Digital Health 2026 Awards winners presented their awards by Karl Grundy, managing director at Digital Health (Credit: Luke Farmer)
The winners of the 2026 Digital Health Awards have been revealed following a ceremony at Summer Schools 2026.
The awards celebrate innovation, dedication and excellence across the healthcare landscape, recognising the achievements of senior NHS IT leaders and upcoming trailblazers who are driving transformation.
Winners were presented with their awards by Karl Grundy, managing director at Digital Health, at a ceremony on 16 July 2026 at the University of Nottingham.
The winners are:
CCIO of the Year – Dr Paul Atkinson
Dr Atkinson has held the chief clinical information officer (CCIO) role at NHS Gloucestershire since February 2015, on a part-time basis until June 2022 before taking the position full-time alongside the role of director of the digital team at Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board (ICB).
He is also a founding fellow of the Faculty of Clinical Informatics and clinical advisor to Tata Consultancy Services. Between 2017 and 2018 he was clinical advisor at NHS Digital, providing clinical output to the GP IT Futures programme.
Between 2016 and 2020 he was digital clinical champion at NHSX, helping the team to promote ‘digital primary care’ and ‘patient online’.
CIO of the Year – Debbie Loke
Loke receives the award for her work as executive chief digital information officer (CDIO) at University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust. She was chief information (CIO) and director of digital from May 2020 until July 2024, before becoming CDIO – a position she held for two years.
She recently left the trust to join DHU Healthcare as chief digital officer, where she now focuses on NHS 111, urgent treatment centres, and supporting the continued shift towards prevention, early intervention and delivering care closer to home.
For the past three years, Loke has also been a member of the Digital Health Networks CIO Advisory Panel.
CNIO of the Year – Hayley Grafton
Grafton has claimed the award for her work as chief nursing information officer (CNIO) at University Hospitals Leicester NHS Trust (UHL), a role she held from November 2023 until February 2026. She is now group CNIO at UHL and University Hospitals of Northamptonshire Group.
The CNIO of the Year was also a Digital Health Networks CNIO Advisory Panel member for four years from 2021 to 2025, before being elected as chair of the panel last year.
Rising Star – Daniel Tudor
Tudor has been the AI technical lead at University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust for the past 12 months, leading the end-end technical delivery of AI projects at the trust, including problem scoping, data access and quality checks, model development, validation, deployment, and ongoing monitoring in live clinical settings.
He also helps shape the trust’s AI strategy – prioritising use‑cases, advising on build‑versus‑buy decisions, and guiding investment in platforms, skills, and standards.