Meet the Team

Dr Chris Kidson has been a full time consultant in cardiac and general paediatric intensive care at the Royal Hospital for Children Glasgow for over 15 years, having previously worked in Newcastle upon Tyne, Birmingham and Toronto, Canada.

He has long standing sub-speciality interests in palliative care; organ donation (transplantation); medical ethics and law, and the healthcare decision-making process particularly concerning critically ill children with complex life-threatening morbidities and dependency upon invasive burdensome therapies.

In 2010 Dr Kidson graduated from the University of Glasgow with a Masters in Medical Ethics and Law. He has published; is a regular peer reviewer for several academic journals; runs an undergraduate ethics course and has presented extensively – mainly in the disciplines of paediatric critical care, palliative care, ethics and organ donation.

Dr Kidson always aims to challenge current standards and stimulate thought in his quest to push the boundaries and ensure that the right decision is made, at the right time, by the right people interpreting the right evidence. Nothing is more important than ‘proxy decision-making for the dying child’ and the provision of ‘family-integrated, personalised, deliverable’ end-of-life care.’

Shelley leads the delivery of the network’s programme and links closely with the Clinical Lead to progress national priorities, ensuring work is coordinated, effective and aligned to the network’s core principles. As Programme Manager she is a lead author on projects to improve coordination between services, helping to strengthen integrated, person-centred care for children, young people, and families across Scotland. Shelley has worked for the Network since its inception, having previously worked as an Assistant Programme Manager and Programme Support Officer within the National Managed Diagnostic Networks. Shelley has an honours degree in Management and extensive experience in the public sector, including work in education services supporting children with additional needs. She is committed to quality improvement and managing change.

Chris joined NHS Scotland in 2020 and contributes to national programmes that support improvement and person-centred care across NHS Scotland. Alongside his NHS role, Chris is a qualified person-centred counsellor, providing inclusive, compassionate support through his Edinburgh-based practice. Drawing on both his NHS and therapeutic practice Chris brings a compassionate, values-driven approach, with a strong commitment to equity, collaboration and improving experiences for children, young people and families.