Since 1988, Dr. Ron Maymon, a gynecologist at Assaf Harofe Hospital, has been coordinating a program of short-term post-graduate courses for doctors from virtually every country in the world. Three of these courses are held every year, each of three months' duration and all under the aegis of MASHAV, Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Center for International Cooperation, and the School of Continuing Education at Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of Medicine.
At a recent course, for example, held between May and July, 2001, doctors came from Bolivia, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Georgia, Ghana, Haiti, India, Latvia, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Tanzania and Turkey. Diverse as were their backgrounds, the doctors bonded and connected with each other so successfully that, at the end, they were a cohesive group, filled with regards for each other and for Israel.
For each course the training is tailored to meet the needs and desires of each participant who must have had at least four years of prior experience in his or her specialty. "Thus," says Dr. Maymon, "we are getting doctors in the mid-stage of their careers. The training includes intensive observation, coupled with some hands-on practical experience plus a heavy dose of lectures and tours throughout Israel. In every training session, each doctor is assigned to one of the hospitals affiliated with the Sackler Faculty of Medicine - Assaf Harofe, Beilinson, Ichilov, the Schneider Children's Medical Center, Sheba or Wolfson.
"In the field of medicine," notes Dr. Maymon, "it is almost obligatory for doctors to go abroad to further their professional knowledge. And Israel, with an international reputation for having advanced services in medical technology, research and clinical practice, is a favorite target for those interested in learning more about Western medicine. In addition, there is the attraction of coming to the Holy Land. As Dr. Dona Chua of the Philippines said, 'For me, as a Christian, to be able to visit Jerusalem and other holy sites is to have a dream come true.'" Many of the other doctors expressed similar sentiments.
Dr. Maymon has been serving as coordinator of all the courses since the program was established. In fact, it is actually his "baby," an idea conceived and brought to reality.
The program is a part of the School of Continuing Medical Education, headed by Prof. Moshe Phillip, Vice Dean, Sackler Faculty of Medicine. Mrs. Sonia Kasher is the executive secretary. The program staff includes Mrs. Ilana Makler and Mrs. Shirley Meents.
One could think that there might be an element of burn-out after organizing and coordinating almost 40 such courses. "On the contrary," stresses Dr. Maymon, "although it is true that we do get participants from many of the same countries, each group is unique and different. At the end of every course, it always amazes and thrills me to see how the participants in each group have their own way of expressing their emotions and feelings. As the coordinator, I have the opportunity of meeting hundreds of physicians, the opportunity - to put it somewhat poetically - of penetrating into the innermost recesses of their souls. It is always a new and exciting experience to share and hear their reactions, not only as regards the training but especially as regards their experience of being in Israel. Each group," he repeats, "has a different was of expressing itself. The way the trainees share their experiences, so many so different from any heard before, is a major factor in giving me the strength to carry on year after year with the same enthusiasm and interest."
Shalom's reporter had the privilege of attending an informal, round-table discussion held near the end of the 2001 spring course. At this session, the participants were asked to give their impressions of Israel and Israelis, concentrating on how they felt connected to the country after their three-month stay. Their comments validated Dr. Maymon's words.
Dr. Kuzey Aydinuraz of Turkey feels she has a special connection to Israel, one that began before she even came to the course. "I was a doctor in the emergency room at one of our hospitals during our recent horrendous earthquake and I saw first-hand how fantastic Israel's emergency services are, how the members of the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) Medical Corps worked to find and rescue survivors. They worked as if it were their country and as if the people they were struggling to dig out of the rubble were their own countrymen. Their skill, expertise and devotion were outstanding. And last week some of the IDF doctors invited me to a dinner where they presented me with a necklace. Hanging from it is a small medallion or charm with the words of one of their slogans engraved on it, something to the effect that they never leave their wounded behind." Showing the necklace and the medallion to the group, Dr. Aydinuraz said simply, "This is something I will cherish forever. It is a visible reminder of a connection I will never forget."
Dr. Aydinuraz also recalls a scene in the emergency room at Ichilov Hospital, the hospital where she was doing her post-graduate training. "I was treating a patient with a nasty wound on his chin, the result of a traffic accident. It was a deep wound and I worked on him for quite a while. When I finished, the man leaned over and gave me a kiss on the cheek, a sign of gratitude that was very touching and moving."
At the same time, Dr. Aydinuraz recalls some negative experiences, such as the time she was standing in line at the post office. "I must have been in the wrong place because suddenly a man came up to me and rudely pushed me away, so rudely that it practically brought tears to my eyes. Then, however, a woman came up to me and apologized for his behavior, telling me that not all Israelis are like that. She even gave me a candy, a sweet I suppose to soften the experience."
"My connection to Israel goes back further than anyone else's," reported Dr. Ricardo Morgenstern of Bolivia, "since I was here 30 years ago as a teenage volunteer. I worked on three kibbutzim, including Sde Boker. My quarters were in a small house next to where David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister lived and to where he had retired. I remember him coming out of his house one day, coming over to me and calling me 'amigo.' We conversed in a mixture of Spanish, English and some Hebrew - for I had a fair knowledge of the language by then. I guess he wanted to know who was living next door to him and, perhaps, responsible for making so much noise, playing loud music, for example.
"And it was very exciting when, during this course, we took a tour down south and visited Sde Boker where his house is now a museum, commemorating Ben-Gurion. My little house was still there, exactly as it had been when I left It. I stood there with a special feeling in my heart as I remembered that once I had had a talk with a man who was a giant in Israel's history and, perhaps, one of the giants of this century."
"I too have a prior connection to Israel," said Dr. Geentanjali Sharma, an ophthalmologist from India, "since my husband, a cardiac surgeon, was here four years ago on a similar post-graduate training course. He was impressed by the advanced technology he found here, as I have been. In my field, for example, I am very impressed by the advances in laser surgery. My husband also told me that Israelis are very friendly to Indians - and I think they are. For some reason, they seem to like us very much.
"In India," continued Dr. Sharma, "we have a very active Shalom Club of which my husband is a member and which I, too, will join when I return home. The members of our club do a great deal of volunteer work, especially in the area of school health.
"My experience here, on many levels, has been positive," concluded Dr. Sharma, "that I hope someday to return with my children and show them this country which does so much - for its own people and for others."
"Connections," as the round-table discussion was called, brought out not only feelings, but also artifacts that the trainees were taking back with them to their home countries. "For me," said Dr. Eduardo Paez of Colombia, "I am taking back a 'hamsa,' a five-fingered hand that is a charm worn by many in the Middle East. For me it represents friendship, the friends I have made - both within the group and at the Sheba Hospital where I worked in the Department of Dermatology. And, as a Colombian, I feel a special affinity to Israelis for both of us live in countries going through very difficult times." (Note: Colombia has been engaged in a civil war for 37 years now, with thousands of casualties and ongoing capture of hostages by rebel elements.)
"I am very impressed," stressed Dr. Paez, "by the way people in Israel cope, by the strength, courage and determination they constantly display. They are very brave people. And it is truly inspiring to see how they carry on with their lives so normally and so well in spite of the pressures under which they live."
The trainees were candid and open in their observations, obviously enjoying this opportunity to assess their connection to Israel. For some, the discussion became a forum where stereotypes and preconceived notions of Israel and Israelis were reviewed and dispelled. More than one participant, for example, noted that before coming to Israel, the Holy Land, they had envisioned everyone in the country as being very religious. "And then," said one, "we saw how in Tel Aviv, for instance, on Saturday (the Jewish Sabbath), stores and restaurants were open and people were at the beach, frolicking and swimming in the water." "But," as Dr. Maymon pointed out, "if you went to a neighborhood such as Bnei Brak, a suburb just outside Tel Aviv, heavily populated by religious inhabitants, you would see another Israel." "Yes," agreed one of the doctors, noting her visit to Bnei Brak one Saturday. "Everywhere men were dressed in black, busy going back and forth to houses of worship, prayer shawls over their shoulders and the women with their heads covered and dressed very modestly, unlike people we saw elsewhere."
The conclusion that all reached was that there is no one Israel and no typical Israeli type. There are differences in almost every area - from the degrees of religious observance to patterns of behavior.
"Yet," stated Dr. Paez, "notwithstanding the fact that we must not generalize, I still feel that Israelis - on the whole - are not particularly polite or courteous. In a store, for example, you seldom hear the words 'please' or 'will you be so kind as to help or show me something.' People tend to bark out orders and requests quite brusquely. But perhaps," he added, "they're not basically rude. It may be that it is just their manner of speaking that makes them sound so rude. On the other hand," he noted, "at the hospital where I worked all the people were extremely friendly and helpful, often going out of their way to give me extra time and attention."
In one area, however, there was no ambivalence or disagreement. All of the doctors were very positive about the modern and advanced technology they found in Israel. All felt they had gained a great deal from the program. As Dr. Salim Budha of Tanzania said, "My three months here in Israel, where I worked in the Cardiology Department at Beilinson Hospital, were incredibly meaningful, with the highlight being my exposure to acco-cardiography since my hospital in Tanzania is expecting to get such a machine soon, donated to us with the help of Israel. Here in Israel I acquired a sound understanding of the fundamental operations this machine can perform and how, with it, we can successfully diagnose many basic common diseases."
For Dr. Morgenstern of Bolivia, a gastroenterologist who had been attached to the Liver Institute at Beilinson, his stay in Israel was similarly satisfying. "I added a great deal to my knowledge of liver diseases in general, especially since I had the opportunity to be involved in the clinical management of patients suffering from liver disorders, working as I was in the out-patient department of the hospital. There I was able to observe in depth endoscopic and colonoscopic procedures - and all of this I found to be a very valuable experience," he reported.
"Yes," agreed Dr. Paez, "the technology in Israel is very impressive, as is the way medicine in general is practiced. The program gave me an excellent opportunity to see a variety of patients with many different kinds of problems - a broadening experience in the truest sense of the word."
"Broadening" is a very accurate adjective to describe Israel's programs of postgraduate medical training. And it is a broadening experience on two levels - professionally and personally. As Dr. Chua of the Philippines said, capturing both aspects of the experience, "At Sheba Hospital, where I was attached to the Neonatology Department, I got wonderful training. Everyone went out of his/her way to be helpful. In addition, I got a trip to Israel - an incredible combination. I am grateful to MASHAV for making my dream to come the Holy Land come true - and I can't say this too often. It is an unbelievable thrill to be in a country from where three of the world's great religions have emanated. At the Jordan River I actually felt as if I had been transported back in time, back two thousand years when Jesus Christ was here. As a Christian, I always felt a connection to Israel, but being here has intensified that feeling. I also feel a strong connection to the Jewish people."
On her last day at Sheba Medical Center Dr. Chua was given a present by the doctors with whom she had worked, a book of aerial photographs of Israel. "I will treasure this book forever," she said. "It will remind me not only of the wonderful training I received here, but, even more, of the country I have been privileged to visit."
Dr. Chua concluded her remarks by noting that many people had warned her not to come to Israel, claiming, they said, that it was a very dangerous country. "I, however, wasn't afraid," she asserted. "Actually, it isn't all that safe in the Philippines either. We too have our problems - our ethnic clashes and differences of opinion. In our case it is between Christians and Muslims. Here it is between the Israeli Jews and the Palestinians, but we are surviving, as is Israel."
"Connections" was the name of the game played by the doctors at the conclusion of their training. But it was more than a game. It was a wonderful way of enabling them to review and assess an experience that added more to their lives than just significant and meaningful professional knowledge, as important as this was. Listening to the trainees, it was clear why Dr. Maymon never tires of his role as organizer and coordinator of the program.