Meet national and regional healthcare leaders driving Ireland’s digital health transformation.

Setting the context for the day and framing why 2026 represents a turning point for Ireland’s digital health transformation. Maria will position the Summit around impact, accountability, and people-centred care, highlighting the shift from strategy to delivery across digital, data, and AI initiatives within the health system.

An overview of the ambition and delivery challenge behind Ireland’s largest-ever investment in health digitalisation (€9.25bn). This address will highlight progress across electronic health records, shared care records, virtual care, digital infrastructure, and the National AI for Care Strategy.

Bringing an international lens to Ireland’s digital health journey, this discussion draws on large-scale national EHR deployments and global standards implementation. Jordi will share lessons on governance, interoperability, clinician engagement, and delivering at pace. The conversation will explore how diverse health systems—both large and resource-constrained—are achieving scalable, interoperable, and clinically meaningful digital transformation.

This panel examines where digital and AI-enabled tools are making a real difference across the Irish health service today. Speakers will assess progress to date, identify persistent barriers—particularly in data and infrastructure—and explore priorities for the next 3 to 5 years. The discussion will also address leadership: how to sustain transformation while staying grounded in people, relationships, and quality of care during periods of intense operational pressure. • Where are we seeing real impact? • Children’s Hospital: Managing complexity, cost and delivery challenges • Persistent barriers • Priorities for the next 3–5 years • Leadership challenge

We explore the role of digital health in supporting Sláintecare’s shift toward regional, integrated, population-based care. Panellists will discuss the future of AI, data, and interoperability across regions; the role of telemedicine and telecare; and how national digital frameworks are shaping service redesign through to 2030. A key focus will be the rollout of the National Shared Care Record (NSCR). This provides a practical example of how shared data can connect services, improve continuity of care, and enable more coordinated, patient-centred delivery at regional level. The discussion will examine how initiatives like the NSCR can move Ireland from fragmented systems toward a truly integrated digital health ecosystem.

Focusing on how to move beyond pilots to scale proven digital innovations across the health system. Innovators, investors, and system leaders will explore Ireland’s emerging national innovation pathway, including evaluation standards, innovation-ready procurement, and the HSE Innovation Framework. The session will examine why pilots often stall, what successful scale looks like, and how sustainable partnerships between innovators and the health service can be built.

As the HSE Health App evolves into the primary digital front door to care, this session explores what this transformation means for patients and providers. This session will cover emerging patient-facing capabilities such as digital identity, appointment access, care coordination, and information management. The session will also examine how consumer AI tools are reshaping expectations, trust, and the future patient experience. A European perspective will examine the European Health Data Space (EHDS), including cross-border data sharing, patient empowerment, secondary use of data, and implementation challenges for Ireland.

We explore how telemedicine is evolving into fully integrated, AI-enabled care. With the HSE scaling Acute Virtual Wards and remote monitoring nationwide by 2026, AI is enhancing triage, predictive care, and patient engagement. In primary care, AI supports smarter triage, automation, and proactive population health management. We discuss how these innovations are improving access, connecting services, and enabling more efficient, patient-centred care. This session explores how telemedicine is evolving into AI-enabled, integrated care. From virtual wards and remote monitoring to AI-supported triage and diagnostics—highlighted by real-world innovations at the Mater and St. Vincent's hospitals—we examine how these advances are improving access, efficiency, and patient-centred care.

This panel examines how the European Health Data Space (EHDS) will reshape healthcare across Europe—connecting national systems, empowering patients, and enabling innovation. Discussion will focus on Member State implementation, EHDS governance and coordination, Ireland’s policy and readiness, cross-border data mobility, and secondary data use for research and innovation. From a business and innovation perspective, the panel will explore how EHDS can unlock new opportunities for health tech companies, startups, and research partnerships—creating scalable digital products, enabling access to high-quality data, and supporting the growth of a competitive European digital health ecosystem. It will also address the regulatory and technical alignment needed to deliver efficient, sustainable, and patient-centred care at scale.

With Ireland’s AI for Care Strategy now published, this panel explores how Ireland and other countries are translating AI ambition into operational reality. Speakers will share lessons on innovation, risk, regulation, adoption, and scale—highlighting what has worked, what has failed, and what we can learn as AI is embedded across care delivery and system management.

Our speakers discuss how AI and automation are reshaping healthcare roles, professional identity, and workforce requirements. Drawing on early experience from AI adoption in healthcare settings, speakers will explore workforce readiness, governance, and training, focusing on how organisations can support learning, confidence, and adaptation—ensuring staff are empowered rather than displaced by digital change. Introduction from Linda Vernon.