Imagine the NHS as a tapestry, woven from millions of lives and stories, each thread carrying the weight of resilience, compassion, and a drive for innovation. At this year’s TEDx NHS Forward, the stage became a platform for voices that aren’t just imagining a better future—they’re actively shaping it. Each speaker shared ground-breaking ideas and experiences that highlighted the transformative power of innovation and leadership in healthcare, reminding us that it isn’t just about technology; it’s about reshaping our understanding of what care can be.

Take Yvonne Farqhurson, for example. Standing on stage, she shared a startling truth: one in ten mothers suffers from post-natal depression, and for too many, the struggle remains unseen and unheard. But Yvonne is innovating in a way that challenges this silence by introducing a profoundly simple yet powerful approach—singing. Through her work with Breathe Arts Health Research, weekly singing sessions have become a revolutionary form of therapy, helping mothers find connection and solace. At the close of her talk, a group of mothers joined her on stage, each holding their babies, and singing together. Their harmonies moved the audience to tears, embodying how innovation isn’t always about complexity; it’s about transforming isolation into belonging and creating spaces where people can heal through connection.

Then there was Joe Tudor, who took the stage with a quiet yet impactful story of his own. He shared his journey through depression, peeling back layers of raw honesty as he described his road to recovery. For Joe, true innovation in mental health care means moving beyond medication alone, opening up new ways to connect, reflect, and heal. His story underscored the need for a more holistic approach, one that sees each person as more than a diagnosis. Joe’s journey was a call to rethink the mental health toolkit, to support those who feel they’re condition is more than a chemical imbalance, with innovation grounded in compassion and understanding.

Lucy Thompson’s work presented another powerful lens on recovery. Her art of tattooing nipples for breast cancer survivors is an innovation in post-cancer care, offering women the chance to reclaim their sense of self after surgery. With each permanent tattoo, Lucy isn’t just restoring a physical detail—she’s restoring confidence, identity, and dignity. Partnering with NHS Bradford Trust, she’s brought an often-overlooked but vital piece of healing into the mainstream, proving that even small, thoughtful innovations can have life-changing impacts.

Supa Chantschool’s story brought the audience into a deeply personal exploration of Hepatitis B, a condition often wrapped in stigma. Diagnosed as a child, Supa experienced years of isolation and misunderstanding. Now, through his advocacy and inspired leadership, he’s working to reshape how the NHS and society view Hepatitis B, showing that innovation in healthcare means not just developing treatments but dismantling stigmas. His journey to empower others and advocate for greater education serves as a blueprint for a healthcare system where openness and awareness are as essential as diagnosis and treatment.

Siobhan Ballan’s story of surviving child sexual abuse was both harrowing and hopeful. Through her BEAM project, she’s pioneering a proactive approach to safeguarding within the NHS, calling for mandatory reporting and comprehensive training. Siobhan’s vision is one of a healthcare system that innovates not only by treating the aftermath of trauma but by preventing it, standing as a shield for the most vulnerable. Her work reminds us that true innovation and meaningful healthcare leadership doesn’t stop at healing—it protects and uplifts, creating systems where people feel safe and supported.

Other speakers, too, brought fresh perspectives and forward-thinking ideas. Natasha Wilcock’s call for deaf insight pushed the NHS toward a more inclusive approach to patient care, while Milli Raizada’s exploration of hormonal health opened new pathways for understanding wellness beyond reproduction. Naabil Khan highlighted the need for more accurate representation of diverse skin tones in medical education, underlining the role of equity in innovative healthcare, and Jason Cohen’s journey with Tourette’s syndrome highlighted the transformative potential of neurosurgery, demonstrating how innovation in medical technology can enhance quality of life.

TEDx NHS Forward reminded us that healthcare innovation isn’t confined to labs or technologies—it’s found in empathy, courage, and the desire to serve the whole person. From Yvonne’s singing sessions, which transcended words and touched every person in the room, to Lucy’s tattoos, Supa’s fight against stigma, and Siobhan’s safeguarding vision, each speaker exemplified a future of the NHS that’s brighter, more inclusive, and profoundly compassionate. Together, they painted a vision of healthcare that’s continually evolving, a place where healing and innovation walk hand in hand and where the future is being shaped by people with the vision to imagine what could be and the courage to bring it to life.

Author

Sinéad Peare

Sinéad is the lead Hepatology Pharmacist at Guy’s & St Thomas’ NHS Trust, with a passion for advancing health equity, global healthcare access, and medicines policy. With a rich background in international health and equity policy, she recently served as the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer’s Clinical Fellow at NICE, where she led the development of strategic principles for rare diseases to improve equity of prioritisation for rare disease topics.

Sinéad’s career has taken her across the globe, in Myanmar she established the country’s first Medicines Information service and led a reform of the pharmacy curriculum, and then in Hong Kong she implemented the largest COVID vaccination centre and published literature to improve equity in childhood vaccination.

Driven by her passion for health equity and her hunger for equal access to medicines globally Sinéad aspires to continue her work internationally, advancing access to essential medicines and supporting the elimination of Hepatitis and HIV worldwide.

Declaration of interests

I have read and understood the BMJ Group policy on declaration of interests and declare the following interests: none.