The local doctor and former chair of the Government’s Health Select Committee was MP for Totnes from 2010 to 2019.
She was first elected for the Conservative Party but later switched allegiances to Change UK before joining the Liberal Democrats in August 2019.
In September, Dr Wollaston was appointed a non-executive director to the board of Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Torbay Hospital.
Her latest appointment is as interim chair of the Integrated Care System for Devon (ICSD).
Dr Wollaston, a practising GP in Devon, succeeds Dame Suzi Leather, who has chaired the Devon health and care system since 2018.
Dame Suzi said: “Sarah’s appointment is very good news for patients, carers and everyone working in health and social care in Devon.
“Sarah comes with a professional lifetime’s experience as a GP, which, combined, with her time as a local MP, including chairing the House of Commons Health Select Committee, makes her a knowledgeable, experienced leader with a reputation commensurate with the ICS chair role.”
Dr Wollaston has worked in hospital and primary care settings and returned to clinical practice during the pandemic as a GP and to help with the COVID vaccination programme.
She was recently awarded an honorary fellowship of the Royal Society of Medicine in recognition of her work in public health and scrutiny of health policy.
Dr Wollaston said: “I am really looking forward to joining the Integrated Care System for Devon as interim chair.
“I would like to thank Dame Suzi for her exceptional work in establishing and maintaining solid partnerships across our health and care system and for her tireless dedication to improving the health, care and wellbeing of people in Devon.
“I would also like to thank everyone in our health and care services for their unstinting commitment, hard work and resilience.
“I have seen from my own frontline experience through the pandemic that the pressures are intense and that there is a long road ahead.
“Our ICS will play an important role in helping Devon’s health and care system to recover from the impact of the pandemic and in serving our communities by planning future services.
“I’m aware the system faces significant challenges, and only by working together and sharing our collective expertise and resources will we successfully rise to those challenges.”
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