WITS DONALD GORDON MEDICAL CENTRE
Some of the WDGMC’s specialists are: Professor Russell Britz (Wits-trained; MBBCh 1979) established the liver transplant unit in 2004. It is currently headed by Professor Jean Botha (Wits MBBCh 1990), who returned from the United States in 2012 to establish the paediatric liver transplant unit. The first renal and pancreas transplant in a child in South Africa was performed at the WDGMC in 2008. The medical team included Dr Gary Fetter (Wits MBBCh 1986), Prof Britz and Prof Dokkie Botha (Wits MBBCh 1964). Prof Dokkie is now in his 70s and still assists with surgery. Professor Jose Ramos (Wits MBBCh 1983) returned from the private sector to head the hepatobiliary surgery unit. Dr Brent Tipping (University of Cape Town-trained) heads the Geriatric Medicine Unit. In 2008 he started and heads the geriatric medicine division at Wits in association with Helen Joseph Hospital. They train geriatrician registrars and fellows in both the public and private sectors. Dr Brendan Bebington, who did his postgraduate specialisation at Wits, returned from the private sector to head the colorectal surgery unit. Dr Charles Sanyika (University of KwaZulu-Natal) is a member of the WDGMC radiology and interventional radiology treatment unit, where he performs unique interventional radiology procedures. Cancer of the liver can be treated through noninvasive means here.
The WDGMC is the only facility in Southern Africa for pancreatic and related living donor liver transplants The WDGMC Transplant Unit has established itself as a leader in liver, kidney and simultaneous kidney-pancreas transplantation, and is the only facility in southern Africa today that does pancreatic transplants and related living donor liver transplants in children. The paediatric and adult liver transplant service at the WDGMC is offered to all citizens, with public hospital patients subsidised by the state.
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