Prescription for transformation: Ahmed Eissa & Makarem Batterjee

The transformation reshaping Saudi German Health began in Saudi Arabia under Group President Makarem Batterjee, who set out to redefine what modern healthcare leadership should look like across the region – clinically, culturally and operationally.

“I have been involved in the healthcare sector for over a decade, focusing on strategic growth, innovation and patient-centered care,” he tells The CEO Magazine.

“Our focus on collaboration, technology and societal impact aims to set benchmarks in quality and sustainability – ultimately, creating healthier communities and a resilient healthcare future.”

From Saudi Arabia, this transformation blueprint was cascaded across the organization, with new cultural frameworks, digital models and patient experience standards designed at Group level to be replicated market by market.

Staying number one

Once the concept was proven at scale in Saudi Arabia, the next phase was expansion, beginning with the United Arab Emirates. That is where Ahmed Eissa stepped in.

When Eissa assumed the Group CEO role at Saudi German Health United Arab Emirates, he inherited a brand with a strong legacy, but also the danger of complacency.

“We started as number one,” he reveals. “But staying number one requires agility and dynamism. If you stand still, others will pass you.”

Eissa understood that legacy alone wasn’t enough to secure the future. Even a hospital network that once helped define private healthcare in the Middle East could lose its edge if it didn’t evolve as quickly as the industry itself.

“Reaching the top is a milestone,” he confirms. “Keeping yourself on the top is the real challenge.”

A consultant psychiatrist by training, Eissa leaned on his background in human behavior to reset the culture from within. In his early days at the helm, he saw the organization’s greatest opportunity wasn’t necessarily tied to flashy technology or new infrastructure; it was tied to belief.

Upon that realization, Eissa’s first focus was on the staff. He wanted to reignite pride among those delivering care every day.

“My priority quickly became staff perception,” he explains, convinced that internal conviction was the starting point for external excellence.

Through structured communication, clear goal-setting and relentless visibility, Eissa began to rebuild alignment across departments.

“By setting clear objectives, celebrating visible wins and rallying teams around progress, we quickly built momentum,” he recalls.

That same mindset has defined his leadership approach across multiple countries. In Egypt and later Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Eissa was repeatedly brought in to lead hospitals that needed a reset; often turning around performance within months.

“I’ve always been assigned to loss-making or underperforming entities,” he says. “Transforming losses into profits and cultures into positive ones is a passion of mine.”

A culture built on caring

Nowhere is this more evident than in Saudi German Health’s patient care philosophy. The healthcare organization’s ‘caring like family’ culture has become a unifying standard across its hospitals, setting expectations for empathy, attentiveness and human connection at every touchpoint.

In fact, it now defines the entire patient experience.

“We’ve trained more than 1,000 of our staff in the principles of caring like family and delivering a five-star patient experience,” Eissa says.

“By focusing on this deeply human approach – extending care not only to patients, but also to their families and our staff – we believe this is what truly sets us apart.”

And the commitment extends well beyond the hospital walls.

“We recently announced a new initiative that reflects our commitment to caring like family,” Eissa points out.

“We sponsor the ‘Caring Like Family’ award of the Global Medical Excellence Award by the Dubai Quality Group, aiming at fostering the culture of patient-centered care across the world, bringing our values to life beyond the clinical environment.”

Technology driving transformation

While Eissa focuses on mindset and culture, Batterjee continues to drive the systemic backbone of transformation. Under the Group President’s leadership, Saudi German Health has achieved medical excellence alliances, such as being part of the Mayo Clinic Care Network, international accreditations, embraced AI, adopted electronic health records and embedded sustainability initiatives into daily operations.

The aim, he says, is to benchmark Saudi German Health not just against local competitors but against global leaders, too.

Batterjee emphasizes that technology has been a critical enabler of this transformation.

“Technology allows smart shortcuts – saving time, raising efficiency and giving leaders insights for better decisions,” Eissa confirms, adding that the creation of an analysis and monitoring unit has armed managers with real-time intelligence, helping to keep strategies on track and operations accountable.

Both leaders share a clear vision: progress must be measured against the world’s highest standards. With this in mind, Saudi German Health has strengthened its partnership with the Mayo Clinic, opening new channels for knowledge exchange and professional development across its four-country network.

World-class care

This collaboration establishes Saudi German Health as the largest member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network in the region, bringing cutting-edge expertise and innovation directly to patients throughout the kingdom and beyond.

By integrating Mayo Clinic’s clinical insights and resources, the organization is elevating patient outcomes, enhancing the quality of care and accelerating innovation. Over the next three years, seven more Saudi German Health hospitals across Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will join the network, forging an unprecedented ecosystem of shared expertise and world-class healthcare.

“We are checking ourselves against the best benchmarks and the global standards, and we are moving forward with these gaps, growing our team,” Batterjee confirms.

That benchmarking mindset has already yielded results. Saudi German Health has pioneered first-in-region medical interventions and even contributed to shaping international standards, earning it recognition from global accreditation bodies.

In under a year, the hospital jumped from a three-star to a five-star rating in Newsweek and Statista’s global hospital rating – a milestone that signaled the success of its transformation program.

“Achieving this five-star rating is a clear sign that we’re making significant progress across all key parameters and establishing ourselves as a true leader in the healthcare industry across the region,” Eissa says with a smile.

“Initiatives like this help build a strong mindset within the team – a sense of belief and purpose. Our staff understand they are actively contributing to real success stories, aligned with our broader strategy and vision.

“We’re on the right path, and the momentum is clearly building.”

Partnerships built on trust

That momentum, however, isn’t built in isolation. And Batterjee and Eissa are quick to emphasize that meaningful transformation depends on strong, trusted partnerships – both inside and outside the organization.

“We don’t leave things for guessing or speculation,” Batterjee insists. “Transparency builds trust.”

That philosophy has redefined how Saudi German Health works with suppliers, insurers and collaborators. Regular town-hall sessions with partners ensure alignment on priorities and constraints, replacing the transactional model with open communication.

“Delivering a clear, transparent message to the suppliers about what the situation is and how we can move forward and plan together helps cut short any speculation,” Eissa explains.

The payoff from such partnerships is clear: early access to next-generation equipment, accelerated adoption of AI platforms tailored to Saudi German Health’s needs and priority support during crises. Suppliers are also publicly acknowledged as part of its success stories, reinforcing their role as partners rather than vendors.

Batterjee also highlights that partnerships extend beyond procurement.

“We collaborate with governments, international organizations, startups and academia to drive innovation and expand healthcare access,” he says.

“Partnerships expand our reach, foster innovation and influence health policies. They make us more resilient and impactful as a regional healthcare leader.”

Building resilience for the future

That resilience – both operational and systemic – has become a defining priority in the post-pandemic era. For Eissa, agility is now the backbone of healthcare preparedness.

“Our immediate focus will be on enhancing operational agility, leveraging digital tools for remote care and strengthening community engagement to address evolving health needs,” he explains.

“We will also prioritize staff training, digital infrastructure and flexible service delivery models to ensure resilience and continuity amid uncertainties.”

Eissa brings a psychiatric view to the same issue, often highlighting the emotional and psychological dimensions of crises.

“Children who were isolated during COVID-19 carried trauma that few systems were prepared to handle,” he explains. “Future pandemic planning must include mental health programs to protect families and communities.”

It’s a viewpoint that underscores the breadth of Saudi German Health’s approach. Resilience, the leaders agree, isn’t just about equipment or protocols. It’s about human adaptability – the confidence, compassion and competence of every team member who interacts with patients.

“We learned that flexibility is as vital as capacity,” Batterjee adds. “The preparedness of the whole healthcare industry, and having the tools and know-how to use them, is the key success factor.”

Sustainable success

But resilience is just one part of a larger vision for sustainable excellence. For Batterjee, success is measured in the health of communities, not just the bottom line.

“Success, to me, means delivering high-quality, patient-centered healthcare that positively impacts communities,” he says.

“It involves continuous innovation, expanding access, fostering a motivated and skilled workforce and making Saudi German Health a regional leader in healthcare excellence, all while maintaining sustainability and social responsibility.”

Eissa, on the other hand, views it through both executive and personal lenses. At the organizational level, he uses a balanced scorecard approach that captures financial performance, patient satisfaction, operational efficiency and learning.

Simplified, he says, “Everything in life that you set as an objective – and reach – is a successful step.”

One thing is clear, though; to both, profitability and purpose are not opposing goals but interdependent forces. They believe superior outcomes are delivered at efficient cost structures, which in turn generate patient loyalty, reinvestment and growth.

“That’s how private healthcare creates impact,” Batterjee says.

The road ahead

As Saudi German Health looks to the next horizon, it plans to deepen its presence across the region. Both Batterjee and Eissa see opportunity not just in expansion, but also in deepening the organization’s impact.

The coming years will be about advancing clinical specialties, strengthening digital capabilities and embedding sustainability across every level of care, all while staying true to the human values that have guided its resurgence.

“Our focus on high standards, international accreditations, specialized centers and strategic partnerships set us apart,” Batterjee concludes.

With a strong foundation now set and its people reenergized, Saudi German Health isn’t just back at number one – it’s positioned to stay there.