Portrait of Dr Chris Paton

Dr Chris Paton is a medical doctor, software developer and researcher in digital health and AI. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the BMJ Digital Health & AI journal and an Associate Professor of Health AI at the Liggins Institute at the University of Auckland. He holds an Executive MBA from the University of Auckland and a DPhil in Digital Health Technologies from the University of Oxford. He was elected as a Founding Fellow of Reuben College, Oxford, and he is currently a Fellow of the British Computer Society. He is the author of the Textbook of Digital Health (open access) and over 100 peer-reviewed publications.

Software

A member of staff beside a patient's bed in the Hospital Simulator

Hospital Simulator

A 3D interactive hospital simulator (digital twin) with AI agents representing patients and healthcare staff used for health system research and healthcare worker training.

Concept image of MEDCHAT answering a question about a child with pneumonia

MEDCHAT

A novel chatbot interface for on-device secure AI clinical decision support systems designed for low-resource settings.

In development

MedStudent.Org home screen with 3D anatomy models and daily study

MedStudent.Org

An online learning portal for pre-clinical medical students utilising 3D models, spaced repetition and deliberate practice for anatomy and physiology.

In development

EHR Simulator showing a summary for a fictional patient

EHR Simulator

A web-based EHR simulator for clinical training and user interface design experiments.

Linux Simulator terminal running shell commands

Linux Simulator

A simulator for students learning how to use the Linux Operating System (web and iOS app).

A yacht alongside a pontoon on Waitemata Harbour in the Sailing Simulator

Sailing Simulator

A free online 3D sailboat simulator - learn to sail on Auckland’s Waitemata Harbour.

A Palladian country house in the Architectural Designer

Architectural Designer

A free online 3D architectural design system. Learn about ancient architectural techniques and design your house in a classical style!

Publications

Title page of the thesis

Usability of Digital Health Technologies

DPhil thesis, University of Oxford, 2024

How NHS digital systems could be improved through modernised user interface guidelines and quantitative usability modelling.

Cover of the Textbook of Digital Health

Textbook of Digital Health

Open-access textbook

Developed for the “Introduction to Digital Health” course at the University of Auckland, covering health systems, electronic health records, mHealth, telehealth, clinical decision support and health data infrastructure.

Full publication list

Talks

GP CME

Keeping up with AI in healthcare

13 June 2026 · GP CME

GP CME

Open Source, On-Device AI for Improving Healthcare Delivery

12 June 2026 · GP CME

NHS Chief Clinical Information Officers

Five Trends in Digital Health and AI

June 2026 · Briefing for NHS Chief Clinical Information Officers

University of Oxford

AI & Global Health

27 May 2025 · University of Oxford

With Dr Pratap Kumar.

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