Adanna Williams
Deputy Director of Nursing Autism, Learning Disabilities, Mental Health & SEND- South-East Region for NHS England
NHS HEROS
Adanna currently works in NHS England as South East Regional Deputy Director of Nursing for Professional and Systems Development and has responsibility for Regional leadership of the Learning Disabilities, Autism, SEND and (interim) Mental Health. One of her Proudest achievements was working as one of 3 National Programme Leads for the Covid-19 Vaccination programme. Adanna is a registered mental health nurse practitioner and independent prescriber. She is also trained to deliver brief psychosocial interventions to those with serious mental illness.
Adanna is a Nursing Midwifery Council registered Mental Health Nurse and Non-Medical Prescriber with over 20 years’ NHS experience and over 7 years’ experience working at both strategic and operational levels in the NHS. Adanna believes that effective leadership in healthcare requires not only strategic acumen but also a deep commitment to the values of empathy, integrity, and collaboration.
Her leadership style emphasizes transparency, inclusivity, and a focus on achieving collective goals. Adanna lead teams, inspire innovation, and foster a culture of excellence in the boardroom and wider. She has developed bespoke & innovative services and solutions to bridge gaps in patient care. Achieved by providing subject matter expertise, strategic & policy advice; critically appraising business plans; defining the service specification for new clinical pathways, culture change & developing bespoke training plans. Leading to the achievement of safe & sustainable outcomes. She has led on organisational response to resolve high profile complex patient cases and system escalations. She also has supported systems and providers to improve their quality surveillance and standards by implementing changes to their system, policies & workforce strategic plans. Using her knowledge and experience to navigate complex and challenging relationships and environments, with successful outcomes. Adanna is passionate about contributing to equity, equality diversity and inclusion via her professional & lived experience.
Adanna is the South-East Region BAME Network Chair a role that enables her to proactively contribute to the organisation’s ambitions for equality diversity and inclusion. She is also passionate about nurturing BAME talent. Adanna has been providing leadership and consultation in our region on our Global majority Nursing strategy and wider policy and strategic work related to the Equality, Diversity, & Inclusion (EDI) agenda. Adanna was celebrated for her on-going leadership contributions to nursing during last years’ Black History Months activities. Adanna also has a growing international portfolio of charity work which is focused on being an ambassador for nursing, health education, equity, reducing health inequalities & stigma in the wider community. In April 2023 & 2024, I was a keynote speaker at the REYO Foundation Annual Autism & SEN Show in Ghana which led to recognition & engagement from the Ghana Ministry of Health & Education. For our efforts to transform health services and engage those in underserved areas. In March 2024, she was appointed as one of the UN Women UK delegate for the 68th Commission on the Status of Women. A role which speaks to her personal passion to lift other women as she too rise.