The Leadership Team

Tomislav Mihaljevic, MD, Chief Executive Officer

Tomislav Mihaljevic, MD, serves as Chief Executive Officer of Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, a world-class multispecialty hospital specifically designed to address a range of Abu Dhabi’s most complex medical requirements. In his role as CEO, Dr. Mihaljevic is responsible for overseeing Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi’s overall strategy and effective operation as the first-ever US multispecialty hospital to be replicated outside of North America, including directly managing the hospital’s Patient Experience and Strategy & Business Development programs.

He leads the organization's approximately 3,000 Caregivers to deliver on key promises: bringing Cleveland Clinic-quality care to Abu Dhabi; providing alternatives to traveling abroad for complex and critical care requirements; and developing the next generation of Emirati leaders. His leadership emphasizes Cleveland Clinic’s core values of patient-centered care and patient experience, allowing Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi to provide patients in the UAE direct access to the world’s best healthcare providers.

A native of Croatia, he received his medical degree from the University of Zagreb. Dr. Mihaljevic started his education in cardiac surgery at the University of Zurich, Switzerland. In 1995, he joined the Brigham and Women's Hospital at Harvard Medical School, where he completed a residency in general and cardiac surgery and served as Chief Resident in the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at Children's Hospital in Boston. Dr. Mihaljevic is certified by the American Board of Thoracic Surgery and the American Board of Surgery. He specializes in minimally invasive and robotically assisted cardiac surgeries, valve repair and replacement, image-guided surgery, heart failure and cardiac transplantation. Dr. Mihaljevic has served on editorial boards for a number of medical journals and has authored numerous articles in scientific journals and textbooks.

An avid reader, Dr. Mihaljevic enjoys contemporary American and European literature.

Manaf Afyouni, Chief Operating Officer

Manaf Afyouni is Chief Operating Officer at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. He has more than 20 years of healthcare experience, having held various leadership roles in the areas of operations, finance, project management and strategic planning.

As Chief Operating Officer, Manaf is responsible for the non-clinical hospital operations, overseeing the areas of supply chain, communications and marketing, protocol, facility services, food services, and patient support services.

Prior to joining the leadership team at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi in June 2011, Manaf served at Dubai Holding, a global investment company, and previously as Senior Vice President of Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding. Manaf also previously served as Chief Operating Officer of University Hospital in Dubai Healthcare City from 2006 to 2008 and Chief Operating Officer of Dubai Healthcare City from 2003 to 2006. Manaf was responsible for developing the strategic plan of Dubai Healthcare City to meet the emerging healthcare needs of the region and executing on a healthcare community master plan with a 700-bed specialty hospital, outpatient clinics, and support community. He also led the creation of numerous strategic partnerships with renowned hospitals, including Harvard Medical International and Mayo Clinic.

Manaf was born and raised in Kuwait. He received his undergraduate degree in Business and his Master’s degree from Ohio University in the United States.

Rakesh Suri, MD., DPhil, Chief of Staff, Chief of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery

Rakesh M. Suri, MD, is Chief of Staff and Chief of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. In his role, Dr. Suri oversees the management of Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi’s 55-plus medical and surgical specialties, including the 400 physician medical staff and the Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery.

He is also a consultant in the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at Cleveland Clinic in the United States and Professor of Surgery at Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine. Dr. Suri came to Cleveland Clinic from Mayo Clinic, where he served as a consultant in the Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, Professor of Surgery, and Chair of the Enterprise Robotic Practice, among other education- and innovation-oriented roles.

Dr. Suri brings a commitment to his patients and surgical innovation, a passion for research and an enthusiasm for teaching others. Dr. Suri holds extensive clinical expertise in robotic and minimally invasive cardiac surgery, mitral valve repair and transcatheter valve therapies. His significant research pursuits include contributions to more than 300 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters, 16 patents and several FDA multicenter trials.

Dr. Suri earned his undergraduate degree at Queen’s University in Kingston, Canada, medical degree with honors from the University of Toronto and a doctorate at Magdalen College, Oxford, UK, as a Rhodes Scholar. He trained in General Surgery and performed a Cardiovascular Surgery fellowship at the University of Toronto. He completed a Thoracic Surgical Residency at Mayo College of Medicine.

E. Murat Tuzcu, MD, Chief Academic Officer and Chief of Cardiovascular Medicine, Heart and Vascular Institute

E. Murat Tuzcu, MD, is Chief Academic Officer and Chief of Cardiovascular Medicine, Heart & Vascular Institute, at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. In this role, Dr. Tuzcu focuses on the development and implementation of an innovative, creative and state-of-the art research and education strategic plan, and on fostering proactive and collaborative relationships with local, regional, and international stakeholders.

Prior to joining Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, Dr. Tuzcu served as Vice Chairman of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine and as Staff Physician in Interventional Cardiology in the Heart & Vascular Institute at Cleveland Clinic in the United States.

With nearly 40 years of clinical experience, Dr. Tuzcu has held several academic appointments. He has co-authored more than 400 peer-reviewed publications and serves on the editorial board of a number of leading cardiovascular scientific journals. In 2015, Dr. Tuzcu was named by Thomson Reuters as one of the most highly-cited researchers (Top 1%) in the world for the last decade.

Dr. Tuzcu is a committed educator, devoting a substantial portion of his time to intramural and extramural education activities. He has organized many courses, conferences and lectured all around the world.

Dr. Tuzcu received his medical degree from Istanbul Medical Faculty in Istanbul, Turkey, where he also completed his internship and residency in Internal Medicine. In addition, Dr. Tuzcu also completed his fellowships at Cleveland Clinic in the United States in Cardiovascular Disease and Interventional Cardiology. He also completed a special fellowship for valvular interventions at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Ann Williamson, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, Chief Clinical and Nursing Officer

Ann Williamson, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, joined Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi in 2014 as the Chief Clinical and Nursing Officer. Previously, she was the Associate Vice President for Nursing and Chief Nursing Officer at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, an academic medical center, where she oversaw nursing services and patient care.

Ann also served as the Associate Dean for Practice at the University of Iowa College of Nursing. Prior to that, she held a number of leadership positions at the University of California San Francisco Medical Center between 1992 and 2008, including Interim Chief Nurse, Director of Nursing Education and Research, Manager of the Emergency Department and Joint Commission Coordinator.

She was recently awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award for Nursing Excellence from Cleveland Clinic in the United States. In 2007, Ann received the Chancellor's Award from the University of California San Francisco for exceptional university management. She earned a bachelor's degree in nursing from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a master's degree in nursing from the University of Texas at Austin, and a doctorate from the University of California San Francisco, with a concentration in nursing informatics and health systems.

Abdulla Abdul Aziz Al Shamsi, Chief Administrative Officer and Director of Strategic Programs Office and Office of Facilitated Access

Abdulla Abdul Aziz Al Shamsi is the Chief Administrative Officer at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, where he oversees the hospital’s master work plan, as well as having ongoing oversight of continuous improvement and contact center operations. In his role as the Director of Strategic Programs Office, he leads high-impact, multi-stakeholder projects, in line with Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi’s long-term vision and strategy. As the Director of the Office of Facilitated Access, Abdulla drives business development efforts and ensures high efficiency and service excellence through maintaining seamless patient access and flow.

Previously, Abdulla served as Vice President at Mubadala’s Real Estate & Infrastructure unit, where he oversaw and managed the development and growth of Mubadala’s domestic and international real estate, infrastructure and hospitality portfolio, focusing on social infrastructure projects and real estate investment opportunities that are central to Abu Dhabi’s long-term development plans. Abdulla joined Mubadala in 2008 as a Senior Architect and was responsible primarily for project management in both the design and delivery stages of real estate and hospitality assets worldwide. In this role, he led the team responsible for the delivery and operation of Al Maryah Island, Abu Dhabi's Central Business District.

Abdulla also practiced architecture at Mohammed Sheikh Mubarak Architects in Dubai, at Over, Under Inc. in Boston and at Eva Pratts, Ricardo Flores Arquitectes in Barcelona, Spain, before moving back to Abu Dhabi in 2008 to join Mubadala Development Company.

Abdulla holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Architecture from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and a Master of Architecture II degree from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.

C. Okey Agba, Chief Financial Officer

C. Okey Agba is Chief Financial Officer at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. In his role, Okey oversees the financial responsibilities of the hospital, including general and financial accounting as well as the hospital’s revenue cycle. Okey has 30 years of finance experience, 20 of them in the healthcare financial management sector, having worked for several renowned US healthcare institutions.

Most recently, Okey served as Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, at Tufts Medical Center, in Boston, Massachusetts, where he directed all financial functions, both strategic and operational. Prior to that, Okey served as Associate Dean of Finance and Chief Financial Officer, at Harvard Medical School, also in Boston. During his time there, he was responsible for overseeing the overall fiscal functions of the medical school. He also held senior financial management roles at Brigham and Women’s Healthcare and Partners HealthCare System, Inc., both in Boston.

Okey holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Southwestern Louisiana in Lafayette, Louisiana, and a Master of Business Administration from Mercer University in Atlanta, Georgia.

Okey resides in Abu Dhabi, and enjoys gardening, cooking, traveling, and fishing, and is looking forward to learning golf.

Gareth Sherlock, Chief Information Officer

Gareth Sherlock is the Chief Information Officer at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. He has more than 18 years of experience working in the healthcare sector and completing complex transformation projects across Australia, the UK, the US and the Middle East. As part of the leadership team at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, Gareth manages the hospital's IT infrastructure to enable it to take advantage of the latest innovations in the health technology domain.

Gareth has been with Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi since 2009, most recently serving as Senior Director, Strategy and Program Management. In this role, Gareth was responsible for delivering the IT program, which included over 120 concurrent projects. He led the development of Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi’s operational processes and was instrumental in establishing key partnerships and managing high-profile vendors.

Prior to joining Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, Gareth served as Executive Consultant for EHS Consulting, a UK-based organization that provides management assistance to clients engaged in complex IT enabled change programs. He also served for over a decade in leadership and consulting roles with the business division of Accenture.

Gareth holds a bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Sydney, Australia, and a diploma of Applied Finance and Investment from the Securities Institute of Australia.

Gareth enjoys spending time with his wife and two sons.

Yaser Obaid, Chief Human Capital Officer

Yaser Obaid is the Chief Human Capital Officer at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, where he leads the development and execution of the organization’s human capital strategy and initiatives in line with the hospital’s overall Patients First mission and strategic direction.

In this role, Yaser is focused on attracting, developing and retaining top talent at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi by providing educational and training opportunities to empower Caregivers to make a continual impact on the healthcare sector. In line with the hospital’s commitment to fostering UAE National talent, Yaser is leading efforts to enhance existing development programs and promote career growth for Emirati nationals. Additionally, Yaser will further develop the existing human capital infrastructure at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi as well as extend the learning environment beyond the workplace.

Yaser has more than 18 years of experience in human resources management, across the airline, oil and gas, and telecommunications industries. Previously, Yaser served as Senior Vice President of Human Resources at du Telecommunications, where he helped the organization achieve its strategic and operational goals by developing and implementing effective human resources management strategies, systems, and processes. Prior to du Telecommunications, Yaser was responsible for managing commercial recruitment at Emirates Airline. He spent the first part of his career in human resources policy and strategy roles at Zakum Development Company (ZADCO).

Yaser holds a Masters of Business Administration from University College London, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics.

Alan Boys, General Counsel

Alan Boys is the General Counsel at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, where he oversees the hospital’s legal, regulatory and governance matters.

Prior to this, Alan served as the Senior Legal Counsel at Mubadala supporting the healthcare unit. In this role, he provided the full legal and governance support for the entire healthcare portfolio of assets, including the development of Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, Healthpoint and Imperial College London Diabetes Centre. In 2013, Alan was appointed to the Board of Medical Holding Company, the governing board for seven of the Mubadala healthcare assets. Since joining Mubadala in 2009, Alan has also supported Mubadala and its assets across a variety of sectors including logistics, financial services and defense.

Before joining Mubadala, Alan practiced law in Dubai with Allen & Overy and, prior to that, Baker & McKenzie in Sydney, Australia. Alan also practiced for six years as a civil engineer in both Australia and the United Kingdom.

Alan holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of New South Wales, Sydney. He is admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of New South Wales and the Federal and High Courts of Australia.

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