was appointed in March
2023 to co-chair the UK government’s National Dementia initiative,
which aims to draw lessons from the COVID vaccine taskforce to
accelerate dementia research. Ms Evans will work closely with Cera
as the company looks to build a more sustainable healthcare system
of the future for our ageing population, including advancing care,
research and treatment options for patients living with
neurodegenerative conditions.
Benjamin Wegg-Prosser is CEO and Co-Founder of advisory
firm Global Counsel, and brings rich experience working across
business, politics and the media, including two years as Director
of Strategic Communications for Tony Blair, as well as spells
working in the Department for Tech & Innovation and in Cabinet
Office. Mr Wegg-Prosser has also worked at The Guardian as
publisher of Society Guardian, where he worked closely with the
health and social care community. He will advise Cera on areas
including policy, and partnerships as the company looks to work
collaboratively across the sector to drive innovation and
transformation in health and social care.
Samantha Jones brings experience working at chief
executive level across both the public and private healthcare
sectors, managing multiple complex organisations across acute,
community and primary care as well as leading a national programme
prototyping future models of care. She was appointed as COO of the
new Office of the Prime Minister in 2022, having previously been
Boris Johnson’s Expert Advisor on NHS Transformation and Social
Care. Since leaving public office full-time, Ms Jones has been
appointed as the lead NED at the Department of Health & Social
Care. She is also a Trustee of the Alzheimer’s Society. Ms Jones
will strengthen Cera’s strategy to transform social care provision
across the UK, driving operational efficiencies, innovation and
improving the quality of treatments and care provision as Cera
continues in its mission to build a social care system fit for the
future.
Dr. Ben Maruthappu, Founder & CEO of Cera, said:
“Lord Wood, Hilary, Benjamin and Samantha will support us in our
mission to solve one of the major economic and societal challenges
of our time: how to build a sustainable healthcare system of the
future as our population ages and pressure on the NHS grows.
“Their strategic advice and counsel will be invaluable as we
work closely with government and the NHS to predict and prevent
illness, reduce hospitalisations, shorten waiting times, and
empower patients to live longer, healthier lives in their own
homes.
“We’re delighted to welcome them to our Advisory Board and look
forward to working with them to transform health and social care
through our technology and AI.”
About Cera:
Cera is a digital-first home healthcare company that harnesses
technology to bring care directly to homes, transforming the
healthcare landscape by providing higher quality services at a
fraction of the cost.
Cera’s carers and nurses now provide technology-enabled services
covering a population of 30 million people across the UK and
Germany. This amounts to 60,000 patient appointments a day in the
community, on behalf of governments, insurers, and the NHS –
equivalent in capacity to almost 100 hospitals.
With 150-fold growth in the past four years, Cera is one of
Europe's fastest-growing businesses, recently passing £300m in
annualised revenues. Cera has also gathered one of the largest home
healthcare datasets globally, powering the development of
cutting-edge AI products that have reduced hospitalisations by up
to 70%.
Consistently ranked as the UK's top HealthTech company, Cera’s
pioneering approach has been recognised by numerous industry awards
including Home Care Awards’ Most Outstanding Home Care Provider, a
top-ten position in Deloitte Fast 50 for three consecutive years,
and the prestigious Great British Entrepreneur of the Year award in
2023.
Cera was co-founded by entrepreneur, physician and policy expert
Dr Ben Maruthappu MBE. Its Advisory Board is Chaired by Sir David
Behan, the former CEO of the Care Quality Commission.
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Rose Wilkinson, Head of PR rose.wilkinson@ceracare.co.uk
+447878564258