HEALTH Secretary Jeane Freeman has appointed a new interim chairwoman to "stabilise and transform" the NHS Lothian health board.
Esther Roberton has been chosen as a temporary replacement for Brian Houston, who quit citing "irreconcilable differences" with the Health Secretary.
Freeman refused to elaborate on Houston's resignation when questioned in Parliament last week, saying she would not get into a "tit for tat" exchange.
READ MORE: Jeane Freeman defends refusing to say why NHS boss quit
On Tuesday, Freeman said "I'm pleased to announce that Esther Roberton will be taking up the role of interim chair of NHS Lothian.
"As a former chair of NHS 24 and NHS Fife, and current senior governor of the University of Aberdeen, Esther has considerable experience and a long-standing commitment to public service, and the social and economic development of Scotland.
"She will play a significant role in helping to stabilise and transform the board and turn around performance, and I look forward to working with her as work continues to deliver the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People and department of clinical neuroscience."
Asked by Scottish Labour's Daniel Johnson about the reasons Houston quit last week, Freeman said: "My view as the Cabinet Secretary is that I expect leadership across our NHS to accept proper accountability for the failures and the decisions and the actions and the performance of individual boards - just as I accept accountability overall for how our NHS is performing.
"If our individual leader does not accept that accountability, does not agree with me that is part of their role ... then that is a situation where we're not going to productively work together."
His resignation followed the announcement that the health board's chief executive Tim Davison was to leave the "often unforgiving role" after eight years.
Davidson, who revealed his intention to stand down in August, said: "It has been a huge privilege to have played my part in the leadership of one of Scotland's best-loved public services and to complete my career with eight years at the helm of the NHS board serving Scotland's capital city and the surrounding Lothians.
"I am looking forward now to having time to pursue my many outside interests and to handing the baton of responsibility over to my successor to take NHS Lothian forward into the new decade.
"I would like to thank my board, my leadership team and the wider staff body in NHS Lothian for their unfailing support in what many recognise is a pretty demanding and often unforgiving role."
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