Fellows in Focus: March 2025

Updates concerning Sciana Fellows in March 2025

Artificial intelligence in public health: promises, challenges, and an agenda for policy makers and public health institutions

Dimitra Panteli (Cohort 6) has co-authored an article for The Lancet titled "Artificial intelligence in public health: promises, challenges, and an agenda for policy makers and public health institutions".

On LinkedIn, Dimitra said, "We argue that AI has the potential to revolutionise public health practice and research across a number of areas, but this requires commitment from policy makers and championship by public health institutions towards addressing accompanying challenges and ensuring meaningful and equitable implementation."

Pink Cube awareness campaign wins two awards at Switzerland's Sponsoring Excellence Awards

Mirjam Lämmle (-Weber) (Cohort 6) and colleagues are celebrating after an awareness campaign backed by the Swiss Cancer League won two awards.

The Pink Cube 'Test Your Breast' breast cancer awareness campaign won the Responsibility and Audience awards at this year's Sponsoring Excellence Awards in Switzerland. The campaign is a unique multi-stakeholder project with one goal: to fight breast cancer together. The project promotes breast cancer prevention in Switzerland by raising awareness, sharing knowledge, and promoting early detection.

On a personal note, we also wish to offer congratulations to Mirjam, who got married in March! 

Neue Leiterin des Direktionsbereiches Gesundheitsschutz und Vizedirektorin  (New Head of the Health Protection Directorate and Deputy Director)

Congratulations to Stéfanie Monod (Cohort 7), who has been appointed as the new head of the Health Protection Directorate and deputy director. 

Stéfanie will begin her new role on 1 September. Congratulate her on LinkedIn!

Bola Owolabi appears on Clinical Changemakers podcast

In an episode of Clinical Changemakers, Bola Owolabi (Cohort 7) shares her insights on health inequalities in England, how the COVID-19 pandemic exposed pre-existing disparities, her views on leadership and the Core20Plus5 framework she's implementing to drive meaningful change across communities.

Shera Chok wins Black Professionals in Life Sciences award

Congratulations to Shera Chok (Cohort 2), who was awarded Trailblazer of the Year - Highly Commended at the Black Professionals in Life Sciences' 2025 Annual Summit earlier this month.

Neil Flash, one of the judges, praised Shera for her work with the Shuri Network, indicating the fellowship "provides crucial mentorship and leadership training, strengthening sector representation while influencing national policy through powerful advocacy."

Claudia Witt leads digital masterclass series

As director of the Digital Society Initiative of the University of Zurich, Claudia Witt (Cohort 5) led the 2024/25 "Digital MasterClass" for the Zurich Cantonal Council.

The programme covered critical topics shaping the digital future: data protection, digitalisation in education, cybersecurity, digital administration, and digital healthcare. 

Thinking bigger and learning from others' experiences

In an interview with the Sciana Network, Oliver Reich (Cohort 5) discussed his time with Sciana (so far), economics in healthcare, and what he does to support and protect his mental health.

Sven Streit discusses medication safety and deprescribing during podcast appearance

Sven Streit (Cohort 5) joined a podcast episode of Dini Depp Docs to discuss key issues in medication safety and deprescribing.

During the recording, Sven highlighted how interprofessional collaboration can improve medication management and patient outcomes.

In February, health terminal also published a podcast episode featuring Sven, where he discusses the digital transformation in primary care and developments in the Swiss healthcare system.

Notes on Nursing Leadership & Management - What it is and what it is not

To mark the 40th anniversary of Swiss Nurse Leaders, Mario Desmedt (Cohort 5) has created a unique publication titled "Notes on Nursing Leadership & Management - What it is and what it is not (A hall of inspiration for the next generation of nurse leaders)".

This publication highlights 40 prominent nurse leaders from five continents and shares their visions on the state of nursing leadership and management.

Limited edition print copies of the book (in French, English, German, and Italian) are available to order here. The book is also available on Amazon.fr in English on Kindle here.

A free download is expected to be available on 12 May 2025, coinciding with the International Day of Nursing.

Judith Safford speaks at seventh Digital Rheumatology Days

Judith Safford (Cohort 3) participated in the seventh Digital Rheumatology Days in Berlin. Judith presented on the second day in a session titled "Digital Literacy: The Essential Foundation for Digital Care in Rheumatology." 

On LinkedIn, Judith said, "By tailoring [digital health technology] to patient needs, we can hugely improve the quality of care that clinicians deliver and match the patient experience more closely. To ensure these benefits we must involve patients and the public in development and implementation." 

Creating connections and considering the adoption of new technologies

In an interview with the Sciana Network, Lawrence Tallon (Cohort 5) reflected on his Sciana experience, the focus of his working group, and diversity in health research.

Meanwhile, congratulations to Lawrence, who began his new role as chief executive officer of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) today.

Earlier this month, Lawrence shared insights from one of his final weeks at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one last thank you to friends and colleagues. 

The people behind healthcare innovation: Interview with James Creeden, co-founder of CGC Genomics

As part of his "The people behind healthcare innovation" series, Tobias Silberzahn (Cohort 3) spoke with James Creeden, co-founder of Cancer Genomics Consults (CGC), a company focusing on AI-enabled cancer diagnostics.  

Celebrating International Women's Day

International Women's Day (IWD) took place on 8 March, with this year's theme "Accelerate Action."

IWD said, "Focusing on the need to Accelerate Action emphasizes the importance of taking swift and decisive steps to achieve gender equality. It calls for increased momentum and urgency in addressing the systemic barriers and biases that women face, both in personal and professional spheres."

To mark the occasion, Louise Baker-Schuster shared a post on LinkedIn featuring reflections from Birgit Bauer (Cohort 5), Raquel Correia (Cohort 7), Valerie Kirchberger (Cohort 6), and Mona Dreesmann (Cohort 7) on their visions for the future and gender-equal healthcare.  

Mary Helen Pombo posted on LinkedIn to reflect on the women "who are an inspiration in their own right and bring unwavering commitment to gender equity," as well as those who have supported her own life journey.

Tobias Gantner (Cohort 1) revealed he and others are planning a FemTech hackathon this year to advance medical equality. On LinkedIn, he called for ideas and suggestions to help plan the event. 

Dominique Allwood (Cohort 6), the first female chief executive of Imperial College Health Partners, shared on LinkedIn how she was drawn to this year's "Accelerate Action" campaign theme and her interest in supporting other women in leadership roles. 

Richard Stubbs (Cohort 5) also posted on LinkedIn to celebrate the woman who has done the most to inspire him throughout his life: his mother, Maggie.