Chair 

Bio:

“I am currently an Associate Chief Clinical Information Officer (ACCIO) with Clinical Safety Officer (CSO) duties and remain clinically active as an Advanced Practice Physiotherapist (APP) in an integrated MSK service at Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation trust. I also hold a position on the Digital Health Networks CCIO advisory panel.

I qualified in 2008 as a physiotherapist and specialised in musculoskeletal (MSK). I undertook my Masters study in Sport & Exercise Medicine, after which I had a role as an advanced practitioner in an Emergency department. I later moved to a community MSK service where I had the privilege to lead the digital work stream to integrate the MSK service within which I worked, with podiatry, physiotherapy and community pain services. I undertook clinical safety officer (CSO) duties as part of this project which allowed me to later secure my ACCIO post.

I truly believe digital holds the central role in meeting the healthcare needs of the future but see daily the challenges and frustrations that can come with digital and digital transformation.

When not immersed in the worlds of digital, clinical practice and professional leadership you can find me out on my bike, in the garden, clowning about with my kids or somewhere in-between.”

Vice Chair

Bio:

Hi! I’m Kaye, a Registered Nurse since 2011. I have worked clinically for over ten years, predominantly as a chemotherapy and palliative care nurse. In October 2021 I became the full time CSO for my organisation, and in June 2024 was promoted to the Lead CSO role. I am currently working towards my MSc in Digital Health (due to complete summer 2025), and I am very passionate about the safe use and introduction of digital systems into the clinical setting. Patient safety is my priority and increasing awareness about the potential risks and benefits of digital health is imperative. I also run a national network for CSOs to meet online, meeting once a month via Teams. We have just hosted our first in-person collaboration day (26th June 2024) with the amazing team at DrDoctor and their CSO Laura – who is also on the council with us here. I’m really looking forward to being a part of this amazing team of dedicated clinical safety professionals and hope we can form an inclusive, collaborative council, for the benefit of all.

MEMBER

Bio:

Kimberley has spent the last 20 years working in the NHS. She qualified as a Registered Adult Nurse 9 years ago working in within Cardio-Thoracic Critical Care, Transplantation and Surgical wards.  Since 2020 Kimberley started in Digital by being a Digital Specialist nurse to now being a Senior Clinical Safety Officer for Bedfordshire Foundation Trust Hospitals.

During this time joining the National Shared Decision Making Council, assisting in the set up and chairing of the East of England Regional Shared Decision Making Council, pushing the CSO role with her talk at Rewired earlier this year and now joining the CSO Council for Digital Health.

MEMBER

Bio:

“Sascha has been a nurse in the NHS for over 24 years in a variety of differing roles including Orthopaedics, Endoscopy, Accident and Emergency and the Ambulance service. Between 2013 and 2021 Sascha worked at Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust as a Specialist Community Public Health Nurse (Health Visitor) in the 0-5 service specialising in improving health and wellbeing by promoting health, preventing ill health and reducing inequalities across Hampshire. The role included working with families from the antenatal period up to five years of age as part of the wider 0-19 Children and Family Service.

In a change in role and pursuing an interest, Sascha joined NHS Digital for a 15 months in 2022 as a Clinical Informatics Specialist and Clinical Safety Officer on the NHS App and NHS login programmes. Sascha has always had a keen interest in Clinical Informatics and digital clinical safety and uses data to inform clinical decisions and to support the improvement of service delivery and clinical safety.

Sascha plays a central role in taking responsibility for the delivery of clinical effectiveness, safety, and benefits, providing highly specialised and expert clinical informatics and digital clinical safety advice and expertise to colleagues in the wider Southern Health organisation.

 Sascha is passionate about digital transformation and is keen to support and lead in the efforts to enable safe innovative technologies and strategies that can drive organisational and system wide growth and efficiency in an ever-evolving digital landscape.”

MEMBER

Bio:

I’m an NHS GP who loves patient triage and fast-paced clinical decision-making. I’m also a Clinical Safety Officer who loves more reflective, analytical decision-making. I’m the CSO at DrDoctor, a patient engagement portal supplier, and I’m a big believer in the power of collaboration between health tech suppliers and healthcare organisations. My hope for the council is to foster a culture of shared learning, mentorship and advocacy for the clinical safety agenda. Clinical safety is a route to innovation and more effective digital transformation. 

MEMBER

Bio:

Keith is an ex-surgeon and current general practitioner in Dorset. During his training, he completed several fellowships with HEE and the FMLM, including the National Medical Director’s Fellowship with NHS Digital which jumpstarted his career in the Digital Health space.

Since then, he has worked in several Digital and Transformational roles at various levels which has helped him gain a wealth of knowledge and expertise in leading, supporting and driving the safe procurement, utilisation, maintenance, and decommissioning of Digital Health Technologies whilst navigating the health and care landscape.

As a strategic clinical advisor for Health Innovation Wessex, he advises and supports innovators in regulatory compliance, and adoption and spread of DHTs across health and care.

Keith is currently finishing an MSc in Healthcare Leadership and Management which helps with his transformational leadership style and system-level thinking within his CMIO role for Dorset ICB.

MEMBER

Bio:

Steve Roche brings over 14 years of clinical expertise in Occupational Therapy across diverse healthcare settings. As an accredited Clinical Safety Officer, he combines his passion for digital transformation, clinical safety, and quality improvement to drive impactful change through safe healthcare digital deployments.

Before transitioning to healthcare, Steve honed his skills in quality assurance and continuous improvement methodologies within the automotive industry. In his current role as the Programme Lead for digital Clinical Safety, he harnesses the transformative potential of technology to ensure effective, safe, and efficient processes.

Steve’s extensive CSO experience spans Trusts, ICBs, Regions, NHSE national initiatives, and private practice, experienced in the application of both DCB0129 and DCB0160 standards.

Driven by a commitment to elevate care quality, outcomes, and patient experiences, Steve remains dedicated to advancing healthcare through innovation and excellence.

MEMBER

Bio:

Pete Barfield is a Digital Clinical Specialist Nurse and Clinical Safety Officer at University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW). He has been a nurse for 19 years, with a background of Acute Medicine, Emergency Care, Surgical and Trauma Assessment and Acute Stroke. He now specialises in Digital healthcare at UHBW and is now a trained Clinical Safety Officer. He is passionate about using Digital clinical Systems to support patient care and clinician decision support and is working to embed clinical safety systems and processes.

MEMBER

Bio:

I qualified in 2011 as a Radiographer and shortly after completed a Master’s Degree in the subject, spending most of my career in Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.  I have specialised in CT and cardiac cath lab as well as becoming a Radiation Protection Supervisor and carrying out paediatric suspected physical injury exams.  I trained as a Clinical safety Officer in 2022 having previously never heard of the role!

During my time spent as a Radiographer I saw first hand the transition from paper requesting to electronic systems and the benefits that brought for patients in terms of speed and safety, however, I also noticed the ability of software to contribute to patient safety incidents.  I have since realised that properly designed, procured, tested, implemented and managed clinical software is not always a given in the NHS.  When I took on the role as CSO we had a lot of legacy debt within our Trust which I have began to tackle but have also greatly increased our digital clinical safety awareness in the Trust, increasing our CSO head count from a handful to 70.  I was lucky to have some mentoring early in my role from internal staff, external consultants but also from the Faculty of Clinical Informatics and would recommend this for new CSOs (of which I still count myself as one!).  In 2024 our digital clinical safety team was shortlisted for a HSJ Digital Award for Clinical Safety. 

My ultimate dream for digital clinical safety would be to see a national scheme set up for holding manufacturers to account for their DCB0129 compliance and safety assessment of their products, similar to a yellow card scheme for medical devices.  Currently there is no regulator (apart from us!) of DCB0129 but software is just as capable of causing mass harm in the same way a medical device/drug can.  My Digital Clinical Safety Hero is Professor Harold Thimbleby and watching “Trust me I’m a computer?  (Royal College of Physicians’ Patient Safety Seminar on 5 October 2016) captures the essence of why digital clinical safety really matters.   

MEMBER

Bio:

Tosin is a dedicated healthcare professional who works as a clinical safety officer (CSO) at University Hospitals of Northamptonshire. Her career is a testament to her unwavering commitment to advancing patient care by integrating digital technologies in healthcare settings.
As a Clinical Safety Officer, Tosin ensures that digital health systems and processes meet safety standards. She works collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams to maintain and enhance patient safety.
Before her current role, Tosin was a Senior Digital Nurse Specialist, a position where she played a pivotal role in implementing and optimising digital health solutions within the organisation to improve patient outcomes and healthcare delivery.
Tosin’s expertise and contributions to the field of Digital Health have not gone unnoticed. She is the winner of the prestigious Digital Health Rising Star Award, which recognises emerging talent and future leaders in Digital Health. This accolade highlights her innovative thinking and potential to drive positive change in healthcare through technology.
Recently, Tosin has become a member of the Digital Health CSO Council. This appointment suggests her growing influence in clinical safety and digital health, and her passion and eagerness to shape policies, guidelines, and best practices for ensuring patient safety in the increasingly digital healthcare landscape.
Tosin is a Shuri Digital Fellowship graduate, FNF Aspiring Leadership Alumni, a British Computer Society (BCS) member, and part of the Midlands Shared Decision Making Council. She has a BSc (Adult Nursing) and master’s in Public Health (MPH).
She wrote a book ‘An Introduction to Digital Nursing’.

MEMBER

Bio:

Sharon O’Connor – Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB Chief Nursing Informatics Officer (CNIO)
Sharon has worked in the NHS as a RGN since 2008 in a variety of roles including Head of Patient Safety and Quality Assurance Matron. In 2019 Sharon started work at LSCFT (Mental Health Trust) as the CNIO, supporting digital transformation and following completion of the Digital Clinical Safety Officer training, was the nominated digital clinical safety officer for the Trust. In August 2022 she was appointed as the Northwest regional CNIO lead working with the CNIO for NHSE to support delivery of the national CNIO agenda. Sharon commenced her role as CNIO at Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB in October 2023 on a 2 year secondment where she provides nursing leadership to the clinical and care professional network for the informatics and digital portfolio across the ICB. She leads on digital clinical safety supporting the ICB and ICS with compliance and assurance and chairs the ICB Digital Clinical Safety Meetings for Lancashire and South Cumbria.