About

The former chair of the MSG, Dr Yarwood has been a Consultant Anaesthetist here since 1996 and was the Clinical Lead for ICU before becoming chair in 2017.

He trained as an undergraduate at the Medical College of St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, where he qualified as a doctor in 1985.

A period working on a high dependency unit as a junior doctor at Bart’s, looking after renal transplant and major vascular surgery patients, fostered his decision to choose a career in intensive care.

He trained at leading teaching hospitals in London, including Bart’s, UCL, the Brompton and Great Ormond Street Hospitals, and carried out research as a Fellow of the Intensive Care Society.

Dr Yarwood is a Fellow of The Royal College of Anaesthetists and of the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine and on the specialist register of the GMC. He is a Member of the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland, the Intensive Care Society and the British Medical Association.

He was the first Director of Intensive Care at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital, introducing new therapies, such as haemofiltration for kidney failure, to support critically ill patients locally and reduce the need for off-island transfer.

Under his direction, a sophisticated programme of continuous audit of Intensive Care was set up, monitoring and facilitating the care offered to critically ill patients. Patient outcomes have been consistently excellent, with less than half of predicted mortality for each of the last 10 years.

For many years he has been an Honorary Consultant in Intensive Care at St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London, a link which helps him to maintain his specialist skills in this complex area.

His anaesthetic interests include the management of patients undergoing complex major surgery. He retains regular involvement in all aspects of general anaesthesia, but has a special interest in paediatrics, including for MRI.

Outside work, family life, bringing up and supporting his four children, has been his primary focus until very recently with the youngest reaching adulthood. Dr Yarwood is a sporty person who used to love playing rugby until a knee injury, but still follows it keenly locally and on TV.   Born and raised in Leicester, he follows closely Leicester Tigers and Leicester City, providing many highs and lows.  He enjoys cycling, walks in the country and sea swimming, though not all year round. Off island he’s a passionate skier and snowboarder.    

“I like the challenge of the variety of patients we get on ICU and I enjoy the detail of the physiological support optimisation. It’s rewarding when we get good outcomes from sick patients and when we can’t, we can focus on treating with dignity and supporting next of kin.”