KOCHI — Dr. Shamsheer Vayalil, founder and chairman of Burjeel Holdings and chairman of VPS Lakeshore Hospital, has been appointed to the board of the World Economic Forum’s Digital Healthcare Transformation Initiative, adding an Indian-origin healthcare entrepreneur to a global group focused on the future of technology-driven healthcare.
The World Economic Forum launched the Digital Healthcare Transformation Initiative in 2024 with the aim of accelerating collaboration between governments, healthcare providers, technology companies and other stakeholders around digital health, data and artificial intelligence. The initiative focuses on using technology to improve healthcare outcomes, expand access and make health systems more efficient.
According to the Forum’s current governance page, the initiative’s board includes senior figures from some of the world’s largest healthcare organisations. Members include Mayo Clinic President and CEO Gianrico Farrugia, Medtronic Chairman and CEO Geoff Martha, Philips President and CEO Roy Jakobs, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Health Fahad bin Abdurrahman Al-Jalajel, Gavi CEO Sania Nishtar and Apollo Hospitals Managing Director Suneeta Reddy.
Shamsheer brings experience spanning healthcare delivery, investment and entrepreneurship across the Middle East and India. The World Economic Forum identifies him as founder, chairman and CEO of Burjeel Holdings, a major healthcare services provider in the Middle East and North Africa.
His career began in medicine. A doctor by training, Shamsheer later moved into healthcare entrepreneurship and built VPS Healthcare, which developed into a sizeable healthcare network in the UAE. His business interests have since expanded into hospitals, healthcare services, pharmaceuticals, education and related sectors.
Burjeel Holdings, which he founded and chairs, has grown into one of the region’s prominent healthcare groups. The company’s operations span hospitals, medical centres and specialised healthcare services, with an increasing focus on integrated care and technology-enabled healthcare delivery.
Shamsheer has also maintained a long association with the World Economic Forum. He has participated in Forum meetings and healthcare discussions for years, including sessions examining the role of technology and innovation in improving healthcare systems. In 2024, he participated in the Forum’s Special Meeting in Riyadh in a session focused on the potential of digital healthcare.
His appointment to the Digital Healthcare Transformation Initiative comes as artificial intelligence, health data and digital platforms become increasingly important to healthcare providers around the world.
The Forum’s initiative is built around several areas considered essential for successful digital transformation, including better use of health data, stronger technology and analytics infrastructure, appropriate funding and incentives, hybrid models of healthcare delivery, and effective regulation.
For Shamsheer, the new role provides an opportunity to bring the perspective of a healthcare operator who has built and managed large-scale healthcare businesses in emerging markets. It also places his experience alongside that of global healthcare leaders working on some of the industry’s biggest technology and policy challenges.
Beyond his business interests, Shamsheer has been involved in philanthropy and social initiatives. His career has combined medicine, entrepreneurship and investment, with healthcare remaining at the centre of his professional journey.
The appointment further strengthens his presence on the international healthcare stage. From building healthcare institutions in the UAE to investing in healthcare and education and participating in global policy discussions, Shamsheer has increasingly moved into roles that extend beyond the operation of individual hospitals.
His new position on the Digital Healthcare Transformation Initiative’s board comes at a time when healthcare systems are under pressure from rising costs, workforce shortages, chronic diseases and unequal access to care. The World Economic Forum sees digital technology, data and AI as important tools for addressing these challenges, provided they are developed and implemented responsibly.
For Shamsheer, the opportunity is to contribute to that global conversation from the perspective of an entrepreneur who has spent much of his career building healthcare businesses and expanding access to medical services.
