Aileen Margaret Keel (born 12 August 1952) is a Scottish medical doctor and academic who is serving as the Director of the Innovative Healthcare Delivery Programme at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

. She previously served as the Deputy Chief Medical Officer for Scotland from 1999 to 2014 and served as the Acting Chief Medical Officer, until 2015. Born in Glasgow, she studied medicine at the

University of Glasgow Medical School The University of Glasgow School of Medicine, Dentistry & Nursing is the medical school of the University of Glasgow, Scotland, and is one of the largest in Europe, offering a 5-year MBChB degree course. The School of Medicine uses lecture-bas ...

. She worked in general medicine in Glasgow and Aberdeen, when she later moved to London to serve as the Director of Pathology and Consultant Haemotologist at the

Cromwell Hospital The Cromwell Hospital is a private sector hospital located in the South Kensington area of London. It is operated by international healthcare company Bupa. History The hospital, which was designed by Holder Mathias, was established by Bank of ...

. She returned to Scotland and served as the Senior Medical Officer at the

Scottish Office The Scottish Office was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom from 1885 until 1999, exercising a wide range of government functions in relation to Scotland under the control of the Secretary of State for Scotland. Following the es ...

. Following

Scottish devolution Scottish devolution is the process of the UK Parliament granting powers (excluding powers over reserved matters) to the devolved Scottish Parliament. Prior to the advent of devolution, some had argued for a Scottish Parliament within the United ...

, Keel was appointed the Deputy CMO for Scotland, holding the position until 2014 when she became CMO on an interim basis. She was seconded by the Scottish Government to the University, where she is the Director of the Innovative Healthcare Delivery Programme.

Early life and education

Keel was born in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

on 12 August 1952 to Everina and Walter Keel. She studied medicine at the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

graduating with a

MB ChB A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (; MBBS, also abbreviated as BM BS, MB ChB, MB BCh, or MB BChir) is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education tradi ...

in 1976.

Career

After graduating from university, Keel trained and worked in

general medicine Internal medicine, also known as general medicine in Commonwealth nations, is a medical specialty for medical doctors focused on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases in adults. Its namesake stems from "treatment of diseases of th ...

and

haematology Hematology ( spelled haematology in British English) is the branch of medicine concerned with the study of the cause, prognosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases related to blood. It involves treating diseases that affect the production ...

Glasgow Royal Infirmary The Glasgow Royal Infirmary (GRI) is a large teaching hospital. With a capacity of around 1,000 beds, the hospital campus covers an area of around , and straddles the Townhead and Dennistoun districts on the north-eastern fringe of the city cen ...

, the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Glasgow and

Aberdeen Royal Infirmary Aberdeen Royal Infirmary is the largest hospital in the Grampian area, located on the Foresterhill site in Aberdeen, Scotland. ARI is a teaching hospital with around 900 inpatient beds, offering tertiary care for a population of over 600,000 acr ...

. From 1987 to 1989, she was Director of Pathology and Consultant Haematologist at

, London. She was an honorary consultant in haematology and research fellow at Central Middlesex and Middlesex hospitals from 1988 to 1992. She returned to Scotland in 1992 to take up with position of Senior Medical Office at the

a post she held until her promotion in 1998 to Principal Medical Officer. In 1999 she was promoted to Deputy Chief Medical Officer for Scotland, and from 2014 to 2015 was Acting

Chief Medical Officer for Scotland In the United Kingdom, a chief medical officer (CMO) is the most senior government advisor on matter relating to health. There are four chief medical officers in the United Kingdom who are appointed to advise their respective governments: * His M ...

. Since 2015, Keel has been seconded from the

Scottish Government The Scottish Government (, ) is the executive arm of the devolved government of Scotland. It was formed in 1999 as the Scottish Executive following the 1997 referendum on Scottish devolution, and is headquartered at St Andrew's House in ...

to the

as Director of the Innovative Healthcare Delivery Programme. She is Chair of the Scottish Cancer Task Force and co-chair of Clinical Outcomes and Measures for Quality Improvement (COMQI).

Awards and honours

* Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Glasgow (1992) * Fellow of the

Royal College of Pathologists The Royal College of Pathologists (RCPath) is a professional membership organisation. Its main function is the overseeing of postgraduate training, and its Fellowship Examination (FRCPath) is recognised as the standard assessment of fitness to p ...

(1995) * Fellow of the

Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE) is a medical royal college in Scotland. It is one of three organisations that set the specialty training standards for physicians in the United Kingdom. It was established by royal charter i ...

(2005) *

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in the

Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning monarch's official birthday in each realm by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are ...

list (2008) * Fellow of the

Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The RCSEd has five faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical and healthcare specialities. Its main campus is locate ...

(2013) * Fellow of the

Royal College of General Practitioners The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is the professional body for general (medical) practitioners (GPs/ Family Physicians/ Primary Care Physicians) in the United Kingdom. The RCGP represents and supports GPs on key issues including ...

(2014) * Honorary Chair,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keel, Aileen 1952 births Living people Medical doctors from Glasgow Alumni of the University of Glasgow Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow Fellows of the Royal College of Pathologists Fellows of the Royal College of General Practitioners 21st-century Scottish women medical doctors 21st-century Scottish medical doctors Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Academics of the University of Edinburgh British haematologists Chief Medical Officers for Scotland Scottish women academics 20th-century Scottish women medical doctors 20th-century Scottish medical doctors