Sarah Murray never planned to become a patient advocate; it just happened. Like many big life changes, it began quietly, in the middle of something overwhelming.
Her journey started when her baby was born with a congenital heart defect. Overnight, Sarah found herself not just learning how to be a parent, but also trying to navigate a healthcare system that felt confusing and, at times, intimidating. There were appointments to attend, medical terms to decipher, and decisions to make that felt far bigger than she'd ever imagined facing.
If you've ever left a doctor's appointment thinking, "Wait… what did that actually mean?" You'll understand exactly how she felt. The appointments were often rushed, explanations filled with jargon, and it was all too easy to nod along in the moment, only to feel lost later.
But instead of letting that uncertainty take over, Sarah decided to take back a bit of control. She started small. Writing things down. Tracking symptoms. Noting even the tiniest changes. Before every appointment, she'd prepare questions, and most importantly, she made sure she left with answers. Slowly but surely, her confidence grew. She found her voice, not just as a mum, but as someone responsible for making informed decisions about her child's care.
And then she realised something else: she wasn't alone.
In hospital waiting rooms and along busy corridors, she met other parents who felt just as unsure. Some didn't feel confident enough to speak up. Others didn't even realise they could. That stuck with her.
So she began helping in the simplest way possible: by talking. Sharing what she'd learned, suggesting questions others could ask, and reassuring parents that it was okay to speak up. Those small, quiet conversations made a difference. And over time, they grew into something much bigger.
Healthcare professionals started to notice too. Sarah had a gift for translating complex medical information into something people could actually understand. She knew what it felt like to sit on both sides of the conversation: the emotional weight of being a parent and the practical realities of the healthcare system. She became a kind of bridge, helping families and professionals meet in the middle.
As her son grew, now a thriving young adult, so did her role as an advocate. What began as a personal coping strategy turned into a long-term mission: making sure families and carers feel heard, supported, and included.
Today, Sarah looks back and sees how those early, uncertain days shaped everything she does now. She chairs the National Patient and Public Group for the British Heart Foundation and Leicester University Cardiac Research Collaborative; is the Public and Patient Lead for the James Lind Alliance Priority Setting partnership for Women and Cardiovascular Disease: Beating Bias (King's College London); is Chair of the NICOR Patient Representative Group, and serves as the Lay Representative on the Executive of the Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery.
She is also a qualified solicitor, bringing both legal acuity and lived experience to every table she sits at. Not bad for someone who started out just trying to understand what the doctor had said.
Her message is refreshingly simple: you don't need to be an expert to advocate for someone: you just need to care enough to ask questions, and keep asking until things make sense. Trust yourself. Speak up. Your voice matters more than you think.
Today, Sarah's story isn't just about her own journey. It's about the many families she's supported along the way, and all the people who feel a little more confident because someone showed them how to find their voice.
When Sarah was first approached to help build OnionAI, she didn't hesitate. Here was a platform that did exactly what she had spent years trying to do by hand: give people the knowledge, the language, and the confidence to take an active role in their own health. She has been part of the OnionAI team from the very beginning, shaping how the platform listens to and serves its users. Because informed patients don't just feel better about their care: they get better care. Because when you feel informed, you feel empowered, and that can make all the difference.