René Heylen, MD, Lic.Jur., PhD, is a senior physician and healthcare leader with nearly four decades of clinical, academic, and executive experience. He served, during almost 40 years, as Head of the Department of Anesthesiology, Intensive Care, Emergency Medicine, and Pain Therapy at Ziekenhuis Oost-Limburg (ZOL) in Genk, a major Belgian teaching hospital. Throughout his career, he combined hands-on clinical practice with strategic hospital leadership and policy engagement.
René holds a Doctor of Medicine degree, a Master of Laws, and a Master’s degree in Health Economics from the University of Leuven (KU Leuven), Belgium. He obtained a PhD-degree at the University of Leuven on an interdisciplinary methodology and subject law-medicine-philosophy. His interdisciplinary background enables a rare integration of medical expertise, legal insight, and economic analysis in healthcare decision-making.
He is a honorary member of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Anästhesiologie und Intensivmedizin. In Belgium, he was appointed Honorary President of the Belgian Professional Society of Anesthesia, recognizing his long-standing contributions to the field. René is a Guest Professor (deeltijds buitengewoon docent) in the Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Section of Anesthesiology, at the University of Leuven.
In this role, he contributes to education, research, and academic mentorship at both national and international levels. He was also responsible for the coordination and oversight of clinical trials within the Department of Anesthesiology at ZOL. These activities were conducted in close collaboration with the biopharmaceutical industry. Earlier in his career, René served on numerous boards and advisory committees of the Belgian and Flemish governments. In recent years, he acted as legal and medical advisor in liability matters for approximately 60% of Flemish hospitals. This position allowed him to build an extensive and influential network across all major medical specialties in Belgium. Today, René brings clinical insight, regulatory expertise, and strategic vision to biopharma and healthcare innovation.