Sophia Varadkar appointed as Acting Chief Medical Officer

Originally from Dublin, Ireland, where she completed her undergraduate training, Sophia joined GOSH in 2001 as a resident doctor, completed her PhD at UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health and is a Consultant Paediatric Neurologist since 2008. She has had a number of leadership roles with us as Specialty Lead for the Epilepsy Unit and Children’s Epilepsy Surgery Service (CESS), Interim Divisional Director and Chief of Service. Sophia has been a Deputy Medical Director since 2020 and is an Honorary Associate Professor at UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health.

Sophia said: “I am proud to be stepping into the role of Acting Chief Medical Officer at Great Ormond Street Hospital. Having spent a large proportion of my career at GOSH, I know how important our hospital is in caring for some of the sickest patients in the country and leading research that has impacts for babies, children and young people around the world.

“I look forward to continuing the work of my predecessor, Professor Sanjiv Sharma, and working with all our staff to support the excellent patient care across the hospital.”

Mat Shaw, Chief Executive of Great Ormond Street Hospital, said: “We are delighted to have Sophia move into the role of Acting Chief Medical Officer at GOSH. She has a wealth of experience and knows the hospital well having served in a number of leadership positions across the Trust.

“Sophia’s decades of work focused on improving the lives of children with epilepsy has helped establish GOSH as a centre of excellence and she will be well placed to continue this work to help us deliver the best care to all our patients.”

Sophia will leave her role as Co-Medical Director of North Thames Genomic Medicine Service, which she had held since 2023 alongside Dr Angela George, with Angela continuing to hold the reins.

Sophia will be taking over from Professor Sanjiv Sharma, who will be joining Barts Health NHS Trust as Group Chief Medical Officer. Professor Sharma, joined GOSH in 2004, and has worked in a range of roles, from Specialty Lead to Deputy Medical Director and has made a great impact on the Trust throughout his tenure.

Sophia will be taking up the position on 17 March 2025 for one year.