Then: Medical Doctor

Later: CEO of Shamseya, Healthcare Innovation Startup in Egypt

Buoyed by an atmosphere of hope after the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, newly-qualified doctor Ayman Sabae shifted his focus from healing people to reshaping Egypt’s health care system. At a 2012 session on Realizing the Right to Health, Sabae met Maha Al-Rabat, who would become Egypt’s Minister of Health. Building on plans forged in Salzburg, Sabae encouraged Al-Rabat to put in motion a number of projects to improve health care. Sabae’s work has led to improved monitoring of health services and to the creation of the Egyptian Patients’ Rights Charter. “For me, attendance of the Seminar is a milestone. It’s always this pivotal moment that either turns very broad ideas into something tangible, or takes something tangible that you’re already doing to the next level.”