Motivated by a desire to improve access to safe, skilled surgical care in conflict-affected communities, Elly established the David Nott Foundation in 2015 and leads it as Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Since 2015 the DNF has trained over 1,500 doctors in life and limb-saving surgical skills. Doctors have been taught on DNF-funded scholarships and on the Hostile Environment Surgical Training (HEST) course, a trademarked programme accredited by the Royal College of Surgeons of England and Imperial College London. Training is focused on certain regions assessed for severity of need and informed by a strategy set by Elly and the Board of Trustees.
After graduating from St Hilda’s College, Oxford, Elly worked for a small social enterprise in southeast London. Between 2010 and 2014 Elly worked for the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) think tank in London and Bahrain. Elly was recognised with David on Foreign Policy’s Global Thinkers list of 2016 for their work training doctors in conflict areas. She has contributed to The Telegraph, British Medical Journal, IISS Voices, CNN and has appeared on Sky News.
Elly is a PhD student in the department of War Studies at King’s College London. Her research is supported by the Research for Health Systems Strengthening in Syria (R4HSSS) programme and focuses on the role of health organisations in providing governance from the ground up in northwest Syria.