Mervyn Gotsman
Encyclopedia
Mervyn S. Gotsman is Professor
Emeritus
of Cardiology at the Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel
.
Professor Mervyn Samuel Gotsman, M.D. was born in 1935 in the town of Hermanus
in South Africa
to Benjamin, a physicist, and Ada, a housewife. The family originally came to South Africa from Lithuania, with an intermediate station in England.
He studied medicine at the University of Cape Town
, graduating summa cum laude. In 1958, following a relatively early death of his father, he worked as a general practitioner in a small mining town in Rhodesia
(Zimbabwe
today).
In the early sixties, he specialized in tropical medicine, and later completed his internship in internal medicine and cardiology in London and Birmingham, England. In 1964 he returned to South Africa and joined the cardiac clinic at the Groote Schuur hospital
in Cape Town
.
In 1967 he referred Louis Washkansky
for the first successful heart transplant performed by Professor Christiaan Barnard
.
In 1968 he was appointed the director of the Department of Cardiology in Durban, South Africa, and was appointed professor of medicine at the University of Natal
.
He served as the chief cardiologist of the former Natal Province
.
In 1973, he immigrated to Israel with his family and served as the director of the Department of Cardiology in Hadassah Medical Center
, Jerusalem, a position he held until his retirement in 2000.
He has published numerous scientific papers regarding all aspects of clinical cardiology.
He received the 'Distinguished Citizen of Jerusalem' award in 2007 for his contribution to cardiology in Israel.
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
Emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
of Cardiology at the Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
.
Professor Mervyn Samuel Gotsman, M.D. was born in 1935 in the town of Hermanus
Hermanus
Hermanus is a town with 49,000 inhabitants on the southern coast of the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is famous as a place from which to watch Southern Right whales, during the southern winter and spring and is a popular retirement town...
in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
to Benjamin, a physicist, and Ada, a housewife. The family originally came to South Africa from Lithuania, with an intermediate station in England.
He studied medicine at the University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
, graduating summa cum laude. In 1958, following a relatively early death of his father, he worked as a general practitioner in a small mining town in Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
(Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
today).
In the early sixties, he specialized in tropical medicine, and later completed his internship in internal medicine and cardiology in London and Birmingham, England. In 1964 he returned to South Africa and joined the cardiac clinic at the Groote Schuur hospital
Groote Schuur Hospital
Groote Schuur Hospital is a large, government-funded, teaching hospital situated on the slopes of Devil's Peak in the city of Cape Town, South Africa...
in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
.
In 1967 he referred Louis Washkansky
Louis Washkansky
Louis Washkansky was the recipient of the world's first human heart transplant.-Biography:Washkansky was a Lithuanian Jew who migrated with his friends to South Africa in 1922, aged nine, and became a grocer in Cape Town. Washkansky saw active service in World War II in East and North Africa and...
for the first successful heart transplant performed by Professor Christiaan Barnard
Christiaan Barnard
Christiaan Neethling Barnard was a South African cardiac surgeon who performed the world's first successful human-to-human heart transplant.- Early life :...
.
In 1968 he was appointed the director of the Department of Cardiology in Durban, South Africa, and was appointed professor of medicine at the University of Natal
University of Natal
The University of Natal was a university in Natal, and later KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, that is now part of the University of KwaZulu-Natal. It was founded in 1910 as the Natal University College in Pietermaritzburg, and expanded to include a campus in Durban in 1931. In 1947, the university...
.
He served as the chief cardiologist of the former Natal Province
Natal Province
Natal, meaning "Christmas" in Portuguese, was a province of South Africa from 1910 until 1994. Its capital was Pietermaritzburg. The Natal Province included the bantustan of KwaZulu...
.
In 1973, he immigrated to Israel with his family and served as the director of the Department of Cardiology in Hadassah Medical Center
Hadassah Medical Center
Hadassah Medical Center is a medical organization that operates two University hospitals at Ein Kerem and Mount Scopus in Jerusalem, Israel, as well as schools of medicine, dentistry, nursing, and pharmacology affiliated with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.The hospital was founded by Hadassah,...
, Jerusalem, a position he held until his retirement in 2000.
He has published numerous scientific papers regarding all aspects of clinical cardiology.
He received the 'Distinguished Citizen of Jerusalem' award in 2007 for his contribution to cardiology in Israel.