On Saturday, 19th September, UCD Leadership in Healthcare Network will host an online conference titled “The Leadership during a Pandemic: Charting a course for healthcare, society and the economy”. This conference is a collaboration between UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School and the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland in partnership with Roche.

This virtual conference aims to bring health and business leaders together to examine the first wave of COVID-19 in Ireland from both a healthcare delivery and organisational standpoint, and to gain further understanding into emerging aspects of the societal and economic fallout from the pandemic in Ireland.

Speakers at the conference include a long list of healthcare and business industry experts in Ireland, including: Dr Ronan Glynn, Acting Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health; Dr Colm Henry, Chief Clinical Officer, HSE; Finbarr Kenny, Director of Ireland, Roche Diagnostics; and Dr Nuala O’Connor, ICGP Lead COVID-19. Speakers will discuss a number of relevant themes related to tackling COVID-19 over the coming months, including the need for truly integrated healthcare solutions, the importance of rebuilding the economy to ensure progression in healthcare on a national level, and solutions to overcome the current crisis in Ireland caused by the global pandemic.

Discussing the conference Professor Gerardine Doyle, Director of UCD Smurfit School, stated

“Ireland is widely regarded as having prepared for and responded well to the pandemic. This came about by exemplary leadership in many sectors to find solutions to seemingly unfathomable problems. They innovated quickly, responded to issues as they occurred and remained flexible to a rapidly changing environment. The objective of the conference is to bring these leaders together to learn from the last six months and reflect on how our leaders from across sectors may collaborate to chart our road to recovery for the coming months and years ahead. We want to conclude our conference with imperative public policy implications which our UCD Leadership in Healthcare Network can advance for our future.”

The Conference will be co-chaired by Prof. Gerardine Doyle, Director, UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School and Prof. Mary Horgan, President, Royal College of Physicians of Ireland; along with co-founders of the UCD Leadership in Healthcare Network, UCD Executive MBA Alumni Dr Knut Moe, GP; and Sinead Ryan, Pharmacist. Prof. Doyle, Dr Moe and Ms Ryan identified the potential for a UCD Smurfit School graduate network from across the healthcare sector and established the UCD Leadership in Healthcare Network in January of this year to facilitate collaboration and knowledge sharing between professionals with an interest in both healthcare and leadership. This network aims to join the extensive networks and alumni in UCD’s business, medicine and healthcare faculties, to develop and enhance meaningful solutions to society’s most pressing challenges.

Discussing the network, Professor Mary Horgan said,

“Little did we realise when setting up this network just how relevant it would become with the emergence of COVID-19. The pandemic and its rapid evolution called upon those in healthcare, as well as nearly all other sectors, to rapidly adapt in response to the virus. Red tape and bureaucracy were swapped for innovation and adaptability. We believe that there should be early engagement between the disciplines of business in third-level education and of medical professionals, as a way to prepare healthcare leaders to successfully collaborate, innovate and share experiences to enable excellence in leadership.”

This conference marks the inaugural event of the UCD Leadership in Healthcare Network.
The event will be streamed live on Saturday, 19th September 2020, from 9:00 am – 2:00 pm.
Business and medical professionals are invited to attend the online event and can register here.