The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has appointed Professor Sir Munir Pirmohamed as a trustee to its governing board.
Sir Munir is the David Weatherall Chair in Medicine at the University and a Consultant Physician at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital. He is also Director of the MRC Centre for Drug Safety Science, and Director of the Wolfson Centre for Personalised Medicine. He was knighted for his services to medical research in 2015.
Sir Munir said: “I am delighted to join the British Heart Foundation’s Board. These are challenging times for all charities including the BHF, but the important work that it undertakes must be supported and upscaled to ensure that it meets the targets set out in its strategy to 2030. It is a great privilege and honour to have a chance to contribute to the world-class work of the BHF.”
Sir Munir is one of three new trustees joining at a critical time for the BHF. The charity projects a 50 per cent fall in its net income this financial year due to the to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on its fundraising and retail activities. As a result, it expects to cut its budget for new research by around £50 million this year. It’s now calling for urgent Government and public support to maintain the progress of its vital research.
The British Heart Foundation is governed by a Board of Trustees composed of 14 members, half of whom are lay members and half medical.