Ailish Daly
Director of Patient Safety, Quality and Innovation
Beacon Hospital, Dublin
About
Ailish Daly is Director of Patient Safety, Quality and Innovation at Beacon Hospital, Dublin. A physiotherapist by profession, she graduated from the University of Manchester in 1999 and built her early career in the UK’s National Health Service and at Rikshospitalet, Oslo, before returning to Ireland in 2006 to work within the Health Service Executive. She joined Beacon Hospital in 2008, bringing extensive international experience to her work in-patient rehabilitation and clinical service delivery.
In 2021, Ailish completed an MSc in Leadership, Innovation and Management in Healthcare, specialising in process improvement. This academic achievement deepened her expertise in leading change across complex systems and underpinned her appointment as Director of Patient Safety, Quality and Innovation in 2022. In this role, she is responsible for shaping strategies that ensure safe, effective, and person-centred care while embedding quality and innovation across the hospital.
Ailish’s particular interest lies in person-centred process improvement, a focus that has shaped her research, publications, and conference contributions. She has played a central role in the development and dissemination of Lean Six Sigma in healthcare through the Beacon Lean Academy, a long-standing collaboration with University College Dublin. This partnership has established Beacon Hospital as a leader in healthcare improvement and education.
She has published and presented widely on the integration of Lean Six Sigma with person-centred principles and is recognised nationally and internationally for advancing innovative, values-driven approaches to healthcare transformation. Ailish is also an educator, mentor, and advocate for empowering staff to engage in improvement practices that enhance both patient and professional experience.
Her career reflects a consistent dedication to linking clinical expertise with leadership in improvement, ensuring that safety, compassion, and sustainability are at the core of healthcare delivery.