Professor Martin Elliott

Martin Elliott is one of the country’s leading paediatric surgeons and served as Co-Medical Director at The Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children (GOSH). He has led teams in complex operations, managed large departments, and been at the forefront of medical and operational innovations for three decades. He is Emeritus Professor of Paediatric Cardiothoracic Surgery at University College London, and Emeritus Professor of Physick and Fellow at Gresham College London.

In his role as Medical Director at GOSH, Martin engaged in transplantation, and led the thoracic transplant team. He has directed research into the pathophysiology of cardiopulmonary bypass, clinical outcomes and databases, and tracheal reconstruction in children pioneering several surgical techniques, including tracheal transplantation. Martin formed and led the National Service for Severe Tracheal Disease in Children.

Martin has worked with industries outside healthcare, including motorsport, aviation and with Nasa, to improve the processes and understanding of all involved. For example, McLaren F1’s pit crew helped reinvent how surgical teams hand-over to intensive care teams (one of the riskiest parts of the operation process) and how to spot potential problems before they become chronic, by comparing the vital signs of the child to engine performance data.

In an area where there is nowhere to hide (success and failure are a matter of life and death; families demand answers, and children ask blunt questions about what’s happening to them) Martin has worked to create a culture of accountability without blame. Allowing for failure as long as there is insight from that failure and enabling others to highlight errors regardless of their role or seniority.

Martin has delivered over four hundred and fifty invited lectures worldwide, including more than forty named lectures. He was the Hunterian Orator at the Royal College of Surgeons of England. Other portfolio roles include being a Non-Executive Director at both The Royal Marsden Hospital NHS FT, London, and Children’s Health Ireland, Dublin. He is a member of the (advisory) Industry Council of Novartis UK and a Senior Adviser to PA Consulting Ltd. Martin was also a member of the recently completed China Tribunal considering evidence of forced organ harvesting in Chinese detention camps.

With stories from his career, as well as the wider health service, Martin provides practical insights into innovation, leadership, and culture, as well as a fascinating look at the surgery, holding a life in your hands, and what surgeons really think.