Quarter One: ISQua’s Global Impact

The first quarter of 2026 has been transformative for ISQua. From Dublin to Chennai, across roundtables to health summits, the organisation has been at the forefront of shaping how healthcare quality and patient safety evolve in an increasingly complex, technology-driven world. Here’s what ISQua accomplished in Q1 2026.

National Health Summit 2026

5 February 2026

Croke Park Conference Centre, Dublin

The 22nd edition of Ireland’s longest-running healthcare management conference brought together leading experts, policymakers, clinicians, and healthcare management professionals to discuss the most pressing healthcare challenges and opportunities of our time. ISQua’s participation in this summit underscored the organisation’s commitment to Ireland’s healthcare reform agenda and its role in shaping national conversations around quality improvement, patient safety, and system-wide sustainability.

NOCA Annual Conference 2026

10 February 2026

Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), Dublin

The tenth annual NOCA conference brought together nearly 450 healthcare professionals, managers, researchers, and patient advocates for a day focused on transforming clinical audit into meaningful improvement initiatives. The event marked a milestone celebration of a decade dedicated to strengthening healthcare quality in Ireland. This conference served as the official opening event for RCSI Charter Week 2026, underscoring the critical role of clinical audit in driving healthcare excellence across Irish institutions.

DoH & HSE International Collaborative Seminar

2nd March 2026

DoH Building in Miesian Plaza, Dublin

A pivotal week of high-level engagement where ISQua brought together government, healthcare leadership, and international experts to advance patient safety and healthcare quality on the global stage. ISQua joined the Department of Health Ireland and the Health Service Executive (HSE) for an open and engaging exchange with international experts and Board Members, focusing on strengthening patient safety and improving healthcare quality globally.

Key Discussion Themes

  • Data, AI & Digital Transformation in healthcare systems
  • Integrating care across the entire patient journey
  • The intersection of patient safety and climate change

Patient Safety Research Symposium

2nd March 2026

RCSI Graduate School of Healthcare Management, Dublin

Hosted in partnership with RCSI and the EQUIPS Research Network, this symposium convened patient partners, researchers, healthcare professionals, policymakers, and international experts to explore current trends and future directions in quality improvement and patient safety research. A robust delegation of ISQua’s top leadership shared international perspectives on advancing research and strengthening learning health systems, reinforcing ISQua’s commitment to bridging global healthcare quality initiatives.

ISQua Leadership in Attendance: CEO Carsten Engel • President Ezequiel Garcia Elorrio • President-Elect Ellen Joan van Vliet • Board Members: Sir Aziz Sheikh, Ulfat Shaikh, Salma Jaouni, and Shin Ushiro

ISQua Board Strategic Meetings

3 & 4 March 2026

Dublin, Ireland

Following the international collaborative events, ISQua’s Board convened in Dublin for a series of strategic discussions focused on governance, organizational growth, and global impact.

Strategic Priorities Addressed

  • Reflection on progress and alignment of organizational priorities
  • Governance frameworks for advancing global quality and safety initiatives
  • Strategic opportunities for organizational growth and expansion
  • Strengthening ISQua’s commitment to advancing healthcare quality worldwide

This period of intensive board engagement reinforced ISQua’s vision and strategic direction, ensuring the organisation remains at the forefront of global healthcare quality improvement.

ISQua EEA Accreditation Council Meeting

5 & 6 March 2026

Dublin, Ireland

As part of ISQua’s expanding governance and quality infrastructure, the ISQua External Evaluation Association (ISQua EEA) Accreditation Council convened in Dublin for strategic deliberations on the future of healthcare accreditation globally. The Accreditation Council serves as a critical advisory body to the ISQua EEA Board, providing guidance on matters relating to the International Accreditation Programme and broader external evaluation and accreditation policy. This meeting reinforced ISQua EEA’s commitment to raising global standards for the organisations that accredit healthcare providers.

CAHOCON 2026: First ISQua Regional Conference for South Asia

10–12 April 2026

Chennai Trade Centre, Chennai, India

Theme: “Tech, Touch, Trust – The New Healthcare Code”

ISQua participated as a knowledge partner in this landmark conference – the 10th edition of CAHO’s flagship annual gathering and the inaugural ISQua Regional Conference for South Asia. The event brought together over 2,500 healthcare leaders, clinicians, administrators, and policymakers, including more than 200 international delegates.

The event was inaugurated by M. Venkaiah Naidu, former Vice President of India, with keynote addresses from global healthcare leaders including Dr. Sangita Reddy (Apollo Hospitals Group) and ISQua President Dr. Ezequiel Garcia Elorrio. The conference featured prestigious CAHO Awards honoring excellence in healthcare quality and patient safety across South Asia.

This partnership between ISQua and CAHO underscores the organisation’s commitment to expanding global collaboration and strengthening healthcare quality improvement initiatives in emerging healthcare markets.

Looking Ahead to ISQua 2026

As ISQua progresses through 2026, attention is already turning to the flagship event of the year: ISQua’s 42nd International Conference in Dublin (27–30 September 2026). With the theme “Thriving Through Compassion and Community: Sharing Stories for the Future of Health Systems,” this conference promises to bring together over 1,400 healthcare professionals from more than 80 countries. The conference represents the culmination of a year focused on advancing quality and safety on the global stage, building on the momentum generated by Q1’s strategic events.

The Q1 events have laid a strong foundation: evidence-based research frameworks, international collaboration models, and regional partnerships that will shape the conversations in Dublin and beyond.

Find out more

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Nourhan Kawtharani

Nourhan, a quality and safety coordinator with eight years of experience in ambulatory healthcare in Lebanon, aims to deepen her understanding of the systemic and holistic approach to healthcare through this fellowship.

She aims to identify gaps and develop tailored interventions that address specific contexts rather than applying general solutions. Engaging with diverse professionals and perspectives during this educational journey will expand the application of these concepts across different cultural settings.

Nourhan emphasizes the importance of promoting a culture of continuous learning and improvement within healthcare institutions, considering it a vital leadership responsibility to integrate quality and safety initiatives into the organizational culture.

Nourhan's commitment to patient safety and quality management includes sourcing practical resources and transforming insights into actionable knowledge to drive continued progress in healthcare practices and outcomes.

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Elom Otchi

Elom is passionate about improving quality of care and patient safety outcomes.

In view of this, he has had the opportunity to work in various capacities with various organisations including AfIHQSA, WHO, UNICEF and others undertaking research, supporting the development of national quality policies and strategies, facilitating the establishment of quality governance systems across all the levels of the health sector and building capacity of national and sub-national quality leads/teams to institutionalize the practice of quality and patient safety across the continent.

He has also worked extensively across all levels of care in the health sector of Ghana, including leading the Quality & Patient Safety program in its largest teaching hospital.

I would like to use this Fellowship as a learning platform and an opportunity to acquire the requisite knowledge, skills and competencies to complement ongoing efforts by like-minded individuals and organizations to continuously advance improve the quality and patient safety in Ghana and the continent.

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Stephen Taiye Balogun

Stephen is a Senior Programme Officer at the Institute of Human Virology in Nigeria as well as Country Representative for Health Information for All (HIFA).

Stephen plans to use this opportunity to maximise his impact by championing the cause of patient safety and quality in Nigeria and across Africa.

Stephen says "Quality and safety is a major wheel through which universal healthcare coverage can be achieved. The goal is to be a bridge in the gap between the International Quality Improvement and Patient Safety community and my country to ensure rapid spread, adoption, implementation and practice."

We are looking forward to working with both Stephen and our 2020 winner Rhoda Kalondu over the next year.

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Dr Rhoda Kalondu

Rhoda is the Head of the Patient Safety Unit at Kenyatta Hospital in Nairobi and wants to use this Fellowship to learn how to establish a culture of safety and develop systems for assessment and analysis at her institution, and more widely. As well as this, Rhoda intends to develop and execute an intervention to improve patient safety in Kenyatta National Hospital.

It is one thing to institute measures and processes for improvement, but quite another to change the culture of an environment. Rhoda's ambition to lead others in this change inspired the panel.

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Dr Subhrojyoti Bhowmick

I am an MBBS graduate from Calcutta University with a Gold Medal in Gynecology & Obstetrics.

I have completed M.D in Pharmacology from IPGME& R, Kolkata and have over 12 years of experience in the field of Clinical Research, Pharmacovigilance and Medication management in Hospitals.

I have completed certification in Clinical Research Administration & Project Management from Stanford University, USA and in Patient Safety from Johns Hopkins University, USA.

I am an Assessor for National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Health care providers (NABH), India assessing hospitals for medication safety and clinical quality standards and NABH Assessor for Ethics Committee Accreditation program in India as well.

I serve as the Chairperson, Institutional Ethics Committee of Health Point Hospital, Kolkata and am associated with 2 other Hospital ethics committees as a member.

I finished my Fellowship in Healthcare Quality from the International Society of Quality in Healthcare (ISQua) from Ireland in 2017.

I have published several research articles and have also authored a chapter on “Regulations governing Clinical Trial” in the book “Fundamentals of Clinical Trial & Research”.

I am a peer reviewer for prestigious international journals like the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, CNS Drugs and Drug Safety case reports.

I am the recipient of the UK Seth Oration Award for Best Clinical Pharmacology paper by the Indian Pharmacological Society in 2009 and the “Most promising Healthcare professional in Patient Safety in India” award by the Asian African Chamber of Commerce and Industry in October 2018.

Recently in April 2019, I received the Young Quality Achiever award by Consortium of Accredited Healthcare Organizations (CAHO), India for 2019 for my work in the field of medication safety and clinical research.

I have a keen interest in teaching and am visiting adjunct faculty of Pharmacology at KMC, Mangalore, India and for Healthcare technology at MAKAUT, Kolkata, India.

I was associated with Stanford University School of Medicine, in the USA as a Senior Clinical Research Associate from 2015 to 2017 and have certification in Biostatistics, Evidence-based Medicine and Medical Writing from Stanford University.

Currently, I am working as the Clinical Director of Academics, Medical Quality and Clinical Research at Peerless Hospital and B K Roy Research Centre, Kolkata.

I am very happy and thrilled to receive the prestigious ISQua Lucian Leape Patient safety Fellowship Award for 2019 and I look forward to honing my skills further in the field of healthcare quality and patient safety through my experiences during this fellowship.

I sincerely believe that successful completion of this fellowship will help me evolve as a more confident Patient safety leader in India who in turn can provide significant inputs on policy changes through NABH for the Indian healthcare system.

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