Ellie is known for her critical lens on the promise and pitfalls of artificial intelligence in health and social care. Author of Empathy Meets Algorithms: AI in Social Care, Ellie draws on over two decades of frontline experience in intensive care, legal advocacy, and national system transformation to help organisations bridge the gap between digital innovation and clinical reality.
A leader in digital transformation, Ellie has delivered projects that improve staff induction, learning, and performance for thousands of professionals. She is currently developing two AI-powered tools: What Did the Doctor Say?, which helps patients understand medical information, and a companion Assessment of Need support app that guides families through Ireland’s statutory process for identifying and addressing children’s additional needs and disabilities. These initiatives reflect her commitment to practical, patient-centred, and ethical technology.
Ellie’s qualifications include, among others, General, Paediatric and Intensive Care Nursing, Master of Science in Child and Adolescent Health, LLB, Barrister at Law, and postgraduate diplomas in Data Protection and Change Management. She is also certified in AI in Healthcare by Harvard Medical School and holds multiple industry certifications in AI for Healthcare, Education, Government, Legal, Learning, and Project Management.
She is passionate about supporting public sector and healthcare leaders to assess AI readiness, build responsible strategies, and ensure digital tools meet real clinical and ethical standards, a focus she brings to future work in this space. She has a particular interest in emergent behaviours in AI, especially how they affect trust, safety, and regulation in health and social care settings.
At the 2025 Smart Health Summit, Ellie brings an independent, frontline perspective to the panel “Getting to Grips with AI: The Reality vs the Hype.” She will challenge both hype and fatalism, asking what AI can genuinely deliver for healthcare, what should never be outsourced to algorithms, and how leaders can balance innovation with accountability, patient safety and human judgement.