General Director of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III, the main state body that coordinates and promotes biomedical research in Spain. PhD in Medicine, cardiologist, expert in cardiac imaging and genetically based cardiopathies, and clinical researcher of the National Health System (NHS).

Over the last 20 years she has combined her research, healthcare, teaching and, more recently, health management activities. Her previous positions include head of the Clinical Cardiology Section at the Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón (HGUGM), associate professor in the Department of Bioengineering at Harvard University. She is the author of more than 60 scientific articles in first quartile journals in her area of specialization.