LONDON—Edelman has appointed Paul Gittins as group managing director of the firm UK’s health and bioscience practice. Gittins will take over from Steven Spurr who is currently also Edelman UK’s chief operating officer. Spurr will move into the COO role full-time and will also take on the role of chairman of the UK health practice.

Currently, Gittins is managing director of Red Health at the Red Consultancy, having established the unit with colleague Pat Pearson in 2007. He has a background in pharmacology and has spent his career driving award-winning health campaigns at a global and UK level, providing strategic consultancy to leading pharmaceutical companies, charities and trade bodies.

Earlier, he worked at Ruder Finn and Manning Selvage & Lee.

Over the last five years, Edelman’s health practice has grown to more than 70 consultants and diversified to offer dedicated specialist teams in consumer health, medical education, health public policy, and market access as well as its core pharma communications offering.