Univ. Professor Dr. med. Ivo Buschmann
// Chairmanship of the Executive Board
Univ. Professor Dr. med. Ivo Buschmann is a specialist in internal medicine with a focus on angiology (vascular medicine). He heads the University Clinic for Clinical and Interventional Angiology at the Brandenburg Campus of the Medical School (MHB) and also works as a consultant at the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin. Prof. Buschmann is the founder of the EFVM. Through previous positions at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, the Max Planck Society in Bad Nauheim, the University Medical Center Freiburg, his main focus is on basic research, diagnostics and therapy of vascular diseases. Prof. Buschmann is particularly interested in the primary and secondary prevention of vascular diseases. In order to achieve this, he and the EFVM are committed to the highly qualified, professional equal treatment of patients, even in non-metropolitan regions and low-resource settings. This goal – equal medical competence everywhere – is also highly relevant in other areas of medicine.
Professor Bernhard J. Arnolds, M.D.
// Member of the Board
Professor Arnolds is a specialist in neurology and an electrical & electronics engineer. He is head and co-founder of the Central Office for Technology Transfer at the University of Freiburg and managing director of Campus Technologies Freiburg GmbH – a company of the university. Bernhard Arnolds’ focus is on translation: the transfer of new innovations from basic research to clinical application. Professor Arnolds is a board member of the EFVM.
Gabriele Wolter
// Member of the Board
Ms. Wolter holds a degree in business administration. Since 1992, she has been Administrative Director and Managing Director of Städtisches Klinikum Brandenburg GmbH – now also the university campus of Brandenburg Medical School (MHB). As head of the hospital’s service company, Ms. Wolter is a member of the Board of Directors of the State Hospital Association and is Chairman of the Supervisory Board of AGKAMED Holding GmbH. Ms. Wolter is a board member of EFVM.
Professor Dr. med. Wolfgang Meyer-Sabellek
// Member of the Board
Professor Meyer-Sabellek graduated from the American Board of Cardiology and has done extensive research in vascular medicine, nephrology, and bone metabolism. After working as a physician at the Steglitz University Hospital of the Free University of Berlin (now: Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin), he now teaches as an adjunct professor in the Department of Social Medicine, Epidemiology and Health Economics at the Charité Berlin. Over the past 15 years, Mr. Meyer-Sabellek has held various management positions in the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Mr. Meyer-Sabellek’s main focus is health services research in cardiovascular medicine. Prof. Mayer-Sabellek is a member of the board of EFVM.
Ankur Mehta
// Member of the Board & Director India
Ankur Sanjay Mehta is a seasoned healthcare professional who currently serves as the CEO of SJM Enterprises – a healthcare company committed to giving back to the community.
Ankur has a successful track record in diagnostics, pathology, novel diagnostic technologies, food, water and pharmaceutical testing.
His primary focus on corporate strategy, including finance, business development, business process optimization, innovation and investor relations, has enabled him to take a holistic approach to all stakeholders, including community engagement.
Ankur strongly believes in the principles of Ahimsa, Aparigraha and Seva and has dedicated his life to philanthropy, which has led him to actively support various charitable organizations and launch several initiatives to provide healthcare services to underprivileged and underserved populations.
Ankur’s strong Jain values have made him a valuable board member of renowned international healthcare foundations, where he brings his expertise and passion to make a positive impact on the world.
Univ.-Professor Dr. med. Oliver Ritter
// Director Cardiac Medicine EFVM
Univ. Professor Oliver Ritter, MD, is a specialist in internal medicine and a cardiologist. He heads the University Clinic for Cardiology, Nephrology and Pulmonology at the Brandenburg Campus of the Medical School (MHB). Prof. Ritter has worked at the Charité – Universitätsmedizn Berlin, the Max Delbrück Center Berlin, the University Hospital Würzburg and the German Center for Heart Failure.
His scientific focus is on translational and care science projects in cardiology. Prof. Ritter holds patents for the development of new drugs for the treatment of heart failure and has received several awards for start-up activities in the field of cardiovascular medicine. At the EFVM, Prof. Ritter heads the section of cardiac medicine.
Dr. rer. nat. Philipp Hillmeister
// Director Research & Studies EFVM
Dr. rer. nat. Philipp Hillmeister studied at the Humboldt University in Berlin. His focus is molecular and cell biology in the area of basic clinical research. With research stations at the Leibniz Society, Max Planck Society, Helmholtz Association and the University of Cordobá in Argentina, he specialized in angiological research and looks back on 12 years of work at the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin. Currently, Dr. Hillmeister works at the Medical University of Brandenburg (MHB) and leads translational studies in the field of regenerative vascular medicine, health services research, sports physiology and nutritional sciences at the Richard-Thoma-Institute. Mr. Hillmeister coordinates the research activities of EFVM.
Mariatu Binta Leigh, M.D.
// Director EFVM International
// Director Women’s and Maternal Health
Mariatu Binta Leigh, MD, is a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology and perinatal medicine. Dr. Leigh studied at the Charité – Universitätsmedizin in Berlin, as well as at the University of Bordeaux. Having held professional positions at the Princess Christian Maternity Hospital in Freetown, Sierra Leone and the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Fort de France, Martinique, in France, as well as in Berlin and Brandenburg, Germany, Dr. Leigh is fully equipped in the fields of obstetrics and gynecology. She is currently a senior physician at a Berlin care center. A major focus of Dr. Leigh’s foundation work is advocacy for women’s and maternal-child health and the reduction of maternal mortality in sub-Saharan countries. She coordinates the international projects of the EFVM.
Dr. Leigh also edits the text on the EFVM website, as well as designs EFVM’s press and public relations. She made the photos of the website: vivid – authentic – natural.
Peter Matz
// Project Manager / Marketing Manager / Human Resources Manager
His career path led from a technician training, through a theological-practical training to the study of painting. In addition to his artistic activities, he devoted himself to the development of a regional Berlin cultural center with a wide range of cultural offerings.
For many years he was employed in the project management of large film theater complexes in Halle, Magdeburg and Berlin, which he also managed after completion.
From 1995, he worked as a managing director of Sony Corp. in the project management of the Sony Center in Berlin. He is co-founder of the digital film theater and initiator of public viewing.
His experience in marketing, especially in city marketing, is based on years of practical work in these areas.
From 2007, he brought his expertise to a human medicine laboratory, where he was a member of the management team until 2015. At the same time, he worked on projects with a socio-political focus.
After leaving active employment, he was involved in setting up a biotech company offering human biospecimens for medical science research via an online platform.
His involvement in the advisory board of the EFVM and the associated goals is based on his varied professional career, and the desire to actively use this experience for the tasks of the foundation.
Dr. rus. Claude Tshibangu Lukusa
// Specialist for Internal Medicine & Cardiology
Dr. rus. Claude Tshibangu Lukusa is a specialist in internal medicine and cardiology and senior physician at Sana Herzzentrum Cottbus. Dr. rus. Lukusa studied at the University of Kinshasa as well as the St. Petersburg Metschnikov State Medical Academy. Since 2002, Dr. rus. Lukusa practicing medicine in Germany, since 2016 as a cardiologist. In addition, Dr. rus. Lukusa as part of a teaching assignment at the University of Mbuji Mayiin the Democratic Republic of Congo.
One of Dr. rus Lukusa’s main focuses in the foundation’s work is the improvement of medical care for cardiovascular diseases as well as, in particular, peripheral occlusive disease (pAVK) in the Republic of Congo. Dr. rus. supervises the scholarship program MEDSTURS of the EFVM as a mentor.
Kalala Titus Nkongolo
// General practitioner with additional qualification in addiction medicine
Mr. Kalala Titus Nkongolo is a general practitioner with an additional qualification in addiction medicine. Initially, Mr. Nkongolo studied pharmacy at the University of Kinshasa, Congo, and worked as a pharmacist in Congo for several years. Then he studied medicine at the Medical Academy in Poznań (Poland).
He worked at the Municipal Hospital in Toruń (Poland), at the University Hospital in Göttingen (Germany/ Gynecology and Obstetrics) and at the KMG Manniske Clinic in Bad Frankenhausen (Germany/Surgery). For more than 20 years he has been caring for his patients in his own practice as a family doctor, first in Oldisleben (Thuringia), then in Berlin.
Jeanett Forester
// Coordination EFVM Brandenburg Office
Ms. Förster is a trained office administrator and worked for many years in a company as an assistant to the management. Currently, Ms. Förster coordinates clinical research at the Richard Thoma Institute of the German Angiology Center Brandenburg (DAZB) and EFVM activities at the Brandenburg site. Ms. Förster’s primary focus is coordinating patient appointments and handling administrative duties. In addition, Ms. Förster is the contact person for donation and funding inquiries.
Advisory Board
Professor Dr. med. Günter Stock
// Chairman of the Board of the Einstein Foundation
// President of the ALL European Academies (ALLEA)
// Former President of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities
Professor Stock habilitated at the Ruprecht Karls University in Heidelberg in 1978. In 1983, he joined Schering AG as Head of the Cardiovascular Pharmacology Department, and from 1989 to 2005 he was a member of the Executive Board of Schering AG with responsibility for the corporate function Research and Development. In the past, he also held the position of President of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities and President of the All European Academies (ALLEA). Since October 2015, Professor Stock has been Chairman of the Board of the Einstein Foundation Berlin.
His scientific interests focus on neuro-physiology, the cardio-vascular system and biochemistry. He attaches particular importance to gender pharmacology…. Professor Stock is a member of the Advisory Board of EFVM.
Professor Dr. med. Joachim W. Dudenhausen
// Founding Representative of the Faculty of Health Sciences
// Prof. (ret.) for Obstetrics, Charité – University Medicine Berlin
// Dean (ret.), Charité – University Medicine Berlin
Prof. Dudenhausen is a specialist in gynecology and obstetrics. After professional stations in Berlin-Neukölln and Zurich, he was director of the obstetrics clinics of the Charité for many years. Since his release, he has been a Clinical Professor at Weill Cornell Medicine New York, from where he helped establish the Sidra Medical and Research Center for mothers and children in Doha/Qatar. He is Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Perinatal Medicine. Major scientific interests include reducing maternal mortality and perinatal mortality worldwide, and preventing prematurity and maternal illness in pregnancy. In addition, he works primarily on utility science research questions. At EFVM, Professor Dudenhausen is a member of the advisory board.
Dr. Dietlind Tiemann
// Politician
Dr. Dietlind Tiemann studied economics in East Berlin and completed an extracurricular traineeship as a scientific assistant at the Mittweida College of Engineering, where she also earned her doctorate. Until the fall of the Berlin Wall, she worked at the VEB Landbaukombinat Potsdam as department head for labor economics and as director for economics, materials and inventory management. Subsequently, she was commercial manager or commercial director at various construction companies in Brandenburg and Saxony-Anhalt.
Since 2016, she has been a member of the German Bundestag as a direct candidate for constituency 60. As the former mayor of the city of Brandenburg an der Havel, she played a key role in the development of the Brandenburg Medical School “Theodore Fontane”. At EFVM, she is on the advisory board.
Univ. Professor Dr. med. Stefan N. Willich
// Director of the Institute for Social Medicine, Epidemiology and Health Economics – Charité
// Founding President of the European Society of Integrative Medicine
// Conductor World Doctors Orchestra
Prof. Willich is a specialist in internal medicine. He studied medicine in Berlin, Munich and New York as well as Public Health at Harvard University, USA and Business Administration at the Institut Européen d’Administration des Affaires (INSEAD) in Fontainebleau, France.
Since 1995, he has been Director of the Institute of Social Medicine, Epidemiology and Health Economics at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and was Scientific Director of Charité Center 1 for Human and Health Sciences from 2005 to 2012. From 2012 to 2014, Prof. Willich was rector of the Hochschule für Musik “Hanns Eisler” Berlin. Stefan N. Willich is a Fellow of the European Society of Cardiology and the American College of Cardiology, founding President of the European Society of Integrative Medicine, and has served as Chairman of the German Society for Health Economics. His research interests include prevention, cardiovascular disease, health economics, and integrative medicine.
At EFVM, Prof. Willich is a member of the advisory board.
Patient Advisory Council
Henry Banet
// Actor
Heinrich Banet grew up in Leipzig. After graduating from high school, he studied at the Theaterhochschule “Hans Otto” Leipzig, from where he advanced to become one of the best-known East German actors. Since 1970, he has appeared on the stages of Magdeburg and in various engagements, including Greifswald, Stralsund, the Cottbus City Theater, the New Theater in Halle and the Leipziger Pfeffermühle cabaret.
Heinrich Banet was co-founder of the Magdeburg cabaret “Die Kugelblitze” at the Kristallpalast in 1977, of which he was a member until 1997. In addition, he directed cabaret programs at the theater in Halberstadt and the cabaret “Die Kiebitzensteiner” in Halle. Banet can also be seen in television productions such as “Tatort”, “Polizeiruf 110” and “Aber Vati”. He retired in 2001 and has been caring for his lovely wife Hannelore for several years. Heinrich Banet is himself a PAOD patient and says: “I owe a lot to the new interventional techniques in angiology. That’s why I want to encourage others who are affected.” He has dedicated his life to theater, and now he is committed to his wife’s health and to “fellow sufferers” with vascular disease. He is on the patient advisory board of the EFVM.
Jürgen Heiss
// Ballet dancer
Jürgen Heiss was born in East Germany in 1943 and studied classical dance at the State Ballet School in Berlin (GDR). After graduation, he joined the company as a group dancer and rose through the ranks in a very short time. He looks back on engagements at the Komische Oper Berlin, the Dresden State Opera and the Stuttgart State Theater. In addition, Heiss has appeared in guest performances throughout Europe, the USA, Japan and Australia and has worked as ballet director and stage director at various German theaters, where his own productions for ballet, musical theater and drama have been staged.
The stress and the top performances have demanded a lot from Jürgen Heiss, so that he has not been able to wean himself from smoking and has to suffer from the secondary diseases of vascular constriction. As a dancer and mobile person, Jürgen Heiss knows how important movement is for life and would like to provide motivational support for others affected. Jürgen Heiss is on the patient advisory board of EFVM.
Peter Michael Riedel †2019
// former Director Communication EFVM
Mr. Riedel studied law and has worked for many years in tax consulting for companies, project consulting and also management consulting. Mr. Riedel was the founder of the Kurfürstendamm Interessensgemeinschaft e. V. and has brought together heads from politics, business, art here for many years. His core competence has always been a solution-oriented approach. At EFVM, Mr. Riedel coordinated communications with the political, business and arts communities. He managed the EFVM office at the Berlin – Kurfürstendamm location. Mr. Riedel passed away in 2019.
The EFVM awards posthumously the status of honorary member to Mr. Peter Riedel. Peter Riedel’s life’s work will thus remain visible in the Foundation in the future.