Professor Peter A Brennan

Consultant Maxillofacial Surgeon and Honorary Professor of Surgery

Professor Peter Brennan is a Consultant Surgeon with an interest in head and neck cancer, working in Portsmouth, UK. He has a personal chair in Surgery in recognition of his extensive research and education profile. He is committed to education at levels and regularly teaches internationally (albeit virtually during the current pandemic). To date he has over 680 publications including more than 80 on human factors (HF) and patient safety. He is editor of 5 major specialty surgical textbooks and Lead Editor for the recently published Gray’s Surgical Anatomy, bringing the famous original Gray’s Anatomy book originally written for surgeons and published in 1858 to the 21st Century. The book begins with a chapter on HF and minimising error in the operating theatre.
He was elected to the Royal College of Surgeons of England Council in 2020 via the general voting route, a first for his specialty. His extensive HF work and unique collaborations with airline pilots, UK National Air Traffic Services (NATS) and the Red Arrows have resulted in many changes to practice, better team working, reducing hierarchy, patient safety improvements across medical specialties and healthcare. He is an advocate for equity, equality and valuing every team member.
In 2019, Peter was awarded a PhD entitled ‘Applying HF to Improve Patient Safety’ – likely to be unique in healthcare. He works with national organisations including the Royal Colleges of Surgeons, General Medical Council and Health Education England to help drive up safety and better working experiences for healthcare professionals.