Charlotte Dainter
Charlotte assumed the role of National Foundation Programme Manager with the transition of the UK Foundation Programme Office from Cardiff to Birmingham in September 2016.
She graduated with a BMus Honours degree from the University of Sheffield in 2008. She has since completed a PGDip in Health Promotion and Public Health at Birmingham City University and has most recently been awarded an MBA in Healthcare Management from Coventry University in 2016.
Charlotte leads the central administrative team. This team facilitates the operation and continuing development of the Foundation Programme, including the allocation of medical students to foundation training places.
Charlotte has a particular interest in working at national level. She continually seeks to identify improvements to facilitate recruitment and support the education and training needs of junior doctors.
Kata Várnai
Kata joined the team as Deputy Foundation Programme Manager in April 2020. She has worked in Healthcare Education and Training for over 10 years, first in the South Thames Foundation School and later as Health Education England’s E-portfolio Project Manager, responsible for England’s Horus ePortfolio for Foundation Doctors and for supporting e-portfolio development across HEE’s training programmes. She continues these workstreams as part of her role in the UKFPO.
Kata leads on the UKFPO’s faculty support, quality and assessment processes, working with senior clinical advisors and junior doctors to seek feedback on and share best practice regarding the delivery of UK foundation training.
Kata has a particular interest in developing and improving training and assessment processes to support junior healthcare professionals at national level and is an active member of various stakeholder forums focussing on both medical foundation training and e-portfolios across healthcare disciplines.
Jason Mistry
Jason joined the team as Deputy Foundation Programme Manager in June 2019 after moving from Quality and Commissioning within HEE. Before to joining the NHS, Jason worked in the private sector.
His previous experience includes working for Healthwatch Birmingham and Mental Health charities. Jason’s role is to support the team with operational oversight and work with our stakeholders on a wide range of projects.
Eliza Zeb
Eliza joined the UK Foundation Programme team in August 2017 as a Project Support Officer (Recruitment).
Before joining the NHS, Eliza graduated with a degree in Law (LLB) from Birmingham City University in 2016. Eliza’s background is in the private healthcare sector.
Eliza’s role includes supporting the Eligibility office, Stand-alone Recruitment, Academic Selection, and the FP Application Process. She is also involved in Oriel, Special Circumstances and Supporting Trainees Entering Practice (STEP). Eliza also provides general support to the rest of the team.
Denise Virgo
Denise Virgo is a programme administrator and joined the UKFPO team in January 2018. She provides secretariat support for numerous committee meetings. She also supports the team with national recruitment activities throughout the year. Prior to joining the NHS, she worked for Sandwell MBC as a member of the Domestic Abuse Team and has worked at Vielife, a health and wellbeing company, as well as pharmaceutical firm Pfizer.
Laci Samuel
Laci is a Programme Administrator and joined the UKFPO team in April 2020. She provides secretariat support for numerous committee and board meetings, as well as supporting the team with national recruitment activities throughout the year. Laci’s role includes supporting the Eligibility office, Sharing Best Practice, Improving Communications and UKFPO Website design, Special Circumstances, the Situational Judgement Test (SJT) and front of house support for applicants.