KEYNOTE SPEAKER: IASLT BIENNIAL CONFERENCE 2023 - Fiona Steed

Fiona Steed is the Chief HSCP Officer in the Department of Health, Ireland.
Her professional career spans 30 years of working in the health sector having
qualified from the University of Teesside with a BSc in Physiotherapy in 1993
and spending her formative career working in the North East of England during
the formation of the NHS Trusts.

She then worked as a private practitioner in her own sports injury clinic before
returning to Ireland in late 2000 taking up a senior physiotherapist role in
Nenagh hospital, now part of UL Hospitals Group (ULHG).
She completed a Master of Science in Neuro Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy in
UCD in 2007, and a Higher National Diploma in Healthcare Management in UL
in 2016.

In 2017 Fiona was appointed the inaugural Group Lead of Allied Health in
ULHG which was a unique position within the Health Service Executive holding
a group wide remit as lead to 6 Health and Social Care Professional
departments and the lymphoedema service.

During this time Fiona fostered key relationships with the University of
Limerick and the community health organisation which led to significant
research outputs and increased practice education placements in the region.
In February 2021 Fiona was the first HSCP to be appointed as directorate
general manager in ULHG.

Fiona was appointed to the new role of Chief HSCP Officer in the Department
of Health, Ireland in May 2023. This is a key strategic role that will provide
leadership on policy direction and evidence-based expert advice for the Health
and Social Care Professions policy agenda with an initial focus on advanced
practice, strategic workforce planning and practice education.