Dr. Robert Kelly
Robert Kelly, MD, MBA, FRCPI, FACC, FESC, FFSEM is a Consultant Cardiologist and Lifestyle Medicine Physician at Beacon Hospital in Dublin, Ireland, an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine at University College Dublin (UCD), and a Senior Lecturer in Lifestyle Medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI). He is a Board Member of the European Lifestyle Medicine Organisation (ELMO), the Cofounder of the Irish Society of Lifestyle Medicine (ISLM), and the Chief Medical Officer of Vtuls, a Swiss health technology company.
With over 30 years of experience in cardiovascular medicine, Robert is an internationally trained Interventional Cardiologist, bestselling author, TEDx speaker, and Certified Tiny Habits Coach who has pioneered the integration of lifestyle medicine with traditional cardiology in Ireland. He became the first hospital consultant in Ireland to be board certified in Lifestyle Medicine and serves as the Ireland Ambassador for the European Lifestyle Medicine Organisation.
Robert specializes in heart disease prevention, cardiac imaging, coronary angiography, and stenting, while applying the pillars of lifestyle medicine to help patients prevent, treat, and potentially reverse heart disease. He has helped over 10,000 people live longer, healthier, and happier lives through his holistic Whole Heart Health Approach, which addresses nutrition, exercise, sleep, stress management, substance avoidance, and social connection.
In 2025, Robert created the Heart Reset Method, a six-month, doctor-led program that combines cardiology, lifestyle medicine, and behavioral coaching to help patients prevent heart attacks, reverse risk factors, and rebuild their health through small, consistent steps.
He is the Medical Director for Lifestyle Health and Wellbeing at Beacon Hospital, where he has served as a Consultant Cardiologist since 2007. In this role, he conducts daily cardiology clinics, performs cardiac procedures including coronary angiography, stenting, IVUS, FFR, heart monitor implants, and cardioversion, and coaches patients using his Mind, Heart, and Body programs to improve health through behavioral science.
Between September 2014 and August 2022, Robert served as the Director of Innovation at Beacon Hospital, fostering creative solutions and new ideas for delivering best-practice healthcare. He was also the Head of Cardiology Department and the Beacon Heart Centre from May 2014 to October 2015 and the Director of the Beacon Healthcheck Programme from December 2014 to July 2016, a consultant-led, evidence-based medical screening service for individuals and corporations. Between May 2007 and May 2014, he served as Chief of Cardiology and Programme Director for Cardiology at UPMC Beacon Hospital.
Robert is the bestselling author of The Heart Book: Making Positive Changes for a Healthy and Happier Life, published in November 2024, which became an Irish Times number one bestseller. He is also the coauthor of Unlocking Success: Inspiring Tales of Resilience, Innovation, and Growth, an Amazon bestseller written in collaboration with Jack Canfield, the creator of Chicken Soup for the Soul.
Robert’s TEDx talk, Small Steps Towards a Heart-Healthy Mindset, delivered at TEDxTralee in 2024, has reached over 300,000 views and continues to inspire audiences globally. He has published over 30 peer-reviewed papers in leading cardiology journals and presented more than 30 papers at national and international meetings.
Listen to Heart Health 101 with Cardiologist, Professor Robert Kelly and The Heart Book: Making Positive Changes for a Healthy and Happier Life on Pat Kenny’s Newstalk. Listen to Lessons from the Heart — Living a Happy Healthy Life.
As the Chief Medical Officer of Vtuls since 2016, Robert oversees the medical direction of a Swiss health technology company that uses AI and machine learning to remotely monitor patients’ vital signs and respond rapidly to worsening conditions. In 2020, Vtuls was Highly Commended at the Health Tech Awards for Best Use of AI, recognizing its AI-driven remote health monitoring technology for vulnerable patients. Between February 2015 and July 2017, Robert was the Medical Director of VideoDoc, a telemedicine company that brings video consultation technology to doctors and healthcare providers, which received the Emerging New Business Award from the Small Firms Association in 2016.
Between June 2012 and July 2016, he was the Cofounder and Medical Director of Connected Diagnostics, a cloud-computing-based ECG and Holter reading service for primary care in Ireland. He also served as the Medical Director of Vista Primary Care Group in Naas, Co. Kildare, from May 2010 to April 2013.
Robert earned his MD in Medicine with Honours from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) in 1992. He earned his Master of Business Administration from Henley Business School in 2013, with a special interest in business model innovation in healthcare. He completed a Fellowship in Interventional Cardiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 2002 to 2004 and subsequently served as an Associate Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine there from February 2005 to April 2007.
Robert earned his International Board Certification in Lifestyle Medicine from the American College of Lifestyle Medicine in 2019 and was named a Fellow of the Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine at RCSI in 2017, where he served as Honorary Secretary and was recognized as a Pioneer of Lifestyle Medicine in Sport and Exercise.
He also holds a Diploma in Lifestyle Medicine from Harvard Medical School and is a Certified Tiny Habits Coach from the Stanford Behaviour Design Lab, a Certified EMCC Global Team Coach from the WBECS Global Team Coaching Institute, and a Jack Canfield Success Principles Coach.
Robert is internationally trained in cardiology across Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the United States, including clinical experience at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee, Scotland, Antrim Area Hospital in Northern Ireland, and the University of North Carolina Hospital in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He was also a Consultant Cardiologist at St. James’s Hospital in Dublin from March 2013 to January 2016 and served as Lead Medical Advisor for Best Doctors in the Republic of Ireland from September 2015 to April 2018.
As a Senior Lecturer at RCSI since 2019, Robert is a Lifestyle Medicine education pioneer in Ireland. He is a Faculty Member and Lecturer in the Post-Graduate Diploma for Positive Psychology, the coorganizer of the Undergraduate Lifestyle Medicine Teaching Program at RCSI, and a Faculty Member at the Institute of Leadership, coaching Tiny Habits and applying behavior design for healthcare professionals in Ireland and the Middle East. He sits on the Scientific Organisation Committee for Annual Meetings of ELMO and teaches on the Lifestyle Medicine Diploma Program.
Robert is a member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, the British Society of Lifestyle Medicine, and a member of the Global Wellness Institute’s Lifestyle Medicine Initiative. He is also an Advisor for the Diabetes Prevention Program in the USA through Fruit Street.
He received the Business All-Stars Cardiology and Lifestyle Medicine Physician of the Year Award for 2025–26 from Business All-Stars. His earlier research accolades include the American Society of Coronary Angiography and Intervention Research Fellowship in Cardiac Imaging and the Irish Cardiac Society Young Investigator Award.
Robert’s mission was shaped by personal tragedy when his younger brother Dan died from sudden cardiac death in 1991, during Robert’s final year at medical school. This experience gave him a profound purpose to help as many people as possible to prevent heart disease and sudden death, leading him from traditional cardiology toward a holistic approach integrating lifestyle medicine, behavioural science, and coaching.
Robert lives in Dublin with his wife Lorna, their three children, and their dog Holly. He is an avid golfer, paddle tennis player, and enjoys walking, travelling, and socializing.
Read Dr. Robert Duvall Partners with SuccessBooks® to Co-Author “Unlocking Success” with Jack Canfield.
Visit his LinkedIn profile, his Personal Homepage, his RK Cardiology website, his Beacon Hospital profile, his ISLM profile, his ELMO profile, and his Front Row Speakers page. Follow him on Facebook and Instagram.