Meet Our Speakers

Katherine Ebanks-Wilks is a distinguished leader in the Cayman Islands, recognised for her extensive contributions to public service and parliamentary leadership. First elected as a Member of Parliament in 2021, she made history by becoming the youngest Speaker of the House of Parliament on 7 December 2022. In her Speakership role, she chaired the Parliament Management Council, served as President of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (Cayman Islands Branch) and led the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Youth Parliament Organising Committee.

Re-elected for a second term in 2025, Mrs. Ebanks-Wilks has continued to demonstrate a steadfast commitment to her community and effective governance. Her diverse experience includes serving as Deputy Speaker of the House, Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Financial Services & Commerce, and the Ministry of Education. Additionally, she has held the positions of Acting Deputy Premier, Acting Minister of Financial Services, Commerce, Investment, Innovation, and Social Development, and Acting Minister of Education.

With over 15 years’ experience in the legal profession, Mrs. Ebanks-Wilks began her career in Financial Services in the private sector and pursued her law degree while working full time. She later transitioned to the civil service, where she worked in the Portfolio of Legal Affairs at the Cayman Islands Law Reform Commission. Mrs. Ebanks-Wilks is deeply passionate about her community, representing the constituency of West Bay Central, and is a founding director of the United Against Bullying Foundation, which focuses on preventing and educating youth about bullying behaviour. She is also a founding director of the Cayman Islands Youth Development Consortium, an organisation which supports at-risk youth.

In her current role as Minister of Health, Environment, and Sustainability, Mrs. Ebanks-Wilks has been actively working with her ministry team to implement the Climate Change Policy and the updated National Energy Policy, while promoting public health and environmental stewardship. She has been instrumental in driving reforms within Parliament, including the launch of a new Parliament website and the establishment of an independent communications team to enhance transparency and accessibility to the parliamentary process. She prides herself in having participated in the recent reform of the Standing Orders of Parliament, which were in need of modernisation.

Mrs. Ebanks-Wilks is dedicated to empowering women in politics and fostering collaborative efforts across the Commonwealth. Her leadership, vision, and unwavering dedication solidify her status as a respected figure in the political landscape of the Cayman Islands.

Source: Cayman Islands Government (gov.ky) – Official biography of Hon. Katherine Ebanks-Wilks

Dr. Hilary Wolf is global health leader with extensive expertise in infectious disease and public health. She serves as the Chief Medical Officer for the Cayman Island Government.

Previously, she served as the Care and Treatment Director at the US Department of State, Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy, where she was responsible for HIV treatment for over 20 million people living with HIV through PEPFAR..

Dr. Wolf is a board-certified physician in pediatrics and adolescent medicine with expertise in reproductive infectious diseases and global health.

Andrew Vincent is a healthcare thinker, author, speaker, and entrepreneur based in the Cayman Islands, with a career spanning neonatal biotechnology through to healthcare innovation, system design, and population health.

He is Chair of the Cayman Heart Foundation, where he supports efforts to improve cardiovascular health and advance prevention-focused care across the Islands. He is also Founder of Optimal Healthcare Ltd., which he established with co-founder Sara Watkin to reimagine modern healthcare delivery. Optimal is built on the belief that healthcare must move beyond transactional, illness-centred models toward care that is personal, preventive, and grounded in long-term health stewardship.

Alongside this, Andrew is Owner of The Grow Group Ltd., a strategic PR, communications, and business growth agency reflecting more than 30 years of work at the intersection of entrepreneurship, innovation, and organisational development.

Across these roles, a consistent thread runs through his work: challenging conventional healthcare thinking and helping shape systems that prioritise prevention, longevity, and better health outcomes for entire populations.

Bradley S. Taylor, M.D., is chief medical executive of Christine E. Lynn Heart & Vascular Institute, as well as chief of cardiac surgery for the Palm Beach Region and chief of quality and outcomes for Baptist Health Heart & Vascular Care. A board-certified cardiac surgeon, Dr. Taylor has more than 23 years of experience across all areas of adult cardiac surgery and treats more than 450 complex cardiac cases per year.

Dr. Taylor earned his medical degree and a master’s degree in public health from Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia. He completed a general surgery residency and a cardiothoracic surgery residency at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, as well as a minimally invasive cardiac surgery fellowship at Onze-Lieve-Vrouw Hospital (OLV Hospital) in Aalst, Belgium.

Prior to joining Baptist Health, Dr. Taylor was an endowed professor and chief of the Division of Cardiac Surgery at University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. He also served as director of quality, director of coronary revascularization, and co-director of the Center for Aortic Disease at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland.

Dr. Taylor’s clinical and research efforts have focused on robotic cardiac surgery, hybrid coronary revascularization, valvular heart disease, and endovascular and open repair of aortic dissections and aneurysms. He is considered an expert in cardiac surgery and has authored more than 125 peer-reviewed articles in numerous medical journals. He has also presented his findings at scientific symposiums.

As a clinical educator and member of several professional organizations, Dr. Taylor is committed to advancing clinical excellence in cardiac surgery, promoting clinical and basic science research, and training the next generation of physicians through residency and fellowship programs.

Dr Amanda Chisholm is a General Practitioner at Optimal Healthcare in the Cayman Islands with over 10 years of experience. She trained at the University of Leeds and has worked across the UK in hospital and community settings, including emergency medicine, paediatrics, women’s health, psychiatry, and primary care.

She is passionate about lifestyle medicine and preventive care, focusing on helping patients achieve long-term wellbeing. Her approach is holistic and patient-centred, taking into account lifestyle, environment, and personal goals to support healthier, more balanced lives.

Dr Chisholm has a particular interest in women’s health, mental wellbeing, and metabolic conditions such as diabetes and obesity, with an emphasis on prevention and lifestyle-based management. Alongside her clinical work, she is committed to health education and community empowerment through her platform, Life with Dr Amanda, where she shares accessible, evidence-based wellbeing advice.

Emergency & Casualty Consultant
Dr Andres Izquierdo Martin is a senior Consultant in Emergency Medicine with over 23 years of consultant-level experience, and an extensive background in clinical leadership, patient safety, and service transformation. Trained in Madrid, Spain, and in the United Kingdom, he has worked across some of London’s largest and busiest acute hospitals. Alongside his clinical practice, he has held numerous senior leadership roles, providing executive medical leadership while remaining actively involved in frontline emergency care. His clinical expertise spans the full spectrum of Emergency and Trauma Medicine. He has a particular interest in clinical governance, quality improvement, hospital flow, and the development of safe, resilient emergency care systems.

Background
Dr Andres completed his primary medical training at the Complutense University in Madrid before pursuing specialist training and a long-standing consultant career in the United Kingdom. He has held consultant posts at the Royal Free Hospital, Barnet Hospital, North Middlesex University Hospital, and Barking, Havering and Redbridge University NHS Trust. In addition to his clinical work, he has served in senior leadership roles including Clinical Director, Deputy Divisional Director, and Divisional Director, overseeing emergency services, urgent care, surgery, anaesthesia, and intensive care divisions. He has played key roles in major incident planning and response, and is also an experienced crowd doctor, providing medical cover for major sporting venues.

SKILLS AND EXPERTISE

• Emergency and Trauma Medicine
• Advanced resuscitation and critical decision-making
• Major incident planning, command, and response
• Clinical governance, patient safety, and risk management
• Service redesign, hospital flow, and urgent care pathways
• Emergency ultrasound and echocardiography
• Consultant workforce development and mentorship
• Medical education, simulation, and postgraduate training
• Event and crowd medicine

KEY ACHIEVEMENTS

• Senior leadership roles including Clinical Director, Deputy Divisional Director, and Divisional Director
• Executive clinical leadership within one of London’s largest acute hospital trusts
• Former ATLS Course Director and current ATLS, ALS, and APLS instructor
• Examiner for the Royal College of Emergency Medicine
• HSJ Clinical Leader of the Year, Highly Commended (2019)

Dr. Steven Bibevski comes to Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital from the University of Michigan, where he completed fellowships in both adult and pediatric cardiac surgery. His training at one of the busiest congenital heart programs in the nation, with more than 900 procedures annually, afforded him extensive experience in the treatment of all complex forms of congenital heart disease, with an emphasis on hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Originally from Melbourne, Australia, Dr. Bibevski also completed a visiting fellowship at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, the largest pediatric heart center in the southern hemisphere. At both centers, Dr Bibevski developed extensive experience in managing all aspects of congenital heart disease.

Dr. Bibevski also has a strong research background. He obtained his PhD in cardiovascular physiology from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, where he conducted research in the field of autonomic neural control of the cardiovascular system in heart failure. His research now focuses on developing biological valve replacement options for children as well as outcomes focused research in the field of congenital cardiac surgery.

Yiannis S. Chatzizisis, MD, PhD is Professor of Cardiology, and Chief of the Cardiovascular Division at the Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami. He was trained in interventional cardiology and advanced non-invasive cardiovascular imaging at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. His translational and clinical research is actively funded by the NIH, industry, and philanthropy (collectively $6 million over the last 6 years).

He has authored more than 170 manuscripts published in Circulation, JACC, ATVB, Cardiovascular Research and Atherosclerosis among other journals. His research has received over 8,500 citations with an H-index of 43. He has received more than 40 international and national awards, including awards by the European Society of Cardiology, European Atherosclerosis Society, American Heart Association and Academy of Athens. In 2021 he received the “Bifurcation Person of the Year” award by the European Bifurcation Club.

He serves as Associate Editor for Atherosclerosis, and Pharmacology and Therapeutics, and as manuscript reviewer for JACC and Circulation family journals among others. He is member NIH and DOD study sections. He serves as industry advisory board member and consultant on coronary stents, intracoronary imaging, and physiology.

He is Fellow of ACC, AHA, SCAI and ESC, Member of the Board of Directors of the European Bifurcation Club and founding Member of the SCAI Bifurcation Club. Over the years, he has mentored many general cardiology, interventional cardiology, imaging and research fellows and faculty, who are now independent investigators, faculty, or trainees in renowned institutions in the U.S. and Europe.