A retired consultant in chemical pathology is joining Airedale NHS Foundation Trust as a non-executive director.

Dr Michael Toop, 59, who managed the chemical pathology department at Harrogate Hospital for 25 years, also has an interest in diabetes and hyperlipidaemia.

He replaces Jeff Colclough, who has retired after seven years at Airedale.

Dr Toop’s early career was spent as a junior surgeon at Frimley Park Hospital in Surrey then as a junior doctor at St Thomas’s Hospital, London.

He worked in various specialties at Leicester Royal Infirmary before being appointed registrar in chemical pathology and training as a senior registrar in Birmingham.

Dr Toop was appointed consultant at Harrogate in 1986 and played a key role in taking the hospital through to Foundation Trust status.

During his career he held a number of formal positions with the Royal College of Pathologists and Association for Clinical Biochemistry, and is currently a volunteer member of a working group for Yorkshire Cancer Research.

Since retiring, he has been working on an Open University degree in philosophy, politics and economics.

Colin Millar, chairman of Airedale NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We are delighted with the appointment of Dr Toop. He will be a strong addition to our board and will bring with him a breadth of clinical knowledge from his successful medical career alongside management and leadership expertise.”