Following the success of Bon Secours Health System's annual Healthcare Symposium, the organisation has launched a new symposium series titled, Dignity First: The Potential and the Ethics of Innovation in Healthcare.
On 13th October 2026, the first symposium in the series was hosted in partnership with RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Cancer Clinical Trials and Signs of Hope brought together leading clinicians, researchers and ethicists for a morning of thoughtful discussion on the transformative role of clinical trials in cancer care, alongside the ethical considerations that accompany treatment and technological advancements. Patients remained at the heart of this discussion throughout.
Expert speakers and panellists at the event included Prof. Cathal Kelly (RCSI Vice Chancellor & CEO), Prof. Paul Kelly (Consultant Radiation Oncologist at Bon Secours Hospital Cork), Prof. Austin Duffy (Consultant Medical Oncologist), Prof. Mary Donnelly (UCC Lecturer and Chair of the National Research Ethics Committee), Prof. Denis Harkin (RCSI Chair of Medical Professionalism), Mary Kirwan BL (RCSI Lecturer in Healthcare Law), Alan Sharp (Bon Secours Health System Group CEO) and Andrew McCarthy (Chief Sponsorship & Mission Officer).
Healthcare innovation opens new possibilities every day, bringing hope to patients through advances in clinical research, precision medicine, AI and other emerging technologies.
This new series from Bon Secours Health System seeks to foster thoughtful dialogue on both the opportunities and ethical challenges arising from innovation in healthcare. By engaging with experts across healthcare, law, patient advocacy and ethics, the series recognises that innovation alone is not enough and, as healthcare evolves, we must continually ask ourselves how scientific and technological progress can remain firmly grounded in respect for the dignity of every person.
