Professor Ernest Madu is an internationally recognized authority in cardiovascular medicine and innovative healthcare systems and solutions. He is a 2017 Distinguished Award recipient for international service from the American College of Cardiology. Also in the same year, Dr. Madu was elected as a Fellow of the International Academy of Cardiovascular Sciences, arguably, the most prestigious fellowship in Cardiovascular Sciences allowing no more than 250 living fellows across the world at any given time.

Over the past 15 years, he has been a change catalyst in leading the transformation of healthcare delivery systems and processes in developing countries. In 2005, he established the Heart Institute of the Caribbean (HIC) in Jamaica. HIC is the leading center for cardiovascular care and only dedicated heart hospital in the English-Speaking Caribbean, and has provided open and accelerated access to quality care to millions of residents and international visitors. HIC operates on the principle that no one should be refused treatment because of inability to pay. The HIC model is being studied in major universities and organizations around the world as a successful model of healthcare delivery in low resource economies.