OUR STORY AND OUR PEOPLE
Back in 2008 Scotland, and in particular our home city of Glasgow, was one of the most violent places in Western Europe. Working in healthcare at that time could be soul destroying, we saw the same people coming back to our hospitals time and time again with injuries due to violence. Many of them were young people whose lives were permanently changed by their injuries. We were pretty good at patching people up and getting them back home yet we did nothing to prevent violence or to tackle some of the social issues that were, and still are, so often associated with it. We decided that had to change and so Medics against Violence was born.
We were founded by clinicians and remain true to our roots in health. We take an evidence based public health approach to the issue of violence in order to prevent it.
We work in the areas of primary, secondary and tertiary prevention through our school programmes, our domestic abuse training programme and our suite of Navigator programmes including Navigator, Youth Navigator, Family Navigator and School Navigator. We’ve expanded over the years from a small organisation with one staff member in 2008 to today where we employ nearly 40 staff and run programmes across Scotland.
We are fortunate to receive funding from the Scottish Government as one of their core funded violence prevention programmes but also from the NHS, CORRA, local ADPs and others, including all the amazing people who fundraise for us.
Our Board
Our board of trustees and directors oversee the governance of our charity and set our strategic direction. Some of our board members also volunteer their time and skills to support development of programmes, events, education, IT and evaluation.
Professor Christine Goodall OBE
Christine is Professor of Oral Surgery and Violence Reduction at the University of Glasgow and a consultant in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. Christine founded MAV in 2008 and supports programme development and evaluation.
Dr Michael Murray
Michael is a consultant neuroanaesthetist at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow and chairs our Board. He was one of our original volunteers and still enjoys visiting schools on our behalf.
Scott Diamond
Scott is a paramedic by background and currently works as a service manager in a local hospital.
Frances McLinden
Frances is a nurse by background and has recently retired from a long career in senior NHS management.
Our Senior Leadership Team
Our senior leadership team run our programmes and manage our team and resources.
David Duncan, CEO
David joined us as our first CEO in 2024 following a long and senior career in policing. David is qualified in law and has a breadth of experience in strategic leadership.
Geraldine Lennon, Head of Service
Geraldine joined Medics against Violence as a Navigator in 2016 and now leads all of our support services. She and is an Independent Domestic Abuse Advocate and regularly delivers domestic abuse training.
Alan Gilmour, Regional Supervisor
Alan joined us after completing his degree in Community Development at the University of Glasgow and was one of our first Navigators. Alan supervises our Youth Navigator service and supports our teams in Lanarkshire
Callum Hutchison, Regional Supervisor
Callum joined us after working as a mentor for another organisation. He supervises all of our staff in the adult Navigator service in Glasgow as well as our School Navigators. Callum developed the On the Edge programme and contributes to its ongoing development
Sharon McConnell, Regional Supervisor
Sharon joined us from a career as a manager in the care sector. She supervises our teams in Dundee, Edinburgh and Crosshouse.
Our Staff and Volunteer Teams
Our Board and Senior Leadership Team are supported by our Office Manager and her admin team who keep the wheels of all of our projects turning.
We have a team of over 30 Navigators, Youth Navigators, Family Navigators and School Navigators who make up our professional support work team and who support adults and young people in Emergency Departments around Scotland and schools.
Alongside our staff we also have a team of clinical volunteers who volunteer in our MAV Academy programme in schools. They deliver lessons to young people in S1, 2 and 3 on the health consequences of violence and how to keep themselves safe and also to senior Modern Studies and Criminology classes on the broader impact of violence.