In 2008, after decades of international recognition, world-renowned Egyptian-British heart surgeon Sir Magdi Yacoub decided to redirect his efforts to his country of birth. Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death in Egypt, responsible for one-fifth of deaths each year. Egypt also faces a frail economy, which is why Yacoub saw a dire need to raise the health care standards and bring essential treatment to those most in need.

His decision was driven by the sheer lack of quality medical services for heart patients in this part of the world, particularly in less privileged areas. In its 2010-2014 Country Cooperation Strategy for Egypt, the World Health Organization outlined the operational problems faced by government-run hospitals, which are often the only option for Egypt's poor. As a result, Sir Magdi Yacoub established the Magdi Yacoub Heart Foundation (MYF) in Upper Egypt on the banks of the Nile. The foundation is a charity NGO that is working to provide medical treatment and train a new generation of doctors, surgeons, and nurses, but also is helping Egypt to emerge as a regional and international presence in the field of scientific research.

To understand why MYF has set such ambitious goals, one only has to look at its executive director. Yacoub and his co-founders recognized that the organization's leadership was critical if they were to have any chance of realizing their mission. They found everything they were looking for in Anissa Hassouna.

Hassouna, named one of the "World's 100 Most Powerful Arab Women" by Arabian Business & CEO Magazine in 2014, studied economics and political science at university, was formerly a diplomat at the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the League of Arab States, and later served as Assistant General Manager of "Misr Iran Development Bank" and then Director General of Egypt's International Economic Forum. She was the first woman to be elected to the Board of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs where she was Secretary General; she is currently the Treasurer. She is an avid supporter of citizenship and gender equality and has served as founder and chairperson of Enlightened Egypt Foundation, and is a founding member of the Think Tank for Arab Women and the Arab International Women's Forum in London.

When asked why she chose to make the shift to an NGO focused on health care, she responded, "I had heard a great deal about Professor Yacoub. When I finally met him for the first time, I was immediately, and deeply, inspired by his vision of reaching patients from every walk of life who had no means to receive adequate care.  From that moment, I knew I wanted to be a part of this dream."

Hassouna continued, "Cardiovascular disease has reached almost epidemic proportions in Egypt. 200,000 deaths each year are attributed to heart disease. These are premature deaths that could have been avoided. This role has given me the opportunity to use my experience to help the grass roots brackets in having access to first-rate treatment which hopefully will make a lasting difference and save lives."

The first treatment center was opened in 2009 in the city of Aswan, which is approximately 900 km from Cairo. Hassouna says that MYF chose Aswan as the location for the first center because it was an area with minimal cardiovascular services.  "There was a great need to offer people medical support at international standards. We are trying to do two things: to prevent the increasing numbers of deaths and to provide top-tier services at no cost to those in need. We hope this is only the first center and that we will soon be able to expand to other cities."

Today, the Aswan Heart Centre has over 40 doctors and surgeons and more than 200 additional staff. The Centre is an attractive choice for doctors and nurses, as they are eligible for sponsorships that allow them to receive training abroad.

"We are able to attract and retain young, highly qualified and talented doctors by offering compelling packages for them to live here and to bring their families," Hassouna says. "We provide ongoing training both in house and in institutes around the world. We even give them the opportunity to become involved in scientific research."

The Centre employs British instructors on-site and many nurses have received specialty training through sponsorships at Imperial College in London and other world-renowned counterparts. "We believe that nursing staff are very valuable and should be trained and qualified more and more every day. We're very proud of our nurses," she adds.

In order to choose who qualifies for treatment, the MYF Board follows a clear and transparent set of governance regulations. All of the Centre's services are free, paid for by private financial donations both from Egypt and abroad.

The challenge, naturally, is to maintain this vital financial support. To that end, MYF uses both social and traditional media to spread the word about the Centre's mission and results. Hassouna explains, "We are blessed to have a message that people believe in. They see our results in the sheer numbers of lives saved. They also see a very positive social spillover in the number of jobs that have been created. We are demonstrating that this can be replicated in other cities in Egypt."

Since it opened in 2009, the Centre has performed more than 6,000 surgeries, including open-heart and catheterizations. Each year it treats between 12,000-15,000 people on an outpatient basis.

Hassouna says the record speaks to the need:  "We have a long waiting list.  With the reputation of Sir Magdi Yacoub and his team, everyone wants to be treated here."