Fellows Coordinating Committee

The Fellows Co-ordinating Committee is the decision making body for RCN Fellows and organises activities for RCN Fellows.

Members of the Committee are:

• Professor Daniel Kelly OBE FRCN - Chair

  Daniel was awarded an RCN Fellowship in 2016 and is currently the RCN Chair of Nursing Research at the School of Healthcare Sciences, Cardiff University, and is a registered adult nurse, registered educator and specialist practitioner in community nursing. 
  
  As Fellows' Convenor, Daniel's aim is to ensure that the role and profile of RCN Fellows is strengthened further to ensure that the RCN is advised effectively. He hopes to do this by bolstering the Fellows’ collective voice and orientating new Fellows into the role.
  
  

• Professor Sonja McIlfatrick MBE FRCN

  Sonja received her RCN Fellowship in 2020 and is currently a Professor of Nursing and Palliative Care and Dean of the Doctoral College at Ulster University. She previously held leadership roles as Head of School of Nursing at Ulster University and three joint academic and clinical roles with health care Trusts and the All-Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care, at regional and national level across the island of Ireland.
  
  Sonja obtained her PhD from Ulster in 2003 and continues to be an active researcher and educator. She was awarded an MBE in the 2022 New Year’s Honours list for ‘Services to education and public health’.
  
  

• Professor David Sines CBE FRCN

  Professor David Sines was previously Pro Vice Chancellor and Executive Dean and Professor of Community Health Care Nursing at the Faculty of Society and Health at Buckinghamshire New University. He held previous roles as Executive Dean for the Faculty of Health & Social Care at London South Bank University and as Head of School of Health Sciences at the University of Ulster.
  
  David obtained his PhD in social policy from the University of Southampton in 1993 and has held four Secretary of State appointments, including appointments to the UKCC and NMC. He has been a Governor of three NHS Foundation Trusts in London and a Non-Executive Director in two NHS Trusts in London and Buckinghamshire.
  
  David received a CBE in the 2010 Queen’s Birthday Honours List for ‘Services to Health Care’. He is employed as Emeritus Professor and Provost for Health and Social Care at Buckinghamshire New University. He is currently appointed as a professional advisor to Health Education England in London and is Chair of the Health and Social Care Academy in Buckinghamshire and works closely with primary care strategy and transformation in London.
  
  David is a Trustee with The Burdett Nursing Trust and is Patron with the Learning Disability Charity Choice Support and holds appointment as Honorary Vice President with the Northern Ireland Charity People and Professionals for Autism.
  
  David was appointed as Chair of the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners in 2018 and was previously appointed as Chair of the DH/Health Education England task force that developed education and training standards for the aesthetic sector between 2013 and 2016. He received his RCN Fellowship in 1989.
  
  

• Professor Pamela Smith MBE FRCN

  Biography to follow.
  
  

• Dr Alison Tierney CBE FRCN

  Alison’s long career in nursing research and education was based mainly in the Department of Nursing Studies at The University of Edinburgh. Her name also is known in connection with the Roper-Logan-Tierney textbooks and as a former Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Advanced Nursing. She has been a lifelong RCN member and became a Fellow in 1995. She is keen to help extend the work and influence of the Fellows Group.  
  
  

You can find out more about the Fellows Co-ordinating Committee by reading the terms of reference.