Professor Salim Yusuf is a distinguished University Professor of Medicine at McMaster University and Executive Director of the Population Health Research Institute, where he also serves as Chief Scientist at Hamilton Health Sciences. Born in India, he completed his medical education at St John's Medical College in Bangalore before earning his DPhil at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. He joined McMaster University in 1992 as Director of the Division of Cardiology, where he founded the Population Health Research Institute which has grown into an international leader in clinical research. His leadership has been instrumental in establishing McMaster's Faculty of Health Sciences as one of the most research-intensive institutions in Canada and globally recognized for medical excellence.
Dr. Yusuf's pioneering work over more than 40 years has substantially influenced the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease worldwide through landmark clinical trials and epidemiological studies. He has led over 50 major international studies across more than 100 countries, including the groundbreaking HOPE study that established the role of ACE-inhibitors in cardiovascular disease prevention and the CURE study that defined dual antiplatelet therapy for acute coronary syndromes. His research has resulted in over 1200 publications in refereed journals, and he was recognized as the second most cited researcher globally in 2011, with his work fundamentally changing medical practice and saving millions of lives through evidence-based cardiovascular interventions.
As Past President of the World Heart Federation, Professor Yusuf initiated the Emerging Leaders program, now named in his honor, to build capacity for implementation and policy research across all continents with the ambitious goal of halving the global cardiovascular disease burden within a generation. His extraordinary leadership has secured more than one billion dollars in research funding, supporting numerous projects and establishing new research facilities that have enabled transformative discoveries. Professor Yusuf has received over 80 international and national awards including the Canada Gairdner Award, the McLaughlin Medal from the Royal Society of Canada, and appointment as an Officer of the Order of Canada, reflecting his profound impact on global cardiovascular health and his continued commitment to advancing medical science for the benefit of humanity.
