Health Data Research Service CEO to speak at Rewired 2026
- 26 February 2026
- Dr Melanie Ivarsson, newly appointed chief executive of the Health Data Research Service (HDRS), will speak at Digital Health Rewired 2026
- In a fireside chat, she will detail how the HDRS plans to improve access to secure NHS data for research through a single front door
- Rewired 2026 takes place on 24-25 March at the Birmingham NEC. Book your place now to attend
Dr Melanie Ivarsson, newly appointed chief executive of the Health Data Research Service (HDRS), is the latest confirmed speaker at Digital Health Rewired 2026.
In a fireside chat, Dr Ivarsson will share her vision for the £600m-backed HDRS which is planned to unleash the potential of NHS data for medical research and patient care.
She will detail how the service will improve access to secure NHS data for research through a single front door, accelerating research, clinical trials and innovation at scale while safeguarding privacy – offering digital leaders a strategic view of UK health data transformation.
The Department of Health and Social Care announced the launch of the HDRS in April 2025 to bring access to data for medical research into one location, meaning that researchers do not have to navigate different systems or make multiple applications for information for the same project.
Dr Ivarsson was appointed as chief executive last month, having previously led the clinical trials that produced one of the world’s first Covid-19 vaccines at Moderna.
She has also held senior roles at pharmaceutical firms Eli Lilly, Pfizer and Takeda and has a strong research background, conducting post-doctoral research at New York University in the US and Lund University in Sweden.
Joining Ivarsson at Rewired26 will be a new cohort of speakers just announced:
- Professor Jacqui Cooper, chief nursing information officer, Health Innovation Manchester
- Kavitha Saravanakumar, interim chief information officer, NHS North West London
- Markus Bolton, executive director, Graphnet
- Dr Harpreet Sood, medical partner, The Access Group
- Malti Varshney, director of strategic change and population health, Kent and Medway ICB
- David Chapman, chief data analytics officer, Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS FT
- Dr Martin Farrier, director of digital medicine, chief clinical information officer, consultant paediatrician, Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS FT
- Daren Fradgley, deputy chief executive and group chief integration officer, United Lincolnshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
The Rewired programme features more than 300 speakers, including some of the most senior leaders in health IT, such as Dr Alec Price-Forbes, national chief clinical information officer at NHS England, and Helen Balsdon, national chief nursing information officer at NHS England.
The Access Group and Optum are co-headline sponsors for the event and will also sponsor the Integrated Care and Digital Transformation stages respectively.
Digital Health Rewired 2026 takes place on 24-25 March at The NEC Birmingham. NHS, public sector, charities, research and education can attend for free. Commercial tickets start from £769+VAT. There is a 20% discount on group bookings.
