- Heart Institute of the Caribbean Founder, CEO acknowledged for his philanthropic work in the developing world
Internationally recognised cardiologist and Founder and CEO of the Heart Institute of the Caribbean (HIC), Dr Ernest Madu, was named by Grupo Mídia as one of the world’s 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare at its awards ceremony held recently in Dusseldorf, Germany, during MEDICA 2017 – the world’s largest medical tradeshow.
Since opening its facilities on Balmoral Avenue in Kingston, Jamaica in 2005, the HIC has been making world class heart health services available to all Jamaicans. Through its Foundation, led by its Executive Director, Lisa D’Oyen, the HIC has made these services available to lower income citizens by subsidising the cost associated with providing access to high quality cardiovascular care that is more readily-available in the developed world. For the past 12 years The HIC Foundation has provided more than US$12 million in free or subsidised care to its patients – a significant contribution as more than half of the hospital deaths in Jamaica are caused by cardiovascular disease.
Dr Madu had this to say on receiving his award; “Although there have been significant advances in medical technology globally, the developing world has been left behind. The Heart Institute of the Caribbean is working hard to change that reality as cardiac related illnesses continue to be the number one cause of death in Jamaica and the Caribbean. Our mission is to provide the latest in cardiac care to our patients and to lead the charge towards increasing access to the highest level of healthcare available to everyone – regardless of their socioeconomic background. I am humbled and grateful to Grupo Mídia for its award. I accept it graciously with the hope that it will bring more attention to the global need for more access to appropriate technology and affordable quality healthcare for people living in low-resource nations across the world.”
Earlier this year, Dr Madu was honoured by the American College of Cardiology with the Distinguished Cardiologist Award, the highest honour given each year to the most distinguished cardiologists as decided by their peers internationally.
Over the years, the HIC has expanded its services to meet the needs of its growing clientele. These include a recent investment of more than US$4 million to open the region’s first and only full service 24-hour Heart Hospital. HIC also purchased two additional cardiac ambulances to expand its fleet of dedicated cardiac ambulances to four and offers the only cardiac emergency ambulance service in Jamaica and the Caribbean. All HIC cardiac ambulances are fully equipped with resuscitation devices including ventilators and have the capability for Telemedicine – allowing remote intervention from cardiac specialists.
Grupo Mídia is a multimedia company based in Brazil and publishes the magazines, Healthcare Management, HealthARQ and Health-IT. Dr Madu was named in the category of Philanthropy – one of ten categories including: Associations, Business, Education and Research, Healthcare Management, Hospitals, Industry, Innovation, International Reference and Sustainability. Ten winners were selected for each category. (HIC, Jamaica)
