Lecturers Preconference Workshops

Kathrin A. Blum is a Psychologist and PhD candidate at the Institute for Implementation Science in Health Care, University of Zurich. Before joining academia, she built an extensive career in IT consulting, specializing in business process reengineering and guiding organizations through transition and change initiatives. Prior to her doctoral studies, she contributed to a research project implementing software for evidence-based mental health assessments for children in low- and middle-income countries. Her current research focuses on tailoring implementation strategies to specific contexts and systematically monitoring their impact throughout the implementation process.

Marta Castro is a Research Associate at the Center for Clinical Nursing Science, University Hospital Zurich, where she leads the full design and implementation of a pioneering research and evidence-based practice capacity-building program for nurses across all career stages. Beyond capacity building, Marta contributes to new care model’s research. Drawing on clinical expertise in neonatal intensive nursing care and international health insurance, with work experience in Portugal, Ireland, and Switzerland, she is passionate to translate the best evidence into clinical settings and Nursing development. In addition, Marta is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Clinical Research and Health Services at the Medicine Faculty of the University of Porto, Portugal.

Suzanne R. Dhaini is the Head of Nursing Research at the University Children’s Hospital Zurich and a scientific collaborator at the University of Basel. She is a former Assistant Professor tenure track at the Hariri School of Nursing, American University of Beirut. Her work focuses on improving care quality through evidence-based nursing practices, workforce, and innovative community care models. Suzanne Dhaini has led and collaborated on several projects advancing nursing science and patient-centered care.

Tobias Kowatsch is Associate Professor for Digital Health Interventions at the Institute for Implementation Science in Health Care, University of Zurich. He is also Director at the School of Medicine, University of St. Gallen, and Co-Chair and Core Director for Precision Digital Therapeutics at the Centre for Digital Health Interventions (c4dhi.org, CDHI). CDHI is a joint initiative of the Institute for Implementation Science in Health Care at the University of Zurich, the School of Medicine, and the Institute of Technology Management at the University of St. Gallen, and the Department of Management, Technology, and Economics at ETH Zurich. In close collaboration with his interdisciplinary team and research partners, Tobias Kowatsch designs digital health interventions at the intersection of information systems research, computer science, and behavioral medicine. In 2013, he initiated MobileCoach, an open-source platform for digital biomarker and health intervention research. In 2017, Tobias Kowatsch also co-founded Pathmate Technologies, an ETH Zurich and University of St. Gallen spin-off that offers digital therapeutics (e.g., Manoa for individuals with hypertension).

Anna Lisa Martin-Niedecken is Professor of Design Science at Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK), specializing in digital health, healthcare, and sports. She heads the Institute for Design Research and has previously served as Deputy Director of the Department of Design. She also leads the cross-institutional Digital Health Design Living Lab (DHD LL), an interdisciplinary platform developing innovative, research-based solutions for the digital healthcare system in collaboration with universities, hospitals, patient organizations, and healthcare professionals. Trained as a sports scientist (TU Darmstadt) and active in design and HCI research, her work focuses on human-centered, evidence-based (co-)design and the evaluation of technology-driven health solutions, including Serious Games, Exergames and digital or AI-supported healthcare tools. Anna Lisa Martin-Niedecken has received multiple awards, including the SIGCHI Outstanding Dissertation Award, and is a frequent speaker at major events such as TEDxZurich. In 2020, she was named one of Switzerland’s 100 Digital Shapers.

Juliane Mielke is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Institute of Nursing Science, University of Basel, Switzerland. Trained as a registered nurse, she completed her PhD in Nursing Science in 2022, developing a methodology for studying context in implementation science. Juliane currently leads the CONSENS project on reporting context analysis. Her research focuses on integrating implementation science and systems science methods in integrated care research.

Sarah Serhal is a Researcher within the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Geneva, Switzerland. She is a pharmacist with a Master’s in international public health and a PhD from the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research and the University of Sydney, Australia. Her research explores ways we can address patient, medication, and healthcare related barriers to achieve optimal illness control and how these actions can be transformed into real-world impact using principles of implementation, behavioral, and systems sciences.

Bastiaan Van Grootven is an SNF Ambizione fellow at the Institute for Nursing Science, University of Basel, with a strong focus on improving quality of care for older persons. He obtained his PhD in biomedical sciences from KU Leuven, Belgium, and has additional training in biomedical statistics and evaluating complex interventions. He currently leads the ENGAGE and COMMUNITY projects, which develop and test community-based programs to reduce frailty and social isolation among older adults. In addition, he contributes as a co-investigator to international trials such as RECOVER@HOME and is a member of several research consortia on integrated care, palliative care, and social isolation. His work combines evidence synthesis, program evaluation, and individualized healthcare approaches to advance implementation science in gerontology and geriatrics.

Lotte Verweij is a Research Associate for Implementation Science in Nursing at the Institute for Implementation Science in Health Care at the University of Zurich and Center for Clinical Nursing Science at the University Hospital Zurich, Switzerland. Lotte is a registered nurse and clinical epidemiologist. In 2021, she completed her PhD at the University of Amsterdam focusing on transitional care processes in a frail population. Her current research focuses on the effective implementation of family support interventions in acute-critical care, as well as on the effective integration of patient and public involvement in healthcare research.