Speakers

Dr. Marlice Van Dyk

President of SWAAC ELSO

Dr. Marlice Van Dyk

(South Africa)

President of SWAAC ELSO

In May 2026, Dr. Marlice van Dyk was elected President of SWAAC ELSO, a testament to her leadership and longstanding contributions to the field of extracorporeal life support.

The SWAAC ELSO region represents approximately one-third of the world’s population and encompasses an exceptionally diverse healthcare landscape. While many parts of the region continue to face significant resource limitations and challenges in establishing mature ECLS programs, SWAAC ELSO is also home to some of the world’s most outstanding extracorporeal life support centres and training facilities. This success is driven by the remarkable individuals across the region—innovative, dedicated, and deeply passionate professionals committed to advancing ECLS care despite financial and structural constraints.

Under Dr. van Dyk’s leadership, SWAAC ELSO continues to strengthen collaboration, expand education, and promote excellence in extracorporeal life support throughout Southwest Asia and Africa.

Dr MA van Dyk

MBChB, FCA, Crit Care, Dip Clinical Ultrasound, M. Com Business Management

Dr. Ali Ait Hassain

Anesthesiologist, and ECMO Specialist at Hamad General Hospital

Dr. Ali Ait Hassain

(France)

Anesthesiologist, and ECMO Specialist at Hamad General Hospital
Dr. Ali Ait Hssain is a Senior Consultant Intensivist, Anesthesiologist, and ECMO Specialist at Hamad General Hospital, Doha, Qatar. With over two decades of critical care experience, he is a leading ECMO figure in the Middle East and Africa, founder of ECSiTeD (ECMO Simulation Team of Doha), and holds elected leadership roles within ELSO and SWAAC-ELSO.

Dr. Mohamed Azzam

Consultant in Trauma, Emergency & Critical Care Medicine

Dr. Mohamed Azzam

(Saudi Arabia)

Consultant in Trauma, Emergency & Critical Care Medicine

Dr. Azzam is a Consultant in Trauma, Emergency, and Critical Care Medicine at Dr. Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Group, Saudi Arabia. He previously served as Director of the Ministry of Health (MOH) ECMO Program and is an active member of the Saudi Extracorporeal Life Support Chapter under the Saudi Critical Care Society.

A recognized leader in extracorporeal life support and critical care operations, Dr. Azzam currently serves as Chairman of the Conference Committee of the Southwest Asia & Africa Chapter of ELSO (SWAAC ELSO). He is extensively involved in national-level initiatives related to trauma and disaster medicine training, ECMO education and operations, and critical care system development. His primary interests include trauma resuscitation, interfacility critical care transport, and ECMO program management.

Dr. Vinod Singh

Senior Consultant & Co-Chair

Dr. Vinod Singh

(India)

Senior Consultant & Co-Chair

Dr. Vinod Kumar Singh is a distinguished intensivist and academician with extensive experience in
Critical Care Medicine, Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO), and Respiratory Medicine.
He serves as Senior Consultant and Co-Chair in the Department of Critical Care Medicine at Sir
Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi, and leads the ICU–ECMO Program as its Program Director.
A Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (Edinburgh) and the American College of Chest
Physicians (USA), Dr. Singh has made significant contributions to critical care education, research,
and professional development both nationally and internationally.

Dr. Grace Van Leeuwen

Pediatric Cardiac Intensivist & ECMO Medical Director, Sidra Medicine

Dr. Grace Van Leeuwen

(Brazil)

Pediatric Cardiac Intensivist & ECMO Medical Director, Sidra Medicine

Dr. Grace Van Leeuwen is a Pediatric Cardiac Intensivist and ECMO Medical Director at Sidra Medicine, Doha, Qatar, with more than 20 years of experience in pediatric critical care. She leads the institution’s ECMO program, which has earned the ELSO Silver-Level Award of Excellence for its achievements in patient outcomes, education, and safety.

A recognized ECMO educator, Dr. Van Leeuwen develops simulation-based training programs and competency-driven curricula for multidisciplinary critical care teams. She is actively involved in research, has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications, contributed to ELSO guidelines and critical care textbooks, and serves as a reviewer for leading international journals. An invited speaker at global conferences, she also serves as Co-Chair of the Congenital Heart Academy and is a member of the ELSO SWAAC Steering Committee. She holds a Master of Science in Clinical Service Operations from Harvard Medical School and is committed to advancing excellence in both clinical care and healthcare operations.

Dr. Alia Abdelfattah

Professor of critical care

Dr. Alia Abdelfattah

(Egypt)

Professor of critical care

Professor of critical care,Cairo University. President of ECMO working group,Egyptian college of critical care physicians. X-cheif of critical care department, Cairo University

Dr. Jana Assy

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF PEDIATRICS AND PEDIATRIC CRITICAL CARE

Dr. Jana Assy

(Lebanon)

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF PEDIATRICS AND PEDIATRIC CRITICAL CARE

I am a Pediatric Intensivist and Pediatric Cardiac Intensivist with more than ten years of
experience in tertiary pediatric critical care, congenital heart disease, extracorporeal life support
(ECMO), and program development. My career has been dedicated to the care of critically ill
neonates and children, with a particular focus on advanced cardiorespiratory support, mechanical
circulatory support, and the development of high-quality pediatric critical care services.
Following my training in Pediatrics, Neonatology, and Pediatric Cardiac Critical Care in Belgium
and France, I joined the American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUBMC) as Assistant
Professor of Pediatrics and Pediatric Critical Care. There, I played a central role in the
development of pediatric and cardiac intensive care services and founded the institution’s ECMO
program, which became the first comprehensive neonatal, pediatric, and adult ECMO program in
Lebanon. I subsequently established the country’s first ECMO retrieval service and led the
development of clinical protocols, multidisciplinary training programs, quality initiatives, and
regional collaborations. I have personally led three intercontinental fixed-wing transports of
critically ill children supported on ECMO, coordinating multidisciplinary teams across
international healthcare systems and transport networks.
My clinical practice encompasses the management of complex congenital and acquired cardiac
disease, postoperative cardiac surgical patients, severe respiratory failure, septic shock, multiple
organ dysfunction, and extracorporeal life support. Throughout my career, I have maintained a
strong commitment to patient safety, quality improvement, simulation-based education, and
evidence-based medicine.
In 2021, I joined the University Hospital of Liège as Chef de Clinique in Pediatrics, where I was
recruited to contribute to the development of a tertiary Pediatric and Cardiac Intensive Care Unit.
My responsibilities included the expansion of advanced pediatric critical care services, including
ECMO and cardiac critical care activities, while ensuring compliance with international standards
of care, education, and research. In parallel, I completed an Executive Master’s in Management of
Healthcare Institutions at the Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management, graduating
with distinction.

Dr. Tolusha Harischandra

MB BS, MS, M Phil, FCSSL

Dr. Tolusha Harischandra

(Sri Lanka)

MB BS, MS, M Phil, FCSSL

Educated at Sanghamitta College, Galle, Sri Lanka-obtained eight distinctions in 1984 and 4 A’s in 1987.

Obtained a Pre-University Research Fellowship for one year at National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Kandy, Sri Lanka where she developed an interest in academic research.

Entered Faculty of Medicine, Colombo, and graduated with honors in 1996.

Obtained the MS (Master of Surgery) degree in 2003; was awarded the Dr Milroy Paul Gold Medal for Clinical Surgery by the PGIM that year.

Board certified in 2008, becoming the first woman Cardiothoracic Surgeon in Sri Lanka.

Introduced ECMO (Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation), a form of mechanical heart and lung support, to Sri Lanka. Founder president of GELSA (Galle Extracorporeal Life Support Association).

Obtained MPhil in 2011 for the thesis on coagulation changes during hypothermia in neonatal ECMO. Has 29 publications and presentations on ECMO and one SLMA oration on ECMO.

Presently, Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon at Teaching Hospital, Karapitiya, Galle.

Dr. Poonam Kapoor

Department of Cardiac Anaesthesiology

Dr. Poonam Kapoor

(India)

Department of Cardiac Anaesthesiology

D, DNB, MNAMS, FIACTA (Hony), FTEE (Hony), FISCU (Hony) Professor, Department of Cardiac Anaesthesiology and Critical Care, Cardio Thoracic Centre, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, IndiaPast President & Co-Founder: South West Asia and Africa Chapter of the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (SWAAC ELSO)Editor-In-Chief: Journal of Cardiac Critical Care TSS (JCCC) President: SCA-Delhi & NCR Branch Founder Secretary & Chairman, Academics – The Simulation Society (TSS) Guest Editor: Journal of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin Past President: IACTA (2019-2020) Past President: ECMO Society of India Former Chief Editor – Annals of Cardiac Anaesthesia (ACA)

Dr. Vivek Kakar

Staff Physician Critical Care

Dr. Vivek Kakar

( United Kingdom)

Staff Physician Critical Care

Dr. Kakar is a Staff Physician in Critical Care at the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. He set up and led the ECMO Program for over 9-years and the Cardiothoracic Critical Care for over 4-years. Under his leadership, the Cleveland Clinic ECMO Program developed into one of the most comprehensive services in the region and received the ELSO Gold Centre of Excellence award. He is also a Clinical Professor of Anesthesiology at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of the Case Western Reserve University, Ohio. Dr. Kakar is formally accredited in Internal Medicine, Anesthesia, and Critical Care. He has a MA in Medical Ethics and Law from Keele University, MSc in Public Health from London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and a Global Executive MBA from Insead. Prior to moving to the UAE in 2016, he was a Critical Care, ECMO, Anaesthesia, and Major Trauma Consultant at the King’s College Hospital, London where he helped set up a successful ECPR service.

Dr. Akram Abdelbary

Professor of critical care at Cairo University

Dr. Akram Abdelbary

(Saudi Arabia)

Professor of critical care at Cairo University

Professor of critical care at Cairo University. Consultant critical care and interventional cardiology. Started the ECMO activity in Egypt in 2014 and was the founder of the dedicated one of a kind ECMO unit in Egypt in 2024

Prof. Mohamed Attia

Critical Care consultant

Prof. Mohamed Attia

(Saudi Arabia)

Critical Care consultant

Critical Care consultant, Cairo university hospitals, Member of ECMO team , received train of the trainer course

Prof. Ehssan Rabie

Physiotherapy Team Lead

Prof. Ehssan Rabie

(Saudi Arabia)

Physiotherapy Team Lead

Ehssan Rabie, PT, MSc, is a Critical Care Physiotherapist and PhD Candidate with over 12 years of experience in intensive care rehabilitation. She serves as the Physiotherapy Team Lead, ECMO Unit, Critical Care Department, Cairo University Hospitals. Her expertise focuses on ECMO rehabilitation, early mobilization, ICU-acquired weakness, and functional recovery of critically ill patients. She is actively involved in clinical education, research, and the development of evidence-based rehabilitation protocols to improve outcomes for patients receiving advanced critical care.

Dr. Mohamed Abdalmoneim

Critical Care Specialist, Cairo University

Dr. Mohamed Abdalmoneim

(Saudi Arabia)

Critical Care Specialist, Cairo University

Critical Care Specialist, Cairo University

Critical care physician with extensive experience in advanced life support and extracorporeal therapies. Active member of the ECMO team for over 8 years, with hands-on expertise in both veno-arterial (VA) and veno-venous (VV) ECMO, including patient selection, cannulation, and ongoing management. Skilled in handling complex critical cases and multidisciplinary coordination in high-acuity settings.

Prof. Hany Zakaria

Lecturer Physician

Prof. Hany Zakaria

(Saudi Arabia)

Lecturer Physician

Lecturer of critical Care medicine ECMO consultant Observed ECMO in UPSTATE medical University NY USA MD thesis of CHIP

Dr. Jumana Yusuf Haji

ECMO Consultant & Intensivist

Dr. Jumana Yusuf Haji

(India)

ECMO Consultant & Intensivist

20+years post MD experience acquired in India and Singapore. Have acquired expertise with every change and current core interest is to develop and support ECMO programs as an ECMO specialist for rural and urban comprehensive care centers and support advanced critical care requirements of heart lung transplant patients. As the Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) Specialist (ES) responsible for ensuring appropriate patient care through the continuous monitoring and assessment of the ECMO circuit, related technology, and patient status. Create protocols for every aspect of ECMO program. Liaise with all stake holders to ensure smooth uniform service.

In addition to clinical activities active in research and published widely in both national and international journals. A member of the ELSO Scientific Overview Committee (SOC), Guidelines committee a voluntary by-invitation post, representing SWAAC ELSO.

Passionate about training nurses Perfusionist’s emergency medicine and Intensivist’s in ECMO through Fellowship programs individualised and conceptualised by me. Run an indépendant ECMO program in Mumbai which offers in hospital and outsourced ECMO services for adult paediatric respiratory cardiac ECPR and EDCD runs. Run the first of its kind DCD NRP workshop in Asia.

Peter Rycus

Executive Director

Peter Rycus

(United States)

Executive Director
Have worked for ELSO for 30 years and enjoy working side by side with Christine Stead our CEO.

Dr. Abdullah Alghobaishi

Saudi Pediatric ECLS Team

Dr. Abdullah Alghobaishi

(Saudi Arabia)

Saudi Pediatric ECLS Team

Pediatrician and Pediatric Intensivist General and Cardiac Intensivist King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital, Jeddah – Director of the Fellowship Training Program in Pediatric Critical Care at King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital – Clinical Fellowship in Pediatric Critical Care Medicine (Saudi and Canadian – SickKids) – Director of Pediatric Department and Pediatric Critical care at AlSobh /Saudi German hospital- Jeddah – member of the Saudi ECLS education team – Conducting multiple ECLS workshops, webinars, and conferences in the Gulf region Supervised by the Saudi Society of Critical Care and SWAAC ELSO (South West Asia and Africa Extracorporeal Life Support Organization) Recent Engagement – Speaker at EUROELSO, Milan, April 2025 – Speaker at 36th Saudi Heart Association Annual Conference , Riyadh , October 2025⁠