Gerhard-Paul Diller studied medicine at the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich and he received much of his clinical training in Great Britain, at the Royal Brompton Hospital, London. In his research, the certified ACHD expert focuses on adults with congenital heart disease and pulmonary hypertension. In addition, he holds a Master’s degree (M.Sc.) in Health Economics Policy and Management from the London School of Economics, London, UK. Gerhard-Paul Diller is an executive board member of both the European Heart Rhythm Association and the ESC-Working-Group Grown Up Congenital Heart Disease. Furthermore, he is the deputy chair of the AG 9 Kongenitale Herzfehler (working group on congenital heart disease) of the German Cardiac Society (DGK). Gerhard-Paul Diller is a member of the Competence Network for Congenital Heart Defects where he is also a member of the Review Board.

Thomas Brand studied biology at the University of Bielefeld from 1981 to 1987. He wrote his doctoral thesis at the Max Planck Institute for Experimental and Clinical Research in Bad Nauheim from 1988 to 1991. From 1991 to 1994 he worked as a postdoctoral researcher under Professor Michael D. Schneider at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, USA, before joining the Institute of Biochemistry and Biotechnology at the University of Braunschweig as a group leader. In 2004 he was appointed Professor of Molecular Developmental Biology at the University of Würzburg. Since 2009 he is Professor of Developmental Dynamics at the Faculty of Medicine, National Heart & Lung Institute of Imperial College London. His research focuses on the Popeye protein family, a new class of mediators for the messenger cyclic AMP. Patients who carry mutations in the Popeye genes develop cardiac arrhythmia and muscle weakness. The investigation of disease mechanisms is the current research focus of Thomas Brand.

Wolfgang Hoffmann is also spokesman of the Rostock/Greifswald site of the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) and head of the Central Office for Cancer Registration Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (ZKR M-V). He is Vice Chairman of the German Network for Health Services Research (DNVF) and on the Executive Board of the Technology and Methods Platform for Networked Medical Research (TMF). His research focuses on innovative models in regional health care, population-based intervention and prevention as well as data protection and data management.

For 25 years the BVHK with its numerous member associations has been caring for people of all ages with congenital heart defects (CHD) throughout Germany. The BVHK has an excellent network of physicians, surgeons and therapists in acute and rehabilitation clinics as well as pediatric cardiologists in private practice. Special attention is paid to patient-oriented research to improve medical care for those affected. In terms of health policy, the BVHK represents the interests of patients with congenital heart defects as an accredited patient representative in the Joint Federal Committee (G-BA). The honorary board members know from their own experience what children with heart defects and their families need.

Eric Schulze-Bahr studied medicine at the Georg-August-University of Göttingen, the medical faculty of the Charité at the Humboldt University of Berlin and the Harvard Medical School Boston, USA. He habilitated under Prof. Dr. Günter Breithardt, former chairman of the Competence Network for Congenital Heart Defects, at the University Hospital Münster on the subject of "Molecular genetics of hereditary cardiac arrhythmias". The internist, who specializes in human genetics, heads the Department of Cardiac Genetics and the Special Outpatient Clinic for Patients with Genetic Heart Diseases at the Institute of Genetics of Heart Diseases, which specializes in familial forms of cardiac arrhythmias, heart muscle diseases and heart defects as well as genetic factors that can lead to sudden cardiac death. Eric Schulze Bahr is co-editor and reviewer of several cardiovascular journals and member of the National Action Alliance for People with Rare Diseases (NAMSE).

Brigitte Stiller studied human medicine at the universities of Düsseldorf and Cologne. After completing her doctorate and specialist training as a pediatrician, Brigitte Stiller moved from Cologne to the German Heart Center Berlin (DHZB) in 1994, where she worked as a senior physician since 2001. In 2004 she completed her habilitation on "Mechanical Circulatory Support in Childhood" and the Venia legendi at the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin. In 2007, Brigitte Stiller was appointed as University Professor of Pediatric Cardiology (W-3 Professorship) at the Medical Faculty of the Albert-Ludwigs-University of Freiburg. She is also Medical Director of the Clinic for Congenital Heart Defects and Pediatric Cardiology at the University Heart Center Freiburg Bad Krozingen. As congress president, she hosted the annual meeting of German pediatric cardiologists in 2012 and was president of the German Society for Pediatric Cardiology (DGPK) from 2014 to 2015. She is also a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Fördergemeinschaft Deutsche Kinderherzzentren e. V.