Conference

Dr Mary Collins is a chartered psychologist, author and senior practitioner coach (EMCC) who has been working in the leadership development/talent management field for over 20 years.

Her current role as Senior Executive Development Specialist with RCSI Centre for Positive Health Sciences involves working with senior leaders in the healthcare sector to develop their management, coaching and leadership capabilities through a range of executive development and academic programmes up to PhD level.

Dr Collins is also Co-Director of the highly successful Neuroscience Coaching Network; an annual CPD programme for coaches globally and she is is passionate about leveraging the strengths of the intergenerational workplace and is a renowned key speaker on this topic. Her other research interests are leading workplace well-being and emotional intelligence.

She is an accredited senior professional executive coach and global coach programme assessor with the European Coaching & Mentoring Council (EMCC) and is the current Co-Chair of Coaching Psychology Division of the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI).

In December 2019, she was one of 15 people awarded a ‘Coaching Hero Award’ by Minister of State for Higher Education from Kingstown College to mark her contribution to the coaching field in Ireland.

Dr Suzanne Crowe was first elected to the Medical Council in 2018 and re-elected in 2023. Dr Crowe was elected as President of the Medical Council in 2021.

Dr Crowe graduated in Medicine from Trinity College Dublin, followed by Specialist training in Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Medicine with the College of Anaesthesiologists.

After a Fellowship in Paediatric Intensive Care Medicine in the Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne she took up a consultant post in Anaesthesia with a special interest in paediatrics in Tallaght Hospital, Dublin.

In 2014 Dr Crowe moved to Children’s Health Ireland Crumlin Hospital as a Paediatric Intensivist. She is a Senior Lecturer in Paediatrics in Trinity College Dublin and has an interest in bereavement studies and medical ethics.

She is Associate Clinical Professor in UCD School of Medicine in the division of Women and Children’s Health. Dr Crowe is a board trustee for three charities, the Down
Syndrome Centre, Cheshire Ireland and LGBT Ireland.

Donna Ockenden is a nurse, and a midwife. She has more than 35 years’ experience within a variety of health settings both in the UK and internationally.

She was the chair of the published independent review into maternity services at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust, and is the current Chair of the Review into Maternity Services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.

Professor Tracy Robson was appointed Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at RCSI in 2024. She leads RCSI's academic community in delivering a world-class education which ensures our students emerge as healthcare professionals and scientists with the skills and attributes to thrive in complex clinical and research settings around the world.

A cancer biologist, Professor Robson joined RCSI in 2016 as Head of Department of Molecular and Cellular Therapeutics. She became the foundation Head of the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences following its establishment in 2019. She has previously held academic appointments at Ulster University and Queen’s University Belfast where she was appointed Professor in Experimental Therapeutics in 2010.

Professor Robson is a highly successful researcher, with over €15 million in competitive research grant awards and a sustained track record of high-quality publications in leading journals. Her research is focused on the development of biotherapeutics, based on a novel protein, which have been patented and licensed.

Under her leadership, the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences secured €11.3m in educational funding, including a €7.8m award from the Higher Education Authority under the Human Capital Initiative, Pillar 3.

Dr Niamh Humphries is a Senior Lecturer and the Head of Research at the RCSI Graduate School of Healthcare Management. She holds a PhD in Sociology and has been researching health workforce issues in the Irish health system for the past 19 years.

She recently completed a HRB-funded project on hospital doctor retention and currently leads another HRB research project on GP Retention (in collaboration with the Irish College of GPs).

Dr Humphries was a member of the National Taskforce on the NCHD Workforce (2023-24). She recently completed a case study on health worker migration for WHO (Europe).

Her recent research papers are available at doctorretention.eu.

Amelia Kehoe is a Lecturer in Medical Education, based in the Health Professions Education Unit, Hull York Medical School, UK.

She is programme director for the MSc in Health Professions Education, and supports teaching at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

She has worked up a body of research exploring international medical graduate transitions to UK practice. She also has a particular interest and expertise in realist methodologies.

Bill Maher is Group CEO of Bon Secours Health System.  

He has held many senior roles in the Irish public health system including Group CEO of the RCSI Hospitals Group, and Group CEO of SAOLTA, which he established as the first hospital group in Ireland as part of the government’s reform of the health service.

He previously worked for 16 years with the NHS in a career spanning mental health services, primary care, commissioning and acute hospitals.

He has an MBA, an MSc in Health Information, a BA (Hons) in Law, BA (Hons) in Accountancy and an IoD Diploma in Company Direction. In addition, he is an Honorary Associate Professor in the RCSI.

Dr Denis McCauley is a General Practitioner, is the coroner for the district of Donegal and is President of the Irish Medical Organisation.

He is a native of Moville, Co. Donegal and graduated in medicine at Trinity College Dublin in 1985.

Dr McCauley is a General Practitioner in a group practice at the Millbrae Surgery in Stranorlar Co. Donegal for the last 30 years.

Dr Éidín Ní Shé is a senior lecturer in the RCSI Graduate School of Healthcare Management. She is the programme director of the MSc in Healthcare Management.

She has a research disciplinary focus in co-design and applied health systems research. Her research approach is underpinned by a core belief in the value and rationale of engagement with relevant stakeholders

Dr Ní Shé's projects in Ireland include work on developing interprofessional competencies in the care of older people with the national clinical program, assisted decision-making, frailty pathway co-design and exploring experiences of open disclosure in Ireland to inform the co-design a mechanism to measure patient experience of the process.

Dr Ellen Walshe graduated from UCC and worked in General Paediatrics and Paediatric Intensive Care in Dublin and London.

She has worked in the medicolegal field since 2007, gaining postgraduate qualifications and joined Medical Protection in 2020.

Dr Walshe has extensive experience advising and supporting members throughout the UK and Ireland with ethical and legal issues including claims, regulatory, disciplinary, coronial and complaint investigations and professional performance concerns. She frequently attends conferences on behalf of Medical Protection and delivers training and education.

Prof. Eva Doherty is a practising Chartered Clinical Psychologist, Associate Professor and Director of the Human Factors in Patient Safety (HFPS) training, research and assessment programmes at the National Surgical Training Centre, Department of Surgical Affairs, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dublin, Ireland.

The HFPS training is a mandatory component of the postgraduate professional training for surgical, emergency medicine, radiology and ophthalmology trainees. Each year over 100 interactive workshops and high fidelity simulation training courses are delivered to trainee doctors, doctors not currently in training and consultants on topics which include medical error, risk management, communication, teamwork, conflict resolution, decision-making, open disclosure, emotional intelligence, crisis management, stress and well-being, professionalism and leadership.

Prof. Doherty pioneered and directs the academic Postgraduate Diploma/MSc in Human Factors in Patient Safety which is an inter-professional one/two year part-time online programme. She has over 50 peer reviewed publications on topics relevant to clinical communication issues, curriculum development and personality factors in medical education and assessment and acts as advisor to the National Healthcare Communication Programme in Ireland, HSE.

She is a member of the ISQUA Expert Panel and the Independent National Patient Safety Council in the Department of Health. In recognition of her contribution to medical education and to communication training in healthcare, she was awarded a Principal Fellowship by the Higher Education Academy in the UK and an honorary fellowship by EACH International, the International Association for Communication in Healthcare.

Paul Crampton is Director of the Health Professions Education Unit at Hull York Medical School, UK.

He is Senior Lecturer in Health Professions Education and Co-editor-in-Chief at The Clinical Teacher.

He has over 17 years' experience in health professions education with a high-quality education and research profile indicated by publications in leading peer-reviewed journals and significant grant income.

Paul Gaffney undertook his training at Queen's University Belfast and Trinity College Dublin and has worked as a clinical psychologist in a broad range of child, adolescent and adult community, in-patient, residential and forensic settings for over 30 years.

Since 2015, Paul has been the Lead Consultant in High Performance Sport Clinical Psychology at Sport Ireland Institute, and was the Team Ireland Lead Psychologist for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

He is a Consultant Tutor with the Association for Psychological Therapies, training colleagues internationally, and was involved in the training of clinical and counselling psychologists for over 20 years at Trinity College Dublin. He also provides clinical input to colleagues working in the Irish public service and social care systems, with a particular focus on staff retention, while addressing vicarious trauma, exhaustion and burnout.

He has also published a number of peer reviewed articles and books.

Prof. Salman Guraya is Professor of Surgery, Chair Interprofessional Collaboration Committee and Lead Clinical Training and Simulation at the University of Sharjah UAE.

Prof. Guraya is a member of the Advisory Group of WHO Academy for lifelong learning, MedBiquitous by AAMC, and the American College of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine. He won the Int’l Research Award of World Top 2% Scientists by Stanford University USA in 2020-2022, and 2024 and the TAGHEER award for strategic performance in UAE.

He is a senior editor of BMC Med Educ, Frontiers in Surg Oncol, and Annals of Thoracic Medicine Journals. Prof. Guraya is Director of BSS, CCrISP, and SSSHP courses by the RCS Eng and global medical professionalism network by RCS Ireland. Recently, he has pioneered an innovative student-led 3D printed laparoscopic box simulator which has been registered and published by NIH USA.

Prof. Guraya is an examiner for MRCS and the European Board of Surgery and a faculty of the Colorectal and Transanal Surgery programme IRCAD France, and Sharjah Surgical Institute UAE. Prof. Guraya is an accreditation surveyor for UAE National Institute for Health Sciences. His main areas of research include colorectal surgery, transanal and transoral scar-less surgery, medical professionalism, interprofessional collaboration, simulation in healthcare, and academic leadership.

Dr Shaista Salman is an Assistant Professor of Health Professions Education at the Institute of Learning, Mohammed Bin Rashid University, Dubai, UAE.

Passionate about shaping the future of healthcare education, she is committed to exploring how professionals navigate the evolving landscape of e-professionalism – helping them safeguard their digital identities in an increasingly connected world.

Her recent work delves into how undergraduate medical students perceive and enact empathy in clinical practice, exploring how team dynamics influence professional behaviours. She believes that with the right educational interventions, students can be empowered to develop not just technical skills but also the emotional intelligence needed to thrive in healthcare teams.

With a background that includes teaching at RCSI Bahrain, Dr Salman has a wealth of experience in professionalism, research ethics, and research methodologies. Her innovative approach led her to develop express-Team-Based Learning (Express-TBL) – a method designed to help students engage more actively, reflect deeply, and collaborate effectively across professions.

At the RCSI MedProf Conference, Dr Salman shares her analysis of fourth-year medical students' reflections on their first GP placement – a critical moment when classroom learning meets the realities of clinical teamwork. Through their experiences of self-doubt, fear of incompetence, and role uncertainty, she sheds light on the emotional and professional challenges students face as they step into their roles of healthcare team members in patient care.

Simon Paterson-Browns was Consultant General Surgeon in the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, UK, between January 1994 and June 2022. He has also worked in remote and rural hospitals in Scotland, and his main sub-specialty interest is upper GI surgery with a particular interest in the management of patients with benign and malignant oesophago-gastric disorders and benign biliary disease. He also has an additional interest in emergency surgery and trauma as well as the restructuring of general surgical services in the UK.

He is currently an Honorary Senior Lecturer for Edinburgh University and set up the Edinburgh Surgery Online MSc three-year part-time on-line course in Patient Safety and Clinical Human Factors in 2018. He is also a past Council member of RCSEd and past chair of the Patient Safety Committee, as well as co-editor of the Companion to Specialist Surgical Practice series.

Dr Áine Ryan is a Lecturer at the RCSI Centre for Professionalism in Medicine and Health Sciences, holding a PhD in Population Health and Health Services Research from RCSI.

Following graduation with a BSc (Physio), Áine worked clinically for ten years working in two teaching hospitals in Dublin along with private practice. She held senior roles in musculoskeletal outpatients, rheumatology, pain management and orthopaedic triage.

In 2013, Áine returned to education as a HRB SPHeRE PhD Scholar, researching multimorbidity and the effects of physical activity on health outcomes. Before joining the Department of Medical Professionalism as a Post-Doctoral Fellow in 2019, she served as a lecturer in the School of Physiotherapy at RCSI. Áine led and co-developed the PILLAR Study, which is a longitudinal project exploring professionalism, leadership, and resilience among RCSI medical students, while also coordinating and teaching professionalism in the undergraduate medical curriculum.

Additionally, along with the RCSI Professionalism team, she is developing a PgDip/MSc in Professionalism for Healthcare Professionals, set for launch in autumn 2025. Áine is committed to student development and holds a PgDip in Health Professions Education from RCSI. She has served on the Board of the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists (ISCP) as Director of Professional Development, and chaired its Professional Development Standing Committee.

Her research interests include professionalism, health professions education, and lifestyle medicine, and she was a co-investigator in the HEA-funded PROPER study, which assesses best practices in medical professionalism for international education.

Dr Asil Sadeq joined RCSI as a postdoctoral research fellow in the department of Medical Professionalism at RCSI and had worked on mixed methods intervention on collaborative professionalism education provided to undergraduate students in the north and south of Ireland.

Dr Sadeq is a pharmacist by background, practiced in Ireland and UAE, and had obtained her PhD in Pharmacy Practice and Health Services from Trinity College Dublin working on medicines management systems and ageing research.

Dr Michael A. Rosen a Human Factors Psychologist and Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine with appointments in the Schools of Public Health, and Nursing.

He is the Director of Research for the Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality, Associate Director for Team Science at the Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Director of Research at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Simulation Centre, and Co-Director of the Applied Master of Science Programme in Patient Safety and Healthcare Quality at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health.

Dr Rosen’s work focuses on how people and technology create safe operations in high-risk industries. He has led a large six-year project to disseminate enhanced recovery after surgery pathways in over 350 hospitals funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).

He has led a seven-year project to inform selection processes for the astronaut corps, funded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and a Defense Advanced Research Programs Administration (DARPA) funded project to improve methods of measuring team functioning, workload and resilience.

Professor Denis Harkin, is a Consultant Vascular Surgeon and Chair of Medical Professionalism, and leads the Centre for Professionalism in Medicine and Health Sciences at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland University of Medicine and Health Sciences.

He has extensive experience of curriculum design, teaching, assessment and educational research. He has published over 150 articles on areas of interest in vascular surgery, professionalism and education. He is the host of the popular RCSI Professionalism Matters podcast series.

He is a Consultant Vascular Surgeon with an international reputation in research and practice in vascular trauma and complex endovascular aneurysm care. He has experience of medical management as Clinical Lead, Training Programme Director and Assistant Medical Director at Belfast HSC Trust, the largest integrated health and social care trust in the UK.

He has been a founding member of the Specialty Advisory Committee for Vascular Surgery, and past elected Council of the Vascular Society of Great Britain and Ireland. He is an Examiner for Intercollegiate FRCS Vascular and European Board of Vascular Surgery.

Tiberius Pereira is a co-founder of Patient Safety Ireland (PFPSI), formed over 12 years ago under a World Health Organisation (WHO) programme. As defined by the WHO, PFPSI aims to engage and empower patients and families to be active partners and advocates in their own care. PFPSI members work in partnership and collaboration with health professionals and policymakers to make health services safer in Ireland and enable the patient voice to be heard fully.

Its framework for action is the WHO Global Patient Safety Action Plan 2021-2030 and the WHO Patient Safety Rights Charter. It is also one of the five strategies of the WHO global strategy on people-centred and integrated health services (PCIHS) and a key element of quality universal healthcare.

The Patient Empowerment Programme is supported and endorsed by the largest advocacy groups in Ireland as well as the WHO, ISQua and other national and international groups.