The Senior Leaders programme
Following London 2024’s successful programme, we are excited to invite you to reconnect with fellow senior leaders to share, discuss and explore the health and care challenges and solutions that are front and centre for all of us.
Our goal is to create a safe environment that fosters open dialogue to explore together how we can prepare for the future ahead of us.
This interactive and experiential Senior Leaders programme has been designed based on feedback from 2024 and what we heard as the issues that matter most to you.
Attendance at the Senior Leaders Symposium is by invitation only – if you would like to join, we will have an application process opening in December 2024 and you will find details of how to apply on this page then.
Please note that all attendees at the Senior Leaders Symposium need to be registered for all 3 days of the International Forum.
Key focus of the programme
The programme will be themed From Collaboration to Impact.
The key topics topics/themes that the programme will address include:
- Leadership skills to face current global challenges
- Actionable strategies to accelerate preparedness for navigating future challenges
- Coproduction with communities and healthcare ecosystems
- Explore some of the Netherland’s health excellence centres
As part of this programme, we invite you to bring forward and discuss the wicked problems you are experiencing in your system with fellow senior leaders from around the world.
The main programme will be hosted at the University Medical Center Utrecht on 21 May 2025, from 9am to 5pm.
With approximately 12,000 employees, the University Medical Center Utrecht is one of the largest public healthcare institutions in the Netherlands and the largest employer in the region.
Sessions for 20 May and 23 May will be confirmed soon.
The Senior Leaders programme planning committee
Amar Shah
Dr Amar Shah is Consultant forensic psychiatrist & Chief Quality Officer at East London NHS Foundation Trust (ELFT). He leads at executive and Board level at ELFT on quality, performance, strategy, planning, data and analytics. Amar has led the approach to quality at ELFT for the past 10 years, and has embedded a large-scale quality improvement infrastructure and quality management system, with demonstrable results across key areas of organisational performance.
Amar is the first National Clinical Director for Improvement at NHS England, leading the application of improvement across England’s health and care system.
He is the national improvement lead for mental health at the Royal College of Psychiatrists, leading a number of large-scale improvement collaboratives on topics such as restrictive practice, workforce wellbeing and equalities.
Amar is chair of the Scientific Advisory Group at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), and also acts as faculty with IHI, teaching and guiding improvers and healthcare systems across the world.
He is a member of the Q advisory Board at the Health Foundation and a member of the reference group for the Centre for Sustainable Healthcare. He is on the health advisory board for the UCL global business school for health, and a Council member for the Healthcare Costing for Value Institute.
He is honorary visiting professor at City University (London) and the University of Leicester. Amar has completed an executive MBA in healthcare management, a masters in mental health law and a postgraduate certificate in medical education. Amar is a regular national and international keynote speaker at healthcare improvement conferences and has published over 50 peer-review articles in the field of quality management. He was awarded an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in 2024 for services to healthcare improvement.
Prof. dr. C.G.J.M. (Carina) Hilders
As chairman of the Executive Board, Carina Hilders, together with her colleagues, gives shape to UMC Utrecht’s ambition: “to improve people’s health and create the care of tomorrow.” As chairman of the board, she contributes to this mission by supporting excellent care, innovative research and innovations in education and training at UMC Utrecht. For Carina, the challenge here is the important social task of maintaining the quality and accessibility of healthcare in the future for every person who needs it.
Carina Hilders was trained as a gynecologist, and received her PhD in immunotherapy in cervical cancer (cervix carcinoma). She is professor Medical Management and Leadership at Erasmus University Rotterdam. She is also a member of the Supervisory Board of Sanquin. In addition, she is committed as an ambassador for the National Coalition ‘Kansrijke Start’ of VWS. From 2016 to 2024, Carina chaired the Board of Directors of the Reinier de Graaf Gasthuis. She was also a member of the Supervisory Board of RadboudUMC until she joined UMC Utrecht.
Christina Krause
Christina Krause is the Chief Executive Officer of Health Quality BC and an Adjunct Professor, School of Population & Public Health, Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. Her interests include the use of social change models and network theory in efforts to engage and mobilize stakeholders, as well as the role of culture, teamwork and communication to advance quality of care. Christina is an EXTRA Fellow with Healthcare Excellence Canada, a past member of the Board for the OSNS Child & Youth Development Centre, and a member of the Board Quality Committee at Canuck Place Children’s Hospice.
Dr. Ellen Joan van Vliet
Dr. Ellen Joan van Vliet is an experienced leader in healthcare quality and safety, known for her commitment to excellence and innovation. As President-Elect of the International Society for Quality in Health Care (ISQua) and CEO of Qualicor Europe, a Dutch-Belgian accreditation body, she ensures the highest standards of care across diverse healthcare settings. With a nursing background, teaching experience, and a PhD in Biomedical Science, Ellen Joan brings a unique blend of clinical expertise and research acumen. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated exceptional leadership in navigating complex organizational challenges, including transformative change initiatives and successful mergers. Her passion for advancing safety and quality of life drives her dedication to building safe, sustainable, patient-centered services and collaborating to improve outcomes worldwide.
Göran Henriks
Former Chief Executive of Learning and Innovation in Region Jönköping for 28 years and more than 40 years’ experience of management in the Swedish healthcare system. Charing the learning of the Swedish Knowledge Management system of Clinical processes for the last 10 years.
Göran is also a Board member of the Swedish Institute for Quality, SIQ.
Chair emeritus of the Strategic Committee of the International Forum organised by the British Medical Journal (BMJ) and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Göran is also appointed as a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Health Care Improvement. He is also appointed as professor in Quality Management at University of Yerevan, Armenia.
Prof. dr Mirella M.N. Minkman
Mirella M.N. Minkman is Endowed Professor at Tilburg University/TIAS Business school in The Netherlands, chair Innovation of Organization and Governance of Integrated Care.
Besides her professorship, Mirella is CEO of Vilans, the National Knowledge Organization for care and support (Utrecht, the Netherlands). Vilans bridges science, practice, policy and education by running national large scale innovation and implementation programs and by hosting frequently visited national knowledge platforms. Mirella’s expertise is focused on person-oriented integrated care between people and organizations in networks and alliances and what other governance modes are needed, and how to develop and implement them. This includes themes like leadership, supervision (internal and external) and accountability as ingredients of good governance for integrated care.
Mirella is the chair of the National Governance Innovation Advisory Committee of the BoZ and the chair of the Scientific Advisory board of the NVTZ (National Association of supervisors in health care). She is a Supervisory Board member of the RIBW Brabant (mental health care) and supervisory board member of the Rivierenland Hospital in Tiel. She serves as a member of the Committee of Experts of the National Association for Dissabilities (VGN).
On the international level Mirella is editor of the International Journal for Integrated Care, Advisory Group member of WHO’s Integrating the Health and Care Workforce group and member of the Critical Friends Group of the UK Center for Evidence IMPACT.