PROF. ARNON AFEK INTRODUCES THE DINA RECANATI MEDICAL SCHOOL TO THE ISRAELI FRIENDS OF REICHMAN UNIVERSITY

Prof. Rafi Melnick, Dr. Limor Afek, Prof. Arnon Afek, Prof. Uriel Reichman, Oudi Recanati and Gili Dinstein at the evening celebrating the new medical school

The second Israel Friends of Reichman University event took place earlier in the year, where guests were introduced to the future Dina Recanati Medical School, due to formally open for the academic year 2024-2025, by Prof. Arnon Afek, its founding Dean. The evening began with the opening words of Gili Dinstein, CEO of Friends of Reichman University and External Relations Israel, who said, “As always, we aspire to establish the best, innovative and advanced school.”

Prof. Afek, who is also the Associate Director General of Sheba General Hospital and Chairman of the Department of Medical Administration at Sheba Medical Center, Secretary of the Union of Hospital Directors and former Director General and Associate Medical Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Health, presented the school’s vision, challenges and most importantly, the significance of its establishment. Prof. Afek also presented the current challenges that the Israeli medical sector is facing and especially, the growing number (60%) of Israeli doctors who are trained outside of Israel, due to the lack of available places to study medicine in Israel.

He covered how natural it is for doctors trained abroad to continue working there instead of returning and working in Israel, and the fact that Israel needs 2,000 new doctors each year, but only 40% of them receive their qualification from the Ministry of Health. This results in a huge lack of doctors in the health system, which naturally, mostly affects the periphery.

Dinstein said, “As always, Prof. Reichman addressed the problem like he always does when dealing with national challenges, and thanks to the support and generosity of the Recanati Family, we paved the way to establish the medical school.” Mr. Oudi Recanati, Reichman University’s Chancellor, said that his late mother Dina Recanati z”l, was a humble woman and they all profoundly miss her. When the family thought about ways to commemorate her, they all agreed that establishing a medical school at Reichman University would be a worthy Zionist initiative to support Israel’s future.