Day 1 - The Great Debate
Monday 26 October 2026
12:30pm - 1:30pm | Lecture Theatre | Hybrid Event
"The pursuit of breakthrough health innovations should take precedence over ethical, privacy and environmental concerns."
Join us for a thought-provoking debate exploring one of healthcare’s most pressing questions: how do we balance the drive for innovation with our responsibilities to patients, communities and the environment?
This engaging session will bring together leading experts from health care, research, law and digital health to debate whether breakthrough innovations should be prioritised, or whether ethical considerations, privacy protections, public trust and sustainability must remain at the forefront of decision-making. Audience polling before and after the debate will capture changing perspectives and reveal how opinions evolve throughout the discussion.
Host and Adjudicator
Chloe Shorten, Bayside Health Board Director.
Featured Speakers
Affirmative Team Advocating that breakthrough healthcare innovation should be prioritised to improve patient outcomes and strengthen health system resilience.
- Dr Shane Nanayakkara, Interventional Cardiologist and AI Researcher
- Prof Meng Law, Expert in Advanced Neuroimaging, AI and Precision Diagnostics
- Prof Victoria Mar, Director of the Victorian Melanoma Service at The Alfred
Opposing Team Advocating that innovation must remain grounded in ethics, privacy, public trust and environmental sustainability.
- A/Prof Zerina Lokmic-Tomkins, Monash University researcher in Climate Adaptation and Sustainable Healthcare Innovation
- Mr David Ruschena, Legal Counsel, Bayside Health
- Dr Sudeep Saraf, Chief Digital Health Officer, Bayside Health
Judging Panel
- Katrina Lewis is the Director of Patient Experience and Consumer Engagement at The Alfred
- Angela Henjak is the Senior Manager of the Ethics & Research Governance Office at The Alfred
- Lachlan MacBean is the Director of Data Analytics Services at The Alfred
- Dr Duong Nhu is a Research Fellow in the Department of Neuroscience at Monash University’s School of Translational Medicine
Don't miss this unique opportunity to hear diverse perspectives, challenge your assumptions and contribute to an important conversation about the future of healthcare.