Dr Claire Bethune, MRCP MRCPath
QPIDS clinical lead

Dr Bethune is clinical lead for the Immunology and Allergy services in Plymouth and has developed regional home therapy programmes for both immunoglobulin replacement in antibody deficiency and for acute treatment of attacks of hereditary angioedema.  Dr Bethune is also lead clinician for the diagnostic immunology laboratory service in Plymouth.

An enthusiastic teacher, she has developed courses for GPs and medical students in the South West and has been invited to lecture at national and international meetings. As a member of the UKPIN committee, Dr Bethune took on responsibility for the programme organising accreditation of immunodeficiency centres in 2011 and has worked with the Royal College of Physicians to develop the QPIDS accreditation scheme.

Christine Symons, Nurse advisor

Nurse consultant at Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust 

Christine is a consultant nurse for immunology and allergy at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth where she was among the wave of new Immunology and Allergy Specialist nurses in the UK 20 or so years ago. She set up the home therapy service for Devon and Cornwall and now oversees the expanded nurses’ team. In 2009,  she completed her MSc in Allergy and is a non-medical prescriber, routinely prescribing for immune deficiency and allergy patients.

She sits on the Medical Advisory Boards of HAEUK and UKPIPS and has acted as Chair for HAE-INO, and for SWWING. Christine is an honorary university fellow with University of Plymouth Peninsula school of medicine and dentistry and has been involved in a number of published research projects, clinical trials and audits.

Dragana Smith
Programme manager

Dragana is the programme manager for the QPIDS programme. She is responsible for the delivery and development of three accreditation programmes - Improving Quality in Liver Services (IQILS), Quality in Primary Immunodeficiency Services (QPIDS) and Improving Quality in Allergy Services (IQAS). Each programme offers a robust accreditation pathway for the relevant sectors with the aim of improving the quality of clinical services throughout the UK.

Previously, Dragana has worked in the fields of legal practice and medical education. She has a background in accreditation and standards development in charitable and membership organisations where the focus is on making a difference to the quality of learning and improving healthcare.

Laura Bewley

 Programme coordinator

Laura is the programme coordinator for the IQAS and QPIDS programmes and is responsible for managing assessments and supporting services on their accreditation journey.

Before starting work at the Royal College of Physicians Laura worked in education as a teacher, prior to this Laura worked within the events industry after graduating from Falmouth University.

 Joel McKevitt

Programme administrator

Joel is the Programme Administrator for the IQAS and QPIDS programmes. He is responsible for supporting services gain accreditation on their pathway and he will be leading on service invoicing. In addition to this role, he will also be the programme administrator for the IQILS programme.

Before Joel joined the Royal College of Physicians, he worked within an administrative role in a legal firm and graduated from the University of Liverpool studying Communications and Media.

Dimple Keen
Accreditation Unit Manager, RCP

Dimple is the Accreditation Unit Manager at the Royal College of Physicians where she oversees a varied portfolio of clinical service accreditation programmes. The RCP's accreditation activities include the JAG endoscopy, the Pulmonary Rehabilitation, the IQILS Liver, IQAS allergy and the QPIDS primary immunodeficiency programme. 

Before joining the Royal College of Physicians, Dimple worked at the Health Foundation on a UK-wide improvement initiative. Dimple has spent the majority of her career working in the NHS as an operational manager in services including oncology, respiratory medicine, digestive diseases and the emergency department. She has a particular interest in service improvement and engaging junior doctors in management.

You can follow Dimple on Twitter: @Dimple_Health