I have been a Consultant in the NHS since 1997. In the context of my full-time clinical posts I have also been active throughout this time in teaching, training, and research, all at both local and national levels. Alongside this I have held several other roles, relating both to operational service management and the strategic development of a broad range of services, including at Lead Clinician, Associate Medical Director, and Clinical Director levels. In addition, multiple roles within a range of national bodies, including the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Diabetes UK, the Department of Health, and NHS England / NHS Improvement. My clinical work has been in Liaison Psychiatry / Psychological Medicine, and I have been fortunate in being able to set up and develop a unique national inpatient service, for people presenting with particularly severe and complex cases of medically unexplained physical symptoms (the National Inpatient Centre for Psychological Medicine - NICPM, which continues to be the focus of my clinical work). Since April 2020 it has also been my privilege to be Lead for Mental Health (patients) and Psychological Care (staff) at the Nightingale Hospital (Y&H) in Harrogate (UK). I have introduced 24/7 liaison mental health coverage, alongside a comprehensive multi-tier system of psychological support for the staff of this new 500 bed critical care and general hospital facility. Working at pace and in rapidly established partnerships, in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, has demonstrated what can be achieved with a singularity of purpose, focused determination, and by removing all non-essential barriers. There are important lessons to be learnt from this, particularly relating to innovation in healthcare and specifically in the NHS.