Meet Prof. Ernesto Kahan - Doctor, Peace Advocate, Leader, Academic Director
We would like to introduce to you Professor Ernesto Kahan. To us he is the Academic Director of our Health Systems Management Programme, but we would be doing a disservice if we left it at that.
Prof. Kahan is a passionate man who has spent his life striving to make an impact on human society. A fervent humanist, he served as Vice President of Doctors International for the Prevention of Nuclear War and excited shared their success when the organisation was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1985. Since then, he has held some of the highest positions in the Health sectors in numerous countries, including Argentina and Israel. During these busy years he found that time to express his soul in poetry and the arts.
In this month’s spotlight we seek inspirational words from the man we so admire. “Personally, as a professor of medicine and a poet, I believe that all doctors must be humanists and promote humanism and peace,” says Khan. "We must love deeply and generously all of mankind. We must love and respect all humans, whether healthy or ill. We must learn more every day and add to our knowledge. We must participate responsibly, ethically and socially, in dialogues and proposals for a better, more worthy and safer life for the human race.
Health professionals, especially those who are obliged by the Hippocratic Oath must have a more comprehensive and ecological vision. I see this also as a great challenge for modern medicine. Doctors must assume great responsibility for the prevention of a nuclear genocide and the survival of mankind and life on Earth. This is our medical duty!”
After years of achievements, we are blessed that Prof. Kahan continues to motivate international health professionals at our institute. He said of the Health System Management Programme, “The advantage is evident in the unique organisation of the Israeli Health services, which are universal, obligatory and well-coordinated. World professionals come to Israel to study and to make comparisons and proposals for reforms in their own countries." He added, “[In Israel] technology is very important as it is advanced, with many ingenious innovations. The human factor and the organisational characteristics of the system are also greatly valued internationally, even without this renowned technology."
