From ED nurse to health tech boss: how I’m still helping patients

Advice on taking your career in a whole new direction – and why moving away from direct patient care does not mean you can’t continue to support nurses

Swapping the adrenalin-fuelled world of emergency nursing for a desk in a digital technology start-up might not seem the most natural career progression, but for Krista Burslam-Dawe the excitement and challenges are comparable.

‘By going into digital health in a private company, I’ve kept the fast-pace I’ve always enjoyed in emergency medicine, where you don’t know what’s happening from one day to the next,’ says Ms Burslam-Dawe, who joined health technology company Opto, as their chief operating officer last autumn.

‘It really suits me, as I’ve been able to keep that same kind of momentum, where things