On a recent visit to Brazil, a delegation from Rambam Health Care Campus (Rambam) in Haifa, Israel, highlighted the need for unity between academia, industry, and healthcare in both countries, as well as for the benefit of global medicine.
Professor Aaron Ciechanover – a Nobel Laureate in chemistry, Professor Michael Halberthal, general director and CEO of Rambam, and Professor Rafi Beyar, president of the International Friends Association of Rambam, met with senior representatives from the Brazilian Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (BMSTI), the Embassy of Israel in Brazil, and local hospital leaders, in what was a resoundingly successful four-day visit between August 14 and August 17.
The visit was organized by Rambam and commenced in Brazil's capital city – Brasilia. There, the delegation met with representatives from the BMSTI, Israel’s ambassador in Brazil, Daniel Zohar Zonshine, government officials, and important guests from Brazil’s Academy of Sciences and Academia. The three Israeli professors highlighted the importance of Rambam’s partnership with the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa and its formidable medical and scientific contribution to developing new technologies, resources, and treatments. The synergy between doctors, researchers, engineers, and inventors is increasing medical knowledge and benefitting human health. At the University of Brasilia, Professor Halberthal and Professor Beyar spoke about Rambam’s future vision, its significant influence in research and innovation, and personalized and precision medicine. Professor Ciechanover then presented a riveting lecture to students of science and medicine. He highlighted the need to incentivize the new generation of students, especially those in South American countries, thereby guaranteeing science’s continuing development and promotion.
The delegation continued on to Sao Paulo, where on August 15, they visited the Paulista School of Medicine – Federal University of São Paulo. The visit was arranged with the support of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. The following day, Professors Halberthal, Beyar, and Ciechanover met with Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein executives.
Guests were enthralled by Professor Ciechanover’s lectures entitled “The revolution of personalized medicine: are we going to cure all diseases and at what cost,“ and “Degradation of cellular proteins – from hypothesis to life-saving drugs, and on the way to the Nobel Prize” – the latter of which earned him the most prestigious award in science.
On the last day of the visit, Professors Halberthal, Beyar, and Ciechanover attended the inauguration of the new advisory board of the National Confederation of Brazil-Israel Chambers of Commerce, where they met leaders from 10 Brazilian states.
Summarizing the delegation's visit to Brazil, Professor Halberthal says, “Rambam is at the forefront of research and innovation in healthcare. We have a duty and are committed to sharing our knowledge with the rest of the world. It was a privilege to exchange ideas with our Brazilian colleagues, and we look forward to a future filled with important collaborations in medicine and science.”
Rambam Health Care Campus is a 1,100-bed academic hospital serving the over 2.5 million residents of Northern Israel. Providing comprehensive medical services in all medical specialties, Rambam is the tertiary referral center for 12 district hospitals. The medical center’s commitment is to the entire spectrum of patient care, ranging from the best treatments and therapies, to the support of clinical research.