Making Health Innovation Real: What’s the Leadership Work Behind the Work?

Health innovation doesn’t usually fail because the idea is bad. It stalls because the leadership work is hard: making decisions with imperfect evidence, holding your nerve when the politics change, earning trust, navigating governance and procurement, and keeping people aligned when everyone is stretched.

For International Women’s Day, we’re bringing together a cross-section of awesome women leading across industry, clinical practice, research and beyond, for an honest conversation about leadership in the messy middle: what you do when things get stuck, how you decide what matters most, and what you protect when the pressure is on!

Your host: Jemima Kola-Abodunde

Panellists:

• Jessica Schrouff - Director of Responsible AI at GlaxoSmithKline

• Rachel Murphy - Founder at The Grafter

• Kerrie Jones - CEO & Founder Orri Eating Disorder Clinics

We’ll cover questions like…

• When the context shifts - politically, organisationally, culturally - how does that influence what you do day-to-day, and what you push for?

• To what extent does being a woman shape how you lead, how you’re heard, and the trade-offs you’re expected to make (explicitly or quietly)?

• If you feel like you’re the only one banging the drum for equity, safety, or doing things properly… how do you influence change without burning out?

• Where have you actually seen implementation work, who’s doing it well, and what made the difference?

• What’s missing from the equity-and-innovation conversation, and what have you seen that genuinely shifts it from talk to delivery?

• And, given how hard this work can be: why are you still in it?

The vibe for this event

We'd say, warm. Curious. A space to hear ideas, share thoughts and meet folks you might not bump into otherwise. We totally get that walking into a room of new faces can feel a bit daunting. Whether you're flying solo or bringing a buddy, we’ll do our best to keep things relaxed, welcoming and never awkward. There’ll be friendly faces at the door, cosy corners to perch in, and plenty of time to just chat and soak it all in.

And it’s not a “sit quietly and be lectured” kind of night. Expect plenty of interaction, with each other and with the panel, plus chances to share what you’re seeing in your own world, swap lessons, and leave with ideas you can actually use. Most of all: a whole lot of community goodness and support, celebrating the women leading change, and the men showing up for them too. (Gold star stickers available in spirit!)

Agenda

• 6:00–6:30 Arrive, grab a drink + snacks, get settled

• 6:30–6:40 Welcome from OHT Co-Directors Maxine Mackintosh & Angela Maragna

• 6:40–7:20 Panel conversation with Jessica Schrouff, Kerrie Jones and Rachel Murphy. Hosted by Jemima Kola-Abodunde

• 7:20–7:50 Audience Q&A + shared discussion

• 7:50–7:55 Wrap-up + thanks from the OHT London team

• 7:55–9:00 Informal networking, canapés and good chats

• 9:00 Officially done - byeee!

Speakers

Jessica Schrouff, Director of Responsible AI at GSK

I am a Director of Responsible AI at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) in London, UK. Previously, I was at Google DeepMind where I investigated responsible machine learning for healthcare. Before joining Alphabet in 2019, I was a Marie Curie post-doctoral fellow at University College London (UK) and Stanford University (USA), developing machine learning techniques for neuroscience discovery and clinical predictions. Throughout my career, my interests have lied not only in the technical advancement of machine learning methods, but also in critical aspects of their deployment such as their credibility, fairness, robustness or interpretability. I am also involved in DEI initiatives, such as Women in Machine Learning (WiML) and founded the Women in Neuroscience Repository.

Jemima Kola-Abodunde, Digital Health Consultant

Jemima is a digital health consultant and transformation leader working at the intersection of technology, equity, and real-world healthcare delivery. With over a decade of experience across the NHS, central government, and healthtech scale-ups, she helps ambitious teams turn bold ideas into products and services that actually work in clinical practice. Originally trained as a physiotherapist, she combines frontline clinical insight with system-level strategy, leading programmes spanning EPR optimisation, digital inclusion, AI-enabled redesign, clinical product development, and large-scale implementation. Her work focuses on ensuring digital health improves outcomes for women and underserved communities, not just in theory, but in practice. She is passionate about building healthcare systems where innovation is backed by accountability, measurable impact, and meaningful inclusion.

Rachel Murphy, Founder & CEO, The Grafter

Rachel Murphy is the founder of The Grafter and one of the UK’s most trusted operators when it comes to building real business value. With a career spanning high-growth entrepreneurship and large-scale public sector transformation. She led the launch of the NHS App, now with over 30 million downloads. One of the UK’s most impactful digital programmes. Through The Grafter, Rachel works alongside ambitious business owners who want to build something that truly stands up commercially, strategically and emotionally.

Kerrie Jones - CEO & Founder Orri Eating Disorder Clinics

Kerrie is a leading Psychotherapist in the treatment of Eating Disorders, lecturer on an MSc in Attachment Studies at Roehampton University and one of the founders of Orri. Kerrie has delivered training throughout the UK on Eating Disorders and Attachment, and is a former Eating Disorder Lead at The Priory where she worked with clients in both inpatient and outpatient settings. The culmination of this work – along with feedback and experiences of clients and colleagues Kerrie has worked with over the last 15 years – paved the way for the formation of Orri. Working alongside clients with eating disorders for over 15 years, Kerrie recognised that there was a need for a treatment that provided not only expert support in managing the physical and behavioural complexities that come with eating problems, but also a profound need for a space in which clients can choose to explore the underlying difficulties and causes in depth.

A big thank you our hosts, the Harley Street Health District, and Hale House – the district’s new home for HealthTech innovators for helping make this event series possible.