Last week, CSDS proudly hosted the Future Led breakfast panel in collaboration with Liquid Interactive – a strategic design and digital agency that helps organisations explore new opportunities and deliver better outcomes for their customers and communities. With over 70 attendees filling the space, it marked the largest Future Led event to date.
Watch the highlights from the day
Experience some of the energy and moments from the event in this short video:
Rethinking healthcare technology
The panel discussion, Why healthcare tech is missing the mark – and is there a better way?, tackled one of the most pressing challenges in the sector: the growing gap between healthcare needs and the tech solutions designed to meet them. It also asked the critical question: why do so many solutions fall short? Instead of digitising broken systems, applying short-term fixes, or expecting staff to navigate fragmented and clunky tools, the discussion focused on how we can rethink our approach to technology – creating solutions and experiences that genuinely support clinicians and improve outcomes for patients.
Insights from industry leaders
Moderated by Kate Wylie, Director of Health at Liquid, the panel featured a standout lineup:
Fiona Armstrong - CEO Liquid Fiona Armstrong is a leader in customer-centred strategic transformation, with over 25 years of experience improving social outcomes through strategic design, applied technology, and impactful customer experiences. She brings deep expertise from more than 20 years in senior executive roles within government, where she led complex reforms and multidisciplinary teams. Fiona specialises in human-centred design across healthcare, social services, and whole-of-government transformation.
Dr Jason Brown - Chief Digital Health Officer Metro North Health Dr Jason Brown is a Burns and General Surgeon, the A/Director of the Stuart Pegg Adult Burns Centre and the Chief Digital Health Officer at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH). He has been delivering health outcomes across Queensland for over 25 years, 14 of those at the RBWH. He is passionate about delivering innovative, person-centred healthcare and optimal patient outcomes. Jason is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and a member of the Australasian Institute of Digital Health. He is also currently the clinical lead for the Burns Program at Herston Biofabrication Institute (HBI), where he leads a diverse team that implements innovative, safe and optimal recovery solutions for injured burns patients.
Dr Raelene Donovan - A/Chief Clinical Information Officer, eHealth Queensland Dr Raelene Donovan is an Emergency Consultant at the Princess Alexandra Hospital and the Acting Chief Clinical Informatics Officer (CCIO) for eHealth Queensland. Raelene has a strong interest in implementation science and the critical role of clinical engagement in the successful design and adoption of digital health technologies. She is also focused on building a digitally capable healthcare workforce, ready to use digital systems and data to deliver high-quality care. She plays a key role in translating and advocating for digital transformation across Queensland, engaging clinicians across hospitals and disciplines to support ongoing innovation within the digital health ecosystem.
Dr Mia McLanders - Manager Research CSDS Dr Mia McLanders leads the newly launched Queensland Innovation Living Lab. Mia has won national and international awards for her design of a neonatal resuscitation system, and for her design of a new patient monitoring system. Mia and her team are at the forefront of developing and evaluating medical devices and software ensuring that innovations are truly responsive to both clinician and consumer needs.
Together they examined the key challenges facing the healthcare system today, including rising demand, workforce shortages, and outdated legacy systems that often hinder healthcare technology from reaching its full potential. Rather than simply highlighting what’s not working, the panel called for a shift from jumping to solutions, to deeply understanding the problems first. With human-centred design as a guiding principle, the panel encouraged a more collaborative, needs-led approach to innovation in healthcare.
Sharing ideas, building momentum
While the panel was the main attraction, the networking before and after the session was equally as impactful. The room was filled with conversation – colleagues sharing ideas, asking big questions, and forming new connections. These spontaneous exchanges often spark the kind of thinking that leads to real change.
Capturing the conversation
Adding to the excitement, we were also joined by Peter Birch from the Talking HealthTech podcast, who recorded exclusive interviews with the panel speakers. His upcoming episode will dive deeper into the key themes from the event – stay tuned via Talking HealthTech on LinkedIn for its release.
We’re proud to have been part of this milestone event and look forward to supporting more conversations like this that help shape the future of healthcare.
For collaboration opportunities, contact the CSDS Communications Team.
