Dr Jimmy Villard

Passionate about science, technology and medicine, Dr Jimmy Villard pursued his studies in Lausanne. He graduated from EPFL in microengineering in 1997 and worked on space telerobotics at NASA, as part of the Pathfinder mission, before beginning his medical studies. He completed his medical degree in 2004 at the University of Lausanne.

He then undertook his neurosurgical training at CHUV, where he became chief resident in neurosurgery, before joining the HUG in the same role.

To deepen his interest in spinal surgery, he joined Professor Meyer's team at the Klinikum rechts der Isar in Munich at the end of 2010, one of the largest neurosurgical centres in Europe. There, he served as associate physician and led the spinal unit, which performs more than 3,500 complex spinal operations per year.

He opened his practice in Lausanne in 2012, on Avenue de Savoie, and has been directing the neurocentre – centre du dos since 2019. Passionate about holistic, multidisciplinary and coordinated care for spinal conditions, he is committed to offering patients personalised support that integrates medical, surgical and human expertise.

Alongside his clinical work, Dr Villard has pursued research, development and innovation activities for many years in collaboration with industry and EPFL. He has contributed to the development of advanced technologies in spinal surgery, including navigated vertebral instrumentation, implant systems and robotic platforms. Several surgical instruments and implants resulting from these collaborations are now widely used worldwide.

Convinced that the future of medicine lies in the intelligent integration of data, robotics and artificial intelligence, Dr Villard is also developing software tools designed to improve clinical analysis, care coordination and patient management. He is furthermore involved in several MedTech and AI initiatives, particularly around digital health solutions and biosensor technologies.