Health Connect South, a non-profit organization serving the health community as a sustainable platform for regional health collaborations, will convene top innovators, decision makers and leaders from throughout the Southeast to speak at its second annual health leadership event on Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2015 at the Georgia Aquarium.

Last year's Ebola outbreak in West Africa will be highlighted at this year's conference as an example of the types of collaborations needed to address complicated health issues. Many of the speakers served directly on the front lines of the epidemic, including:

• Dr. Ian Crozier, who was the third Ebola patient successfully treated at Emory University Hospital after contracting the virus, is traveling from West Africa to participate; 

• Dr. Thomas Frieden, Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 

• Charles Stokes, President and CEO of the CDC Foundation; 

• Dr. Bruce Ribner, Medical Director of the Serious Communicable Disease Unit at Emory University Hospital; and 

• Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public Health.

Speakers are carefully chosen to initiate and inspire fruitful collaborations among regional participants. The following health luminaries will also serve as speakers during Health Connect South 2015:

• Gary Reedy, CEO, American Cancer Society; 

• Ambassador Mary Ann Peters, CEO of the Carter Center; and 

• Dr. Louis Sullivan, Former U.S. Secretary of Health & Human Services.

"Atlanta is often referred to as the 'Center for Global Health,'" says David Hartnett, Vice President of Economic Development at the Metro Atlanta Chamber. "At this year's Health Connect South conference key healthcare executives throughout the region will gather to address the challenges of the health industry. This gathering seeks to build common bonds between interested parties to solve real world issues. These types of interactions can often result in companies being formed and products been commercialized."

This year's conference will also address topics as diverse as innovations in health IT, advances in cancer treatment, and novel health collaborations underway in Nashville and the Research Triangle.

"Attendees will have the opportunity to share, learn and begin conversations with health leaders from throughout the region. We worked with our partners to create an unprecedented gathering that will inspire connections and partnerships that lead to successful collaborations in health," said Russ Lipari, founder and CEO of Health Connect South. "In addition to the speakers and panel discussions, attendees will have the chance to zero in on their own specific interests and needs through a series of breakout sessions."

The 2015 line-up of distinguished industry leaders is expected to attract more than 500 industry innovators, top-tier decision makers and next generation health leaders from throughout the Southeast with the goal to foster and promote regional health collaborations. For more information and to register, please click here.