NHS England CDIO Ming Tang announces departure

Ming Tang, interim chief digital and information officer (CDIO) at NHS England, has announced that she will leave her role in April. 

In an internal mail to staff, Tang, who also holds the role of chief data and analytics officer, said that after 16 years at NHSE “the time feels right for me to take some time out before embarking on a new challenge”.

She was appointed CDIO on an interim basis on 1 April 2025 following the departure of John Quinn, which was announced in January 2025.

In the email, Tang said: “I have genuinely loved my time at NHS England – from building a world-class data and analytics function, launching the Data and Analytics Academy, delivering the ambitious NHS federated data platform, setting out the vision for analogue to digital in the 10 year health plan, and mobilising the single patient record, to name but a few things –  these achievements have laid the foundations for a more connected, insight-driven NHS for patients.”

She adds: “The past few months have shown real promise on how we can work across digital, data and technology we have been engaging with the national programme teams to input to the vision and ambition to transform these services, showing the art of the possible if we embed digital, data and insights at the outset.”

Tang also acknowledges the role that digital and data teams played during the Covid-19 pandemic, “creating a world class NHS data store, supporting the establishment of OpenSAFELY, maintaining essential data and analytical capability at a time of national crisis, supporting the vaccination programme, and helping the system make decisions at unprecedented pace”.

“This truly showed the immense power data and analytics can have and now combined with digital capabilities the Transformation Directorate should be proud of its contribution to improvements in the NHS,” Tang says.

Tang will leave at the end of April 2026 and will work with Jules Hunt, interim director general for technology, digital and data, and her senior leadership team to transition her work.

Looking ahead, Tang said that the NHS is “once again at a time of great change, with digital, transformation and data at the centre of it”.

“Although the organisational context remains uncertain and challenging, these are undoubtedly exciting times.

“Collectively, the work you do will help to realise the three big shifts over the next decade, this includes the NHS App becoming the single, digital front door for citizens, the NHS federated data platform and single patient record streamlining how care is provided and empowering patients, our analytics team will ensure the NHS is more transparent than ever before driving improvement, AI expansion will reduce administrative burdens, speed-up clinical workflows and ultimately enabling more patients to receive the care they need and have a better experience of doing so,” Tang said. 

In her remaining months at NHSE, Tang said that she will focus on the development of the new operating model for delivering in partnership with the service reform priority programmes.

Meanwhile, Sonia Patel, chief technology officer for NHSE announced last week that she will leave her role in March.