Digital Health Week Conference programme showcases breadth of digital enablement

NEWS  - eHealthNews editor Rebecca McBeth

The Digital Health Week Conference NZ draft programme has been released, with a line-up reflecting the breadth of how AI, data and digital are enabling the health and disability system across Aotearoa.

New Zealand's largest gathering for the digital health sector regularly attracts more than 1,100 attendees from across the motu and this year is being held on November 18-19 at  the Due Drop Events Centre in Manukau, Auckland.

Now in its 24th year, the conference provides an independent space where the health and disability workforce, educators, innovators, government, and industry come together.

Master of ceremonies Rachel Smalley, journalist and founder of The Medicine Gap, will guide the two-day event featuring more than 150 presentations across four stages.

Among the headline speakers confirmed are award-winning leader, military veteran, and founder of #workschoolhours Ellen Joan Ford and Dave Letele, founder of the BBM Programme.

Both bring perspectives that go beyond the digital, grounding the conversation in people, community, and what health systems are actually for.

Letele's keynote will be followed by a panel discussion on addressing the social determinants of health, also featuring former prime minister Sir Bill English, and Dame Ranjna Patel, co-founder of Tāmaki Health. 

The role of artificial intelligence (AI) in health will feature, with a keynote from chief executive and founder of academyEX Frances Valentine followed by a presentation from Kevin Ross on navigating the AI horizon from the Centre for Digital Modernisation of Health. 

Other confirmed speakers and panellists include director general of health Audrey Sonerson, chair of the NZ Clinical Senate Jonathan Christiansen and Amandeep Hansra, chief clinical adviser (medicine) at the Australian Digital Health Agency.

A panel of Health New Zealand's national clinical leaders - chief medical officer Helen Stokes-Lampard, chief nurse Nadine Gray, and chief allied health scientific and technical Jacqui Lunday - will look at how digital tools can support coordinated care across hospital, community, and home settings.

Other panel discussions explore a range of hot topics facing the sector including the risks and rewards of AI, how to scale and export a digital health business, and navigating a career in digital health.

In 2026, HiNZ is co-leading the flagship two-day conference in partnership with the Digital Health Association (DHA) 

HiNZ chief executive Alex Kemp says the programme moves between the clinical, the cultural and the commercial while keeping people at the centre.

“Healthcare today is digital healthcare and every part of the health and disability system has a role to play in shaping its future,” she says.

DHA chief executive Stella Ward says the conference theme is about turning ideas into action. 
“Attendees can expect to walk away with practical knowledge about how they can take action in the digital space within their own working lives and organisations,” she says.

With the programme now confirmed and registrations open, be sure to secure your place early. 

Further details on the conference, including registration information, are available on the conference website.

If you would like to provide feedback on this news story, please contact the editor Rebecca McBeth.

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