Re-imagining Europe's health systems

Prior to assuming his current role as CEO of HEALTH.AI (formally known as I-DAIR), an organisation that seeks to enable and improve access to inclusive, impactful and responsible research into digital health and artificial intelligence (AI), Ricardo Baptista Leite served as a member of the Portuguese national parliament’s health committee. He also founded the UNITE global network of parliamentarians, present in over 100 countries and active in tackling infectious diseases. Leite was a practising physician for seven years and has also held an infectious diseases residency at the WHO. He was a medical volunteer during the COVID-19 pandemic and at the Lviv Regional Hospital in Ukraine in the summer of 2022. He has an active role on several scientific and advisory boards of health, including as Chair of the Global Health Policy Lab, a collaborative between the University Medicine Berlin and Harvard University, and Chair of the Centre for Global Health at NOVA University in Portugal.

Salah-Dine Chibout is Global Head of External Partnerships and Head of Oncology Therapeutic Area in Preclinical Safety for NIBR, where he is responsible for the Oncology portfolio’s safety strategy from target identification to market access. Until 2019, Salah-Dine was leading the Therapeutic Areas in Preclinical Safety. In this role, he was responsible for defining all regulatory required toxicity studies, generating the relevant regulatory documents and ensuring efficient interactions with health authorities. In addition, Salah-Dine is leading the External Partnerships department, being responsible for the outsourcing of toxicology activities and interactions with academics for preclinical safety. He represents Novartis at the EFPIA Science and Innovation Board and is the Chair of the Research & Innovation Strategy Group (RIS).

 Bogi Eliasen is the Executive Director of the Movement Health Foundation and a senior professional in global health innovation, with a focus on digital transformation and preventive care. He initiated the FarGen project in the Faroe Islands and launched the Nordic Health Movement 2030. Eliasen co-chairs the World Health Organization’s Strategic Partners’ Initiative for Data and Digital Health and serves on the World Economic Forum’s Strategic Advisory Group on Digital Healthcare Transformation. He is also a Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy and an Honorary Fellow in Futures of Health at the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies. 

András Tivadar Kulja is a surgeon and digital-health expert who was elected to the European Parliament in June 2024 on the ticket of Hungary’s opposition Tisza Party. With 360,000 followers on TikTok, he has Hungary’s most widely-viewed health-education channel. Kulja used his high social media profile to counter disinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Inspired to enter politics after attending an opposition rally in April 2024, Kulja gave up his hospital posts to speak freely about Hungary’s healthcare problems. He is a Vice-Chair of the European Parliament Committee on the Environment, Climate, and Food Safety and a member of the Committee on Public Health, where he advocates for a stronger EU role in promoting healthcare reform.

Tamsin Rose is a facilitator who was until recently a senior fellow for health at Friends of Europe. Having studied international relations, she has 25 years of experience working across the European continent from Ireland to Mongolia. A natural communicator, Tamsin has been a radio reporter, worked on press for the EU Delegation in Moscow and is currently a member of the external speaker team for the European Commission Directorate-General for Communication, describing how the EU works and key policies to visitor groups from around the world. Since 2002, she has specialised in public health and public participation issues, serving as the Secretary General of the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA), and providing strategic advice for health groups on how to engage successfully with the EU.

Vlad Voiculescu is a member of the European Parliament, health policy expert and patient advocate, who until recently has served as the Romanian minister of health. After pursuing a career in finance, Voiculescu became active in public service, serving as the Romanian Finance Minister’s chief of staff before becoming the minister of health in the Dacian Cioloș government.  He has been involved in patient advocacy, both at the national and European levels for over a decade. Voiculescu is the founder of an international network of volunteers that helped over 2,500 cancer patients receive essential medicines that were missing in Romania, a story that featured in the HBO documentary The Network’. He is also the Co-Founder of MagiCAMP, which seeks to provide support to children diagnosed with cancer and other serious illnesses. For this work, the European Parliament awarded Voiculescu its ‘European Citizen’s Prize.’

Elisabetta Zanon is the Chief Executive Officer of the European Cancer Organisation and a senior professional with over 20 years of experience in European affairs, during which she has shaped health policy and led impactful communication campaigns. She previously served as Director of European Union Public Affairs and Advocacy at the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine, and as Director of Advocacy at the European Society of Cardiology, where she launched the European Society of Cardiology Patient Forum and contributed to European Union-funded research initiatives. Zanon also established and directed the National Health Service European Office in Brussels for a decade.