Health Sciences News - BGU · Health Sciences News Health Sciences News of the Faculty of Health...

Health Sciences News

1

Martin-Springer Center forConflictStudiesandNegotiationDedicated

Delegation from United KingdomExplores Opportunities forCooperative Research

International Dig in NorthernNegev Uncovered MassiveBronze Age Settlement

Triglycerides Research FindsPredictor of HeartDisease in Young Men

Being Different Means Making a Difference

The long and ongoing strike of the senior academic staff at Israel’s universities has dampened the opening of the new academic year. Even though we fully support the demands of the senior academic members, we are reaching the point when an entire academic year might be lost and the financial loss to the country will be far, far greaterthan meeting their just demands. Nevertheless, we remain optimistic that the end of the strike is in sight and that our students will shortly return to their full curriculum. We extend a warm welcome to the newcomers who have joined the ranks of our student body. We know that you have embarked on your studies during a most difficult

period when many of your lectures have been cancelled. We know that the brunt of the strike will be most felt by the student body, who will have no alternative but to shorten their vacation periods.

In spite of a difficult beginning, we anticipate yet another successful year of academicachievements in all the Faculty’s schools. The quality and dedication of our faculty and students to the Negev and the community play an integral role in reaching our goals to educate the finest and most compassionate health professionals.

We are proud of our faculty’s achievements, made possible in no small way by the support of our friends who continue to stand with us during these difficult times, aswe continue to carry out our mission to improve the health of the Negev community.

We have invested some thought in redesigning the Newsletter with some color. I hope that you will enjoy the new version and the updates on some of the

Faculty’s current achievements including those in the realm of international relations. We hope that you will find the contents of interest and welcome

your suggestions for future issues.

Shaul Sofer, M.D.Dean

W I N T E R 2 0 0 8

Greetings from the Dean

Prof. Shaul Sofer

Health Sciences

6

16

42

1311

N e w s l e t t e r o f t h e F a c u l t y o f H e a l t h S c i e n c e s a t B e n - G u r i o n U n i v e r s i t y o f t h e N e g e vNews

A Never-forgotten Gesture from the Heart

Faculty Pioneering in Gondar

Rare Gene DetectedAmong Bedouins

Watch Your Step!

Innovative Spinal Surgery in a Live Broadcast

Living in Hope

Health Sciences NewsHealth

Sciences N

ews

of the Faculty of Health S

ciences at Ben-G

urion University of the N

egev

2


3

Gathered to lay the cornerstone of the future Student Cen-ter building, students, faculty and staff members celebrated the inauguration of the CarolineHouse – Health Sciences Student Center in the presence of the generous benefactors. Caroline and Arnie Simon, from Israel, have had a long affiliation with the Facultyand University both as administrative staff members and as members of BGU’s Board of Governors.

It was not by chance that Caroline and Arnie Simon, long-time supporters of the University, chose to support the Student Center. For more than twenty-seven years, Caroline and Arnie have devoted their life to the benefitand well-being of the students. They have been there to help and take an active part in the lives of many of them through difficult times. Their goal was to open the doors ofopportunity to people from a broad array of backgrounds.

“Words cannot describe the help and support that Caroline and Arnie have given my family over the years”, Dr. Haim Yosefi, a cardiologist from Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon,remarked, visibly welling up with emotion. He described the impact that Caroline had upon him as a new medical student at the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School when he arrived from a disadvantaged neighborhood in Ashkelon over 24 years ago.

With their backing for a wide range of projects, Arnie and Caroline show how much natural talents can accomplish when supported by the right opportunities. Amid this background of highest dedication, selflessness, devotionand contribution, Arnie and Caroline will always be remembered as the finest type of benefactor, someonewho is there whenever needed.

In her remarks, University President Prof. Rivka Carmi referred to Caroline, whom she has known for over 25 years, as “an institution”. She praised the supportive relationship between the couple and thanked them for

their unbounded dedication and support of the University. She said, “We are counting on your uncompromising commitment to excellence to carry us through this project.”

“Caroline is the glue that holds the Faculty and Soroka University Medical Center. She doesn’t actually distinguish between the two,” said Prof. Shaul Sofer Dean of the Faculty and Master of Ceremony. “We have all come,” he continued,“to pay homage to two genuinely goodpeople – humble people who live to give to others. They think big with their expansive hearts. I don’t know any other couple who are as caring and patriotic to this place – the Faculty, Soroka, the University, the Negev and Israel.

They truly care about others and are proud spokespeople for the issues of this nation”.

Speaking on behalf of Caroline, Arnie Simon offered personal insight into the motivations of his wife of 53 years. “Caroline commits herself completely to any and all tasks that she takes upon herself. He told how Caroline first came to be involved in helping others after the YomKippur War in 1973, providing emotional and physical support for the families – earning the title, ‘Mother of the Injured’ in national newspapers.”

Demonstrating the deep respect for their generous activites, reflecting the unusual sensitive and emotionalatmosphere in the ceremony, Arnie and Caroline received a spontaneous standing ovation from the overflow audience.

Designed by internationally acclaimed architect Ada Karmi-Melamede, who was the architect of the Faculty complex, Caroline House will include fourfloors – study rooms, a meeting and events room, officesfor the Health Students’ Association ASRAN, Faculty Exam Unit and Graduate offices, and the offices of the MedicalSchool for International Health. The building will be located in the magnificent area of the Faculty adjacent tothe Joyce Goldman Auditorium. Dr. Yaacov Polack, Vice Dean for Construction, will lead and supervise the building process as he did successfully with the Faculty building and the Heinz-Horst and Ruth Deichmann Building for Community Health.

This laying of the cornerstone of Caroline House symbolizes Arnie and Caroline’s commitment and contribution throughout the years to the welfare of the students and exemplifies the qualities of personalcharacter which practitioners must have when they work with patients.

A Never-forgotten Gesture from the Heart

L to R: Prof. Rivka Carmi, Arnie Simon, Caroline Simon, Prof. Dan Attar, Prof. Shaul Sofer


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

2


3

This year, eight medical students were awarded the Ida Abush Scholarships totalling NIS 60,000 ($15,000) by the Dean, Prof. Shaul Sofer, and the head of the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School, Prof. Pablo Yagupsky. The Ida Abush Scholarships were created to recognize and honor student volunteers for their outstanding public service contributions to the community. They are aimed to sustain commitment to civic participation and inspire others to make volunteering a central part of their lives.

Outstanding Volunteers Awarded Scholarships These special volunteers embody the compassion and generosity of spirit that are such a part of the Faculty vision. Most of recipients have been involved in these activities for several years and generally have not been recognized with a national or provincial honor. This is the second year that these scholarships have been awarded. An additional 11 scholarships were given separately to medical students in need.

One hundred children of Ethiopian immigrants, who are living in three absorption centers in Beer-Sheva, participated in a day of fun at the BGU Sports Center. The event, held as part of the annual Faculty Day, was initiated and organized by the Medical Student Association of the Negev (ASRN), which dedicates activities to a different vulnerable population each year.

The children, accompanied by student volunteers, enjoyed swimming in the pools, jumping on inflatable jungle gyms, playing various fun games,and lots of refreshments and entertainment. This heart-warming event was made possible through the generosity of the Faculty.

A week previously, ASRN organized a day devoted to another student program – The Teddy Bear Hospital which is aimed at alleviating the “white coat syndrome” or fear of medical personnel in children 3–7 years-of-age. Hundreds of toddlers arrived on the lawns of the Soroka University Medical Center clutching their “sick” teddy bears. They were welcomed by students from ASRN. Devoted Faculty friends and supporters, Lloyd Goldman

of the Goldman Foundation and Bertie Lubner, president of BGU’s South African Association, were on hand to participate in this event and were briefed on the program’s aims by Prof. Shaul Sofer, Dean of the Faculty.

Within the Faculty’s tradition of encouraging volunteering, contributing to the underserved and underprivileged, and recognizing social and community responsibility as part of educating future physicians, ASRN is involved in a large number of outreach activities and cooperates with numerous existing community organizations. ASRN has ambitious plans to expand its activities which include the Dr. Clown Program, aimed at bringing laughter into the lives of children hospitalized for extended periods and alleviating the stress of patients and their families, and Ma’amatz which is designed to help prevent sexual violence among youth; and Health Promotion and Disease Prevention in high schools.

For ASRN – Children Come First

L to R: Prof. Shaul Sofer, Lloyd Goldman and Bertie Lubner


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

4


5

The Goldman Family has established an endowment fund in memory of the late Prof. Bracha Ramot, who was a member of the International Advisory Review Committee (IARC) of the Goldman Family Foundation.

The Fund will support an annual prize for outstanding medical clinical research to a medical student or young physician with a preference for projects involving doctor–patient relationships, an area that was of special importance and close to Prof. Ramot. During this year’s IARC meeting a special memorial session was held in honor of Prof. Ramot in the presence of her family.

The IARC convenes annually to review the strategic planning activity of the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School and the Faculty, coveringfour fields ofaction – community health, research, medical education, and clinical and academic faculty enhancement. The committee was initiated by the Goldman family in 1996 in conjunction with

their magnanimous gift to the Medical School. Members of the committee include distinguished physicians and scientists from the United States and from Israel, all of whom have extensive knowledge and experience in their respective fields.

The committee meetings provide an impetus for the School to assess its activity and future programs with emphasis on excellence in teaching, service, and research, and to guide the Faculty in pursuing its goal of training physicians with a more humanistic approach to medicine and medical care.

Remembering Bracha Ramot

L to R: Prof. Shaul Sofer, Dorian Goldman, Prof. Rivka Carmi, Orna Ramot, Katya Goldman Sonnenfeldt, Arik Ramot

Faculty Pioneering in GondarA two-part project to upgrade the health system of Gondar, Ethiopia, and improve the health services for a very underprivileged population has been launched. The project included the visit by three senior Faculty members – Prof. Michael Alkan, an expert in infectious diseases; Dr. Eldad Zilberstein, a plastic surgeon; and Dr. Amir Korngreen, a specialist in orthopedic trauma. They spent three weeks in the University Hospital in Gondar, within the framework of a pioneering project supported by the Joint Distribution Committee.

During their stay, they performed many clinical and surgical procedures and worked side by side around the clock with the local physicians and gave a series of seminars to senior and junior faculty on the latest medical techniques. Patients arrived from remote villages to be treated by the Israeli specialists. The surgeons performed numerous operations on patients with maladies that ranged from broken limbs and other orthopedic problems to correcting cleft palates.

In the framework of the project, Ethiopian physicians were encouraged to spend three months of advanced studies in multidisciplinary fields at the Soroka UniversityMedical Center.

“I have been adopted warmly by the Soroka and Faculty staff who inspired and encouraged me to learn as much as possible in a short period. Unfortunately, due to lack of support from the Ethiopian government, local physicians generally have no choice but to work with old equipment and are unable to perform state-of-the-art surgical procedures,” says Dr. Amnze Tadash, the first doctor from Ethiopia to work in Israel. “In spite ofour difficult condition, we all have strong intentions toupgrade the health services in Gondar.”

Tadash spent three months in the Departments of Pediatric Surgery and General Surgery at Soroka. “I’m sure that my colleagues will be eager to follow in my footsteps for further studies in the Faculty and at the hospital,” he added.


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

4


5

Members of the Faculty, Dr. Daniel Landau, Head of the Department of Pediatrics A, Soroka University Medical Center (SUMC), and Dr. Boris Yoffe, Head of the Department of Surgery, Barzilai Medical Center, have been awarded prestigious Feldman Visiting Professorships at Stanford University School of Medicine for 2008.

The Faculty’s longstanding program of 25 years with Stanford has provided a unique opportunity for mid-career faculty to spend six months of specialization at

Stanford University School of Medicine, and alumni of this partnership are undoubtedly among the leaders of our medical school. The Stanford Program represents a golden opportunity to provide a hiatus to our most promising and gifted senior physicians – it allows them to devote six months to their own area of expertise away from the day-to-day pressures of the hospital. Previous recipients of this award include Drs. Harel Gilutz, Dov Heimer, Mark Lowenthal, Pesach Schwartzman, and Eitan Lunenfeld, all of whom currently head departments at SUMC.

Stanford–BGU – 25 Years of Collaboration

Overcoming Terrorism – Shira Applebaum

Shira Applebaum

From an early age, Shira Applebaum, 21, wanted to be a physician. Inspired by her father, Dr. David Applebaum, former head of the emergency room at Jerusalem’s Shaare Zedek Medical Center and one of Israel’s leading experts on emergency medicine, Shira was driven by the desire to help others.

Dr. Applebaum, known as the first man on the scene ofany disaster or terrorist attack, was said to have saved the lives of thousands of Jerusalemites. On September 9, 2003, Dr. Applebaum and his daughter, Shira’s sister Nava, lost their own lives in a suicide bombing on the eve of Nava’s wedding.

After this tragedy, Shira became even more resolute in her desire to pursue medicine. When a friend mentioned the Department of Emergency Medicine at BGU, Shira jumped: “Immediately I knew that’s what I wanted to do,” she recalls. “I signed up for the program in a minute.” Having graduated this year, Shira is closing a circle started by her father, who served as Medical Director of Magen David Adom (MADA), Israel’s equivalent of the Red Cross. “I love what I’m doing. The teachers are great and the studies are practical, short and intensive.” Like all students between their first and second years, Shirabegan working with an ambulance team, as part of her required 24 shifts there, and in the intensive care unit. “We mostly observe – you can learn a lot by watching,” she says, adding that at times, she became a working member of the team.

While Shira is not intimidated by stress – in the ambulance, hospital or classroom – she acknowledged that study involved “some tough times”. There is a profusion of material crammed into a short period. Tests are frequent and subjects rigorous. Students must learn to run a team, and to constantly think of their next step.

“I’m sure I made the right decision,” says Shira. “MADA offers a course that prepares you to become a paramedic, but here we learn a wider scope of subjects in greater detail. This in-depth study enriches your knowledge and helps you function better as a paramedic.” Shira pointed out that since it grants a degree, the BGU program provides students the opportunity to continue in any fieldof medicine.

Imagining herself ten years down the road, Shira hopes to be in medical school, while still working as a paramedic. “My background from this program will give me a huge head start,” she says.


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

6


7

Forty-five Bedouin children in the Negev region insouthern Israel, of a worldwide total of 120, were identified at the Soroka University Medical Center assuffering from Congenital Insensitivity to Pain with Anhidrosis (CIPA), a rare genetic disorder. Pain is an essential sense that has evolved in all complex organisms to minimize tissue and cellular damage, and hence prolong survival.

Prof. Ruti Parvari, of the Department of Virology and Developmental Molecular Genetics, identified a singledefective gene (TrkA, which encodes the receptor for nerve growth factor) as being the cause of CIPA in the majority of the Negev Bedouin. This rare disorder is most commonly seen as a result of inter-marriage within the tribe (consanguinity). The mutated gene is the receptor for Nerve Growth Factor (NGF)

The Negev Bedouin are a relatively isolated population and they have a very high proportion of consanguineous marriages, with some two-thirds of individuals married to first or second cousins. As an unfortunateconsequence, the Bedouin health records show a high rate of genetically determined neurological, skeletal, eye, cardiac, gastro-intestinal and skin diseases.

“We see children who walk on a broken leg, hurt themselves in the eye, and bite their tongue, lips, and fingers. The condition leads to self-mutilation, bonefractures, multiple scars, and joint deformities; even mental retardation is common,” says Prof. Jacov Levy, head of the Pediatric Daycare Center. They are always at risk and are exposed to complications as a result of home accidents. In order to help these children refrain from biting themselves, dental surgeons are forced to extract their teeth.

“As soon as we identify a child with CIPA, we start treatment which involves a multidisciplinary team of pediatricians, orthopedists, ophthalmologists, and plastic surgeons. It is a difficult and heartbreaking disease – thelifespan of these kids is no longer than twenty years. The adult patients whom we know are paraplegics,” continues Levy.

According to Parvari, “Since we can identify the defective DNA from the embryo as early as the 11th week of pregnancy, Bedouin couples at risk can undergo a diagnostic test for embryos with this mutation.”

Parvari is presently working on identification of othermutated genes causing insensitivity to pain, promising novel techniques for pain treatment using genetic studies.

Rare Gene Detected Among Bedouins

The Israel Science Foundation (ISF) in collaboration with the Legacy Heritage Fund has awarded Dr. Aviv Goldbart, a member of the Faculty and senior physician in the Department of Pediatrics at the Soroka University Medical Center, a prestigious clinical research grant in the amount of 1,000,000 new Israeli shekels for his research in inflammatory changes in young children with obstructivesleep apnea syndrome. Goldbart was one of seven recipients chosen from more than a hundred physicians.

Dr. Goldbart, a graduate of the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School, specializes in pediatric respiratory diseases and sleep disorders.

According to Dr. Goldbart: “Apnea disorder syndrome affects 3% of children and 5% of adults worldwide.

A Million Shekels for Pediatric Apnea ResearchApproximately 60% of the children diagnosed in the Soroka Sleep Laboratory as suffering from this disorder are under the age of three years. The reason for the manifestation of the disease in these children is still not clear. My hope is that this research will elucidate the underlying causes and will also offer possible future treatment.” Dr. Goldbart has already shown that patients exposed to intermittent hypoxia during sleep have severe cognitive deficits that are correlated with changes inmemory (published in the journal Neuroscience in 2003).

Dr. Goldbart has recently been awarded an additional grant by the Ministry of Health’s Chief Scientist for a second research project related to the connection between diabetes and sleep disorders in children.

Dr. Or Goren with a patient


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

6


7

Prof. Ron Dagan, a world-renowned physician and research scientist, was recently awarded the coveted Samuel and Paul Elkeles Fund prize for outstanding scientists in the field of medicine for 2007. The award of15,000 Swiss Francs was bestowed on Prof. Dagan by the Israel Keren Kayemet L-Israel (Jewish National Fund) for his outstanding work and achievements in the field ofinfectious diseases.

Dagan is one of the most distinguished world leaders in the field of pediatric infectious diseases. His exemplarycontributions in this field have earned him national andinternational fame. Prof. Dagan has published over 350 original articles and over 300 abstracts, reviews and chapters in books. He has presented his research at hundreds of national and international conferences.

Prof. Dagan is President of the World Society of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, a member of numerous scientificand medical societies and advisory committees in Israel and abroad. He also serves as an advisor in infectious diseases to the Israel Ministry of Health and sits on a number of editorial boards of prominent medical and scientific journals. Prof. Dagan established a nationalnetwork to deliver advice and care for pediatric infectious diseases. One of his most outstanding contributions has been the development of vaccinations that are now included in the basket of health services. Two of themost important of these are vaccinations againsthepatitis A and pneumococcus which do not react to the

various antibiotics administered for ear infectious and digestive infections in children.

In addition to this distinguished prize, Prof. Dagan has been honored with many awards and research grants including the Bill Marshall Prize from the ESPID, the Sarov Prize for outstanding scientists from the Israel Society of Microbiology, and the Teva Prize for advancement in infectious diseases.

Prof. Dagan continues in the footsteps of two distinguished members of the Faculty and Soroka who were recipients of the Elkeles Prize – Prof. Shimon Glick, former dean of the Faculty and first recipient in 1988, andthe late Prof. Shraga Segal, also a former dean, who was awarded the prize in 1996.

Ron Dagan Scores Again

An innovative orientation day was held for incoming first-year students to the Faculty in September 2007. Theprimary purpose was to ease the students’ absorption process by familiarizing them with the academic environment and social life in Beer-Sheva and the Negev.

Two hundred and fifty new students from all overthe country participated in the event were briefed by

members of the Faculty and representatives of the Medical Students Association. Subjects included in the orientation ranged from discovering Beer-Sheva’s neighborhoods and communities to exploring the vast study opportunities and facilities at the Marcus Family Campus. At the end of the day, students partied at the University Sports Center and had a chance to get acquainted.

“We place great importance on this initiative,” said Prof. Shaul Sofer, dean of the Faculty, in his welcoming remarks. “We regard this day as an opportunity to provide the students with a bird’s eye view of the Faculty’s involvement in the community. To be a student in one of the Faculty’s schools is not just living in an ivory tower but learning to be a role model in community activities. This day provides an opportunity and a means to encourage team spirit and strengthen the ties of the students to the Faculty and the community,” added Sofer.

Orientation Day for First-year Students

Prof. Ron Dagan with a patient


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

8


9

The city of Kumasi, with a population of 1.5 million, is the second largest town in Ghana. Each year 28,000 babies are born in Kumasi. Of these, over 4000 are low birth weight, high risk, or sick and in need of special care.

The only facility in Kumasi that provides special care for sick and high risk newborns is the Mother and Baby Unit of the Konfa Anoche Teaching Hospital. This unit has only 40 beds and suffers from constant severe overcrowding. As a result, cross-infections are rampant and the neonatal mortality is very high. To solve this problem, a number of community neonatal special care units were urgently needed to be established in Kumasi.

Over the years, the Department of Neonatology in the Faculty has developed an outstanding training program for doctors and nurses caring for high risk and sick newborns in developing countries based on a low tech approach.

Prof. Miki Karplus from the Faculty’s Medical School for International Health, together with Dr. Eilon Shani and senior nurse Rina Marcu from the Department of Neonatology, Soroka University Medical Center (SUMC) were asked by MASHAV to train nurses and physicians in Kumasi in the care of sick newborns.

In January 2007 the BGU team gave a two-week workshop on “Nursing Care of Neonatal Emergencies” with the assistance of local faculty. Participants included 21 nurses and 5 physicians from community hospitals and the teaching hospital. The main topics of the training were resuscitation, referral of sick newborns, prevention and treatment of infections, care of newborns with respiratory problems, and Kangaroo Mother Care for low

birth weight babies. Video films specially prepared by theBGU team for teaching purposes were used for the firsttime.

Following the success of the workshop, MASHAV agreed to establish the first community neonatal special careunit in Kumasi and Prof. Karplus was invited to plan the nursery based on Kangaroo Mother Care and other low tech interventions.

Two pediatricians and two nurses from Kumasi who will be in charge of this nursery are currently receiving advanced training in newborn care in SUMC under the supervision of Dr. Eilon Shani and Mrs. Rina Marcu.

The BGU team will return to Kumasi in the beginning of 2008 to assist in the opening of the new neonatal special care unit in the city of Kumasi.

Saving Newborns in Ghana – a partnership of the Faculty, the Millennium Initiative, the Ministry of Foreign

Affairs of Israel (MASHAV) and SUMC

Prof. Miki Karplus with medical staff from Ghana

The Charles and Lillie Ivener Mental Health Library Endowment Fund was established by a major donation made by Adele Zaslow from the estate of Goldie Ivener z"l, for journal subscriptions and new book purchases, as well as for a physical upgrade of the library.

Mental Health Center Library EnrichedThe distinguished Ivener family name has been associated with the University and specifically thepsychiatric library for many years. This gift represents a fitting legacy to Mrs. Ivener's cherished memory.


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

8


9

Closing a Circle – Michael Sherf Returns to Beer-Sheva

Dr. Michael Sherf, a graduate of the Faculty’s Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School’s second class, was appointed CEO of Soroka University Medical Center in July 2007, replacing Dr. Eitan Hyam, also a Goldman Medical School graduate.

Sherf headed the Planning & Health Policy Division at Clalit Health Services, the largest HMO in Israel, and

was Medical Director of Clalit Health Services’ southern district and Clalit’s National Centralization Project, a crucial component of its strategy.

He specializes in Family Medicine and holds a Master in Public Health (MPH).

Upon completing his medical studies, Sherf was one of the first primary care volunteer physicians to participatein the Faculty’s Yeruham outreach community project, whereby young graduates volunteered to work for one year, promoting and providing medical services and primary care in a development town in southern Israel. In 1986, he was awarded the prestigious Cuzari Prize for Excellence in Medical Services.

Following in his footsteps, his daughter Naama recently graduated from the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School and is presently doing her internship at Soroka University Medical Center.

Dr. Michael Sherf

Prof. Tova Lifshitz, Head of the Department of Ophthalmology, and her husband, Prof. Matityahu (Maty) Lifshitz, Head of Pediatrics Department D and an expert in toxicology, both of the Soroka University Medical Center and the Faculty, visited the Combined Chinese and Western Medical Hospital in Panzhihua, spent a two-week medical care an industrial city of one million people in Sichuan province in southwest China. This hospital is unique in having departments that provide both Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western modern medicine.

During their visit, Prof. Tova Lifshitz taught advanced surgical techniques for complicated eye diseases and performed a new operation for intraocular lens transplantation to correct severe myopia. She also trained a surgical ophthalmology team in cataract phacoemulcification surgery and lectured on varioustopics in ophthalmology surgery. Prof. Maty Lifshitz established a new professional poison information center and lectured on innovative treatments in pediatric diseases and poisoning.

Their visit was greatly appreciated by the mayor of Panzhihua, the head of the Health Department of the Province, and the hospital administration, all of

whom expressed their keen interest in continuing and expanding the professional relationship between our Faculty and other medical centers in China. Following this important project, a delegation of 25 Chinese physicians came to visit the Faculty and Soroka University Medical Center to learn about our curriculum, administration, and facilities in order to upgrade their expertise and knowledge

The Lifshitz family mission was arranged by Matat Knowledge from Israel – a non-profit organization thatsends Israeli experts in medicine and agriculture to teach and train in developing countries, particularly China.

Medical Mission to China

L: Prof. Tova Lifshitz


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

10


11

Knights CrusadersReturn to the Holy Land

In recognition of his medical achievements and establishment of the Museum of the History of Medicine in the Faculty, Prof. Lior Rosenberg, MD, was awarded a silver branch of peace by the Confederation of Knights Crusaders. The award was conferred during the Knights’ visit to Israel as promoters of peace.

Prof. Rosenberg, a member of the Faculty and head of the Department of Plastic Surgery, Soroka University Medical Center, loaned his private and unique collection

of over 5,000 medical instruments, artifacts, engravings, and books to the Faculty’s Museum of Medicine.

The Museum portrays chapters in the history of medicine, from ancient times to the modern era, with emphasis on the growth of the physician as artisan, scientist, man of ethics, but most of all, servant to the sufferer. The goals of the museum are to establish a link between the community and the medical establishment, to advance medical education on the community and academic levels, and to serve as a center for the documentation, preservation, and research into the various aspects of the history of medicine.

The Faculty, which strongly supports community involvement, has trained students to be guides in the Museum. This training is considered to be an important and integral part of the students’ educational experience, extending beyond the traditional curriculum taught in the classroom and laboratory. Children, senior citizens, and educational groups from Israel and abroad visit this museum throughout the year.

The American Endocrinology Society’s Outstanding Achievement Award for Academic Excellence in Endocrinology was given to Tamar Cohen, a sixth-year student in the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School. Tamar was presented with the award during a ceremony held in the Faculty in the presence of the dean, Prof. Shaul Sofer, the head of the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School, Prof. Pablo Yagupsky, and the endocrinology clerkship coordinator and the initiator of the prize, Dr. Johnathan Arbelle. The award includes a free membership in the American Endocrinology Society,a subscription to Endocrinology Reviews, and a certificate.Tamar is the third medical student to have received this award.

The Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School, together with more than 200 institutes worldwide, participates in this prestigious project which aims to support a medical

Academic Excellence in Endocrinology

student who has shown exceptional ability and interest in endocrinology. It encourages outstanding students to pursue careers in endocrinology and related fields inmedicine and basic science.

2nd from R: Prof. Lior Rosenberg with Knights Crusaders

From left: Tamar Cohen and Dr. Johnatan Arbelle


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

10


11

Thirty percent of individuals over 65-years-of-age, and almost 50% percent of individuals over 80-years-of-age, experience at least one fall each year. Although most falls do not end in death or result in significant physicalinjury, the psychological impact of a fall often results in increased self-restriction of activities and a decrease in quality of life.

According to a new two-stage study, conducted by Dr. Itzhak Melzer and Ilan Kurz in the Physical Therapy Department, their colleagues at the Faculty’s S. Daniel Abraham International Center for Health and Nutrition, and Lars Oddsson of the Neuromuscular Research Center, Boston University, a simple, safe measure using the Voluntary Step Execution Test (VSET) under dual-task conditions can identify elderly individuals at risk for falls.

The first stage of the study focused on 100 participantsaged 65–91 years. Among them there were 11 self-reported retrospective multiple fallers (2 or more falls), 71 reported non-fallers, and 18 who had fallen only once during the previous half year. In the second stage of

the study, fall events were monitored prospectively for a year (on a monthly basis) in 98 elderly persons; 17 were multiple fallers, 49 were non-fallers, and 32 had fallen only once.

Application of the VSET facilitated the identification ofretrospective and prospective elderly fallers with the assumption that those elderly individuals who were unable to complete their step in 1100 milliseconds were prone to falls. Such an indicator allows identification ofthose elders who had previously fallen, as well as those at risk, allowing preventive measures to be implemented and could be a simple and inexpensive test to detect severity of balance impairments.

Since a fast stepping response time is the most important factor for successful balance recovery, a novel training program for improving balance and speed of stepping was designed in collaboration with Lars Oddsson at the NeuroMuscular Research Center, Boston University. It was shown that elderly persons who received this training significantly improved the speed of steppingunder single and dual task conditions..

Watch Your Step!

“Despite having the most costly health system in the world, the US consistently underperforms on most dimensions of performance, relative to other countries,” states the Commonwealth Fund, a leading independent source for improving health care policy and practice in the US. Indeed, this nation ranks dismally among developed nations when judged according to the health of the population, equity in access to care, and residents’ satisfaction with the system.

Prof. Dov Chernichovsky of the Department of Health Systems Management, an internationally recognized economist with a distinguished career in health policy and research, has been awarded a grant by the prestigious Commonwealth Fund to investigate the experience of other developed nations, with the hope that his work will provide a framework and key lessons for potential reform and improvement of the US health care system – one of the hot topics in the American 2008 presidential election.

Under the leadership of Prof. Chernichovsky, an international group of well-known scholars and

policymakers from Australia, Canada, Germany, France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States examines how those nations have achieved and maintained high health system performance levels based on universal coverage, with relatively low spending when compared with the US.

At a meeting held in September 2007 at the University of California at Los Angeles, Prof. Chernichovsky and Prof. Arleen Leibowitz of UCLA and a member of the team, presented an initial draft of Shaping a US Healthcare System, the first of a series of papers based on the project.It is hoped that this and ensuing work will help US policy makers to improve their health system.

Commonwealth Fund Recruits Dov Chernichovsky

Prof. Dov Chernichovsky


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

12


13

Prof. Gabriel Gurman, special assistant to the dean of the Faculty and former Chairman, Division of Anesthesiology, at the Soroka University Medical Center, in collaboration with Shirley Dobson, UK, and the support of the World Federation of Societies of Anesthesiologists (WFSA), has initiated an innovative International School for Instructors in Anesthesiology (ISIA) for Eastern Europe.

The three-week intensive course trains senior anesthesiologists in Bulgaria, Moldova, Poland, Serbia, and Slovakia in the methodology of teaching clinical aspects in anesthesia and related fields. The

Promoting Anesthesiology in Eastern Europe

aim of the program is to prepare groups of local professional anesthesiologists to become, in turn, teachers in their own country. Frontal lectures included techniques of teaching, preparation of case presentations, use of Internet sources, and writing multiple choice test questions.

To date, three courses with 20 participants eachhave been held inBratislava – October

2006 and May 2007, and in Belgrade – October 2007. Commencing in 2008, these qualified anesthesiologistswill instruct other anesthesiologists in their native country.

The ISIA is a continuation of a one-year fellowship program in anesthesiology and related fields which wasinitiated 15 years ago by Prof. Gurman at the Faculty in collaboration with the Soroka University Medical Center. More than 160 young anesthesiologists from 10 Eastern European countries successfully completed this fellowship program, returning home with new tools and medical knowledge.

Tomer Goldschmidt, a sixth-year student in the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School, won an excellence award for studies for the fourth time.

Goldschmidt has won the Dean’s prize twice previously and the Rector’s Prize once. The award was made during a ceremony in March 2007 in the presence of Prof. Rivka Carmi, president of the University, Prof. Jimmy Weinblatt, rector, Prof. Shaul Sofer, dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, and all the other University deans.

A similar ceremony was held in the Joyce Goldman Auditorium to honor those students who received department honor prizes. The prizes express the appreciation of the University for excellent students. The Dean’s Prize is nis4000, the Rector’s Prize carries an NIS 8000 award, the Head of Department Prizes, given by the Schools in the Faculty, carry an award of NIS 1500.

Prizes to Students

This year, 30 students received departmental prizes from the heads of the Schools and Dean Shaul Sofer. The auditorium was crowded with the families of the students receiving awards.

Back row 4th from the L: Prof. Gabriel Gurman with the first class

From left: Prof. Shaul Sofer and Tomer Goldschmidt


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

12


13

For the first time in Israel a minimally invasive andinnovative spine surgical procedure was performed by Dr. Abraham (Albert) Sasson, Head of the Spine Unit at the Soroka University Medical Center, Chairman of the AOSpine Israel Chapter, and a senior member of the Faculty together with Dr. Isadore Lieberman, a world expert in spine surgery from Cleveland, Ohio.

Known as “Percutaneous axial spinal discectomy and vertebral bony fusion and fixation with one screw”,this new method of almost bloodless surgery can be completed within one hour and is performed under fluoroscopy, minimizing scarring and pain, and time forrehabilitation. The point of entry is a one centimeter cut close to the coccyx which allows direct access to the lowest disc (L5–S1) and removal of the disc material. Bone marrow and bone substitute are inserted between the bodies of the two vertebrae and a titanium screw pushed from the sacrum produces a distraction of the disc and decompression of the neural structures. To date only 1500 of these spine operations have been performed world-wide.

The same evening after surgery, the patient, a 50-year-old male who had suffered for years from chronic back pain, was able to walk unaided and was discharged within 24 hours. Dr. Sasson plans to perform this pioneering and innovative procedure on additional patients suffering from spinal dysfunction.

This amazing surgical procedure was recorded by closed circuit television accompanied with a step-by-step verbal description by Dr. Sasson. The broadcast was observed by orthopedic surgeons throughout Israel.

Following this surgery, Dr. Sasson organized three-day parallel courses for orthopedic physicians and operation room nurses who came from all over Israel to specialize in spinal surgical procedures.

“I feel very honored to organize such a course,” says Sasson. “It pleases me greatly to know that we are able to facilitate better training for spine physicians and provide better care for spine patients in Israel through research, development, evaluation, education, and quality of medical service.”

Innovative Spinal Surgery in a Live Broadcast

Left Dr. Abraham (Albert) Sasson

In the presence of H.E. Mr. Ramiro Cibrian-Uzal, Ambassador of the European Union to Israel and Head of the Delegation of the European Commission, three senior Faculty members were awarded prestigious research grants by the European Union 7th Framework Programme for Research and Technology Development (ISERD) for 2007.

Dr. Vadim Fraifeld, from the Shraga Segal Department of Microbiology and Immunology, received the award for his research in the field of “Aging and maintainingthe health of older people”; Prof. David Golomb, Head of the Department of Physiology, received the award for his research and development of “Biomimetic – a computerized technology for active touch,” which will develop novel biomimetic computational methods and technologies for active touch sensing; and Prof. Mark Clarfield, head of the Department of Geriatrics, for hisresearch “Increasing participation of the elderly in clinical trials”.

European Union Awards

A total of 53 million Euros was distributed to 119 Israeli researchers and hi-tech companies and included recipients from five institutes of higher learning. Of the119 Israeli recipients, seven are members of the BGU academic faculty; of these, three are members of the Faculty.

From left: H.E. Mr. Ramiro Cibrian-Uzal and Dr. Vadim Fraifeld


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

14


15

“I love what I do. I wake up in the morning looking forward to getting to work,” says Sarah Shaton, 30, who immigrated to Israel from Ethiopia in 1982, and who now serves as Assistant Nursing Director at Soroka University Medical Center’s Department of Internal Medicine.

Sarah’s journey from a small village in rural Ethiopia, across the southern Sudan by foot, and on to a senior position at a leading Israeli medical facility is due to her intelligence and drive. Sarah’s mother, who had not had the benefit of formal education, butwas convinced of its importance, encouraged and supported her throughout her studies.

Growing up in Beer-Sheva, Sarah enjoyed an unusually smooth absorption to Israeli life. Although she didn’t know a word of Hebrew, she entered directly into a regular second grade class. There, she didn’t only manage, she flourished. By the fifth grade, tests hadrevealed that Sarah was gifted, and she was placed in advanced level mathematics, physics, English, and chemistry classes.

Having earned undergraduate and graduate nursing degrees from BGU, Sarah now serves as a nurse, an administrator, and a guide for third and fourth year nursing students. In this capacity, she guides the novices to the point where they can act completely independently.

A graduate to be Proud of – Sarah Shaton

Why did Sarah choose nursing? Growing up, she was exposed to serious family illnesses, hospitals, and medical personnel. “From that time, I knew I wanted to help people, and that this type of work was for me,” says Sarah. She opted for a nursing track in high school. In the army, she served as a nurse in a military hospital. Backed by this significant experience, Sarah began her studies atBGU.

With the perfect nursing profile, Sarah combines patiencewith ambition, knowledge with dedication. Despite the rigors – physical and emotional – of her workplace, Sarah is hooked. “I love the dynamic nature of the Department of Internal Medicine,” she says. “I see much suffering and much sorrow there, but they are compensated for by moments of great happiness and joy.”

The Center for Multidisciplinary Research in Aging (CMRA) at the Faculty was recently elected as the tenth member of the prestigious International Longevity Center (ILC) based in New York City. Under the leadership of Prof. Sara Carmel, an expert in gerontology and Director of CMRA, the newly formed ILC-Israel plans to create a large and comprehensive Israeli body which will incorporate all the national institutions involved in research and services for the aged, and centralize all activities.

This election, which was announced during the international conference of the ILC in London on “Human

Rights in an Aging World”, is in recognition of the high level of work and research being carried out by CMRA and other Israeli organizations.

Organized in 1990 by Robert N. Butler, M.D., Professor of Geriatrics at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, the International Longevity Center-USA (ILC-USA) is a not-for-profit, nonpartisan research, policy, and educationorganization whose mission is to help societies address the issues of population aging and longevity in positive and constructive ways and to highlight older people’s productivity and contributions to their families and to society as a whole.

CMRA elected to ILC

Sarah Shaton


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

14


15

Prof. Abe M. Baruchin, member of the Faculty and Head of the Laser Esthetic and Surgery Unit at the Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon, has been elected president of the International Society for Laser Surgery and Medicine.

Dr. Shlomi Codish, a member of the 15th graduating class of the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School, has been appointed as Vice Director of Soroka University Medical Center.

Dr. Alon Friedman, from the Department of Physiology, received the prestigious 2007 Michael Prize for epilepsy research from the Michael Foundation of Germany.

Dr. Yuval Krieger, a member of the eighth graduating class of the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School, member of the Faculty and senior plastic surgeon in the Soroka Department of Plastic Surgery, was elected head of the Israeli Association for Burns.

Prof. Eitan Lunenfeld, a member of the first graduatingclass of the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical School, member of the Faculty and head of the Division of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Soroka University Medical Center, was elected president of the Israeli Fertility Society.

Dr. Maximo Maislos, Head of the Atherosclerosis and Metabolism Unit, has been elected Vice-president, Southern Region, of the European Association for Obesity (EASO).

People in the News

Dr. Alon Monsonego, senior lecturer in the Shraga Segal Department of Microbiology and Immunology, is the new incumbent of the Zahava and Chezy Vered Career Development Chair for the Study of Alzheimer’s and Neuro-degenerative Diseases.

Joseph S. Pliskin PhD is the Sidney Liswood Professor of Health Care Management in the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management and the Department of Health Systems Management, and an adjunct professor of health policy and management at the Harvard School of Public Health. His text, Focused Operations Management for Health Services Organizations, co-authored by Boaz Ronen with Shimeon Pass was recently published by Jossey-Bass.

Prof. Ami Sperber, a member of the second graduating class of the Joyce and Irving Goldman Medical Center, Associate Professor in the Gastroenterology Institute at Soroka University Medical Center, has publishedhis book Taking to the Stomach instead of theHeart – Irritable Bowel Syndrome, What it is and How to Take Care of It [Hebrew].

Prof. Joseph Zohar, of the Beer-Sheva Mental Health Center, was elected President-Elect for the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology.

The Department of Microbiology and Immunologywas renamed the Shraga Segal Department of Microbiology and Immunology in honor of the lateProf. Shraga Segal, former dean, deputy-rector and founder of the department.

Iquitos, a remote city located in the rainforest of Peru on the Amazon River is another point on the globe that students and members of the Faculty have visited within the framework of their work in underdeveloped countries.

A number of students studying at the Medical School for International Health (MSIH) went to Iquitos as their clerkship option in international medicine, where they were exposed to the challenges of promoting health and upgrading medical care for urban and rural communities.

Iquitos is the largest city in the world that can only be reached by boat or airplane. It contains many homes built on balsa logs which float with the seasonal rise (up to60 feet) in river level. Other homes are elevated on stilts just above the annual high-water mark. The journey of the students was followed by the visit to Iquitos of Prof.

Shaul Sofer, dean of the Faculty and a world renowned expert in pediatric intensive care, and Dr. Howard Tandeter, a family physician and Head of BGU’s School for Continuing Education.

As a guest of Dr. Graciela Meza Sanchez, dean of the Medical College in Iquitos and MSIH clerkship coordinator in Iquitos, Prof. Sofer gave several lectures on infectious diseases and toured the Primary Health Care Centers in Belen and the rural health center of Requena, located on the banks of the Tapiche river about 300 kilometers upriver.

While in Iquitos, Dr. Tandeter focused on presenting a two-day Development Workshop to 16 faculty members of the Universidad Nacional de la Amazonia Peruana Medical School. He also lectured to medical students about primary care-oriented medical systems and the Family Medicine Residency Program in Israel.

The Faculty Reaches to Iquitos


Sciences N

ews


ciences at Ben-G


egev

16

Living in Hope

Elnaz Sionit, a second-year student in the School of Pharmacy, gives the initial impression of being a young 21-year-old happy-go-lucky smiling student who does not stand out in a crowd. But when Elnaz begins to open up, she reveals the inner sadness of somebody who has suffered tremendous grief in her short life, and so her story unfolds.

Born in Teheran in 1986, Elnaz and her sister Sanaz grew up as happy children. Her parents, both academics, held good positions and the family was financially secure.They suffered no oppression or discrimination from the Iranian Government as long as they kept a low profileand showed no opposition to the authorities.

True to their name, Sionit (which means Zionist in Hebrew), in 2000 her mother and father aged 44 and 54, respectively, decided to make aliyah with their daughters, then ages 14 and 21, even though they knew it would entail a tremendous upheaval in their lives, both culturally and economically. Shortly before they planned to make their secret departure, a tragedy struck the family. Sanaz was kidnapped by a Muslim group and taken to an unknown location. As Jewish citizens, they were forbidden to take any action to rescue their oldest daughter. The heartbroken family had no choice, and was forced by the situation to leave Iran within 24 hours.

Elnaz and her parents tearfully boarded a plane on their journey to Israel, praying they would soon be reunited with their older child and sister, Sanaz. With the assistance of the Jewish Agency, the family settled in an absorption center in Jerusalem, where they acclimatized without any undue mishaps. Unlike her parents, who were unable to master Hebrew, Elnaz was an excellent student with a skill for languages and was soon accepted into the eighth grade of a public school in Jerusalem. The following year the family moved to Petach Tikva, but due to their lack of Hebrew, the parents were only able to find low paying, non-academic jobs.

After graduating from high school in 2004, Elnaz served in the army for two years in a highly responsible position, and achieved good grades in her psychometric exams. She entered the School of Pharmacy at BGU. The School, one of two in Israel, was established in 2003. Her acceptance to BGU was far from “sailing in a calm sea”. She faced tremendous economic obstacles in achieving her goals, especially since her parents were struggling to make ends meet. But she has succeeded through sheer perseverance and assistance by the University that granted her both a full tuition scholarship and residence in a dormitory in exchange for teaching older women,

proficient in languages, how to use a computer. Herpupils then go on to use their knowledge for pro-Israel information purposes.

Elnaz is now in her second year of studies with an excellent academic record. She plans to eventually study for a master’s degree specializing in clinical pharmacology – there is no doubt that, based on her will and determination, she will succeed. Elnaz knows that the sun will only shine upon her when she and her parents are reunited with her sister.

Elnaz Sionit

To subscribe send an e-mail to [email protected] it will arrive directly into your inbox

Produced by the Office of Public RelationsFaculty of Health Sciences

Managing Editor: Ronit TemesProduction Editor: Edna Oxman

Contributor: Caroline SimonPhotos: Dani Machlis, Rachel David,

Denis WeintraubDesign: www.image2u.co.il

Further details of the material describedherein may be obtained from: [email protected]

Tel: +972-8-647-7408

Ben-Gurion University of the NegevThe Faculty of Health Sciences

P.O.Box 653Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel

http://cmsprod.bgu.ac.il/fohs

Receive Health Sciences News on-line

Health Sciences News - BGU · Health Sciences News Health Sciences News of the Faculty of Health...

Documents

Transcript of Health Sciences News - BGU · Health Sciences News Health Sciences News of the Faculty of Health...