Director of Finance and IT
Director of Finance & IT – Mr Paul Nicholson
Mr Paul Nicholson was appointed to the position of Interim Director of Finance & ICT for NIAS in July 2019. Prior to that he held the post of Assistant Director of Finance since 2002. He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance & Accountancy (CIPFA) and, prior to moving to Northern Ireland, held a number of senior positions in the NHS in the North West of England.
Director of Operations
Rosie Byrne Director of Operations
Rosie Byrne
Director of Human Resources and Corporate Services
Michelle Lemon Director of Human Resources and Corporate Services
Michelle worked in HR and Training in the private sector prior to joining NIAS in 2001 as Equality Manager, establishing an equality function for the first time in the organisation. She progressed to the role of Assistant Director of HR; Equality, PPI and Patient Experience and has since undertaken the role of Director
of Human Resources in NIAS on a temporary basis on a number of occasions over the past 6 years.
From October 2018-December 2019, Michelle moved to work on attachment to the Department of Health to lead on specific workforce policy work streams, including the recent NIAS pay agreement and contributing to the planning for the introduction of a BSc in Paramedic Science in Northern Ireland.
Michelle’s academic and professional background has included holding a BSSc (Hons), CPP with Associate membership of CIPD and she is currently in the final year of studying for an MSc in Business Improvement. She is a Former board member of Employers for Disability.
Medical Director
Nigel Ruddell Medical Director
Dr Nigel Ruddell was appointed as Medical Director in November 2018, having previously held the position of Assistant Medical Director from January 2009. He graduated from Queens University Belfast in 1992 and trained in the Ulster Hospital Dundonald before working for nine years as a General Practitioner in
Dromara, County Down. He has always had a keen interest in prehospital emergency care and has responded as a voluntary BASICS doctor alongside NIAS since 2000.
Nigel is an examiner for the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and a lecturer with the British Association for Immediate Care. He is a member of the MCUI (UC) Medical Team providing emergency care at local motorcycle racing and equestrian events. Within NIAS he has a particular interest in the provision of medical equipment and emergency drugs as well as major incident management and emergency triage, and is Medical Director for the Northern Ireland HEMS service and regional advisor for the Hazardous Area Response Team.
Director of Planning, Performance & Corporate Services
Maxine Paterson was appointed to the position of Director of Planning, Performance and Corporate Services in April 2020. Maxine joined the public sector to the HSC via the Business Services Organisation in 2013 having held the position of Head of HSCNI, HR and Finance Shared Services since 2016. Prior to that held a number of operational management positions with the shipping and logistics industry. Maxine holds a Degree in Business Management and a Post Grad Diploma in Contact Centre Management