Chief Medical Officer

Job Title

Chief Medical Officer (CMO)

Reporting To

Head of Health Operations

Direct Reports

Medical Director – Hybrid Health, Medical Director – Digital  Health

Contract Type

Full-time, Permanent

Location

Remote

Date

September 2026

Organisation Context

We are a rapidly scaling hybrid healthcare provider operating both an online telehealth platform and a network of three newly launched physical GP clinics. Our mission is to deliver accessible, high-quality medical care through both digital and in-person channels. Following recent structural growth, we are seeking an experienced Chief Medical Officer to assume enterprise-wide clinical leadership, governance, and strategic oversight across the full dual-channel model.

Role Purpose

The Chief Medical Officer holds ultimate accountability for clinical safety, governance, and quality across the organisation. The CMO is the clinical peer of the Head of Health Operations, co-driving enterprise strategy while ensuring all medical activity — whether delivered digitally or in-person — meets the highest standards of patient safety, regulatory compliance, and operational excellence.

Key Responsibilities

1.  Clinical Governance & Safety

Clinical Standards Ownership: Establish, mandate, and continuously review clinical protocols, treatment pathways, and safety frameworks applicable to both telehealth and physical clinic environments.

Incident & Risk Management: Act as the responsible person for all serious clinical incidents, near misses, and patient safety events. Support root cause analysis and oversee implementation of remedial action plans with our Medical Director team.

Regulatory Compliance: Serve as the primary liaison with the Medical Council, HIQA, HSE, and all relevant healthcare regulatory bodies to guarantee full and current compliance across all service lines.

Medical Indemnity Oversight: Maintain awareness of indemnity obligations across the clinical workforce; escalate and manage high-risk legal or medico-legal exposures in conjunction with legal counsel.

2.  Medical Complaints Escalation

Complaints Authority: Hold executive accountability for all formal medical complaints escalated by Medical Directors through either channel, ensuring responses meet required timelines.

3.  Doctor Query Management

Senior Clinical Escalation Point: Act as the ultimate escalation for clinical queries from the doctor cohort that cannot be resolved at Tier 1 or Tier 2 level — particularly complex, rare, or multi-system presentations.

Clinical Decision Support: Provide senior medical guidance on ambiguous or high-risk cases, balancing clinical best practice with the realities of remote or time-pressured consultation.

4.  Complex Patient Query Management

High-Risk Patient Oversight: Provide clinical input on complex, multi-morbid, or medically vulnerable patients flagged by the Medical Director team — including patients with mental health crises, chronic disease exacerbations, or safeguarding concerns.

Medico-Legal Patient Cases: Lead the clinical response where patient care has legal implications — including subject access requests, coroner inquiries, or litigation.

5.  New Service Review & Clinical Feasibility

Clinical Sign-off: Review and formally approve all proposed new service lines, clinical products, or care pathways before launch.

Feasibility Assessment: Evaluate clinical safety, regulatory permissibility, workforce readiness, and evidence base for proposed services.

Market & Regulatory Horizon Scanning: Stay abreast of evolving healthcare regulations, NICE/NCEC guidance, and market developments to proactively identify opportunities and risks for the service portfolio.

6.  People Leadership & Clinical Culture

Performance Framework: Oversee performance management of the senior clinical leadership tier (Medical Directors).

Culture & Wellbeing: Champion a culture of psychological safety, openness to clinical learning, and zero tolerance for unsafe practice.

7.  Board, Executive & External Representation

External Clinical Voice: Represent the organisation externally with regulators, healthcare commissioners, media, and clinical stakeholders.

Strategic Co-Leadership: Act as clinical co-owner of the organisational strategy alongside the Head of Health Operations, ensuring commercial ambitions remain grounded in patient safety.

Person Specification

Essential

Qualifications: Primary medical degree (MB BCh BAO or equivalent). Full registration with the Irish Medical Council.

Clinical Experience: Minimum 10 years post-graduate clinical experience, with significant time in General Practice. Breadth across multi-morbidity and complex case management.

Leadership Experience: Demonstrable track record in a senior clinical leadership or medical management role, including direct line management of doctors.

Governance & Complaints: Hands-on experience managing clinical complaints, conducting or overseeing root cause analyses, and engaging with regulatory bodies.

Telehealth Familiarity & Advocacy: Practical experience of digital health delivery or strong demonstrable understanding of the clinical governance challenges specific to remote consultation.

Desirable

Service Development: Experience designing and launching new clinical services or care pathways.

Postgraduate qualification: Qualification in management, healthcare leadership, or clinical governance desirable.