Oxford consultant Dr Wale Atoyebi has been appointed to lead GIRFT’s sickle cell disease and thalassaemia workstream. 

Dr Atoyebi is a consultant haematologist at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and honorary senior clinical lecturer at Oxford University with 24 years of experience. He also serves as clinical lead for the Wessex and Thames Valley Haemoglobinopathy Coordinating Centre and has taken a lead role in the development of the network haemoglobinopathy service.  

As GIRFT clinical lead, he will work with specialist providers and wider services delivering SCD and thalassaemia care across England, with the aim of identifying and understanding variations in care and barriers to improvement and seeking out examples of best practice. 

Dr Atoyebi will visit SCD and thalassaemia service providers to understand where there are variations in care pathways and identify improvement opportunities before publishing a report on his findings and recommendations. GIRFT is working in collaboration with NHSE’s National Healthcare Inequalities Improvement Programme to address variations and agree bespoke and practical recommendations for enhancing service quality and outcomes. 

Dr Atoyebi trained in Nigeria and completed postgraduate haematology training in Oxford, including an LRF research fellowship. His expertise includes haemoglobinopathies, iron metabolism disorders, and diagnostics using the Oxford NGS iron regulatory panel. He also oversees global clinical trials in sickle cell disease.