Gordon, who was born in Brooklyn, N.Y,. attended medical school in Scotland and was an intern in Israel. He served in the Peace Corps in Tunisia, where he heard on Arab radio of the Six Day War in Israel. “This had a profound impact on my attitude to Israel,” he says. He returned to the United States to complete a second internship in Boston, and because of the Vietnam War, he moved to Montreal, working at the Royal Victoria Hospital.
Tunisia RPCV Dr. Michael Gordon establishes International Fellowship
Fellowship endowment to honour geriatric specialist
Seen at the Canadian Friends of Herzog Hospital Ezrath Nashim’s kickoff dinner to establish the Dr. Michael Gordon International Fellowship are Gordon’s wife, Gilda Berger, left, and Rosalie Mednick Nepom, concert chair.
By CYNTHIA GASNER
Special to The CJN
Dr. Michael Gordon has had a long association with the Herzog Hospital, the third largest hospital in Jerusalem.
Herzog Hospital is known worldwide for its work treating the psychological problems experienced as a result of terror attacks and natural disasters. Two-thirds of the hospital’s 340 beds are for geriatric patients.
Gordon will be honoured for his contributions in Canada and in Israel by the Canadian Friends of Herzog Hospital Ezrath Nashim at an upcoming concert and silent auction on Thursday, Nov. 24, at the Toronto Centre for the Performing Arts. The event is under the patronage of Israeli ambassador to Canada, Alan Baker.
Meir Rotenberg is the president of the Canadian Friends of Herzog Hospital Ezrath Nashim and concert chair is Rosalie Mednick Nepom.
The annual gala concert features violinist Moshe Hammer and Sisters of Sheynville, a swing-and-klezmer-influenced 1930s and ’40s Yiddish band whose repertoire include songs that were recorded by the famous Barry Sisters.
Gordon, the vice-president of medical services at the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, heads geriatric and internal medicine there. He is also head of geriatrics at Mount Sinai Hospital, a professor of medicine at the University of Toronto and a member of the Joint Centre for Bioethics at the university.
The proceeds of the tribute to Gordon will be used for the establishment of an endowment, the Dr. Michael Gordon International Fellowship, at Herzog Hospital.
“The fellowship will enable doctors from Herzog Hospital to spend considerable time at Baycrest Hospital to advance their field of studies,” Nepom says.
Gordon is committed to helping Israeli physicians who want to learn about the care of elderly at Baycrest. The Israelis often have difficulty getting funding to support their training. “The fellowship will also enhance support for senior family physicians from Herzog Hospital who want geriatric training,” Gordon says.
Established in 1895, Herzog Hospital has been a leading provider of psychiatric and geriatric services in the Middle East. It is also a leading research centre in geriatrics, especially research into Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases.
Gordon, who was born in Brooklyn, N.Y,. attended medical school in Scotland and was an intern in Israel. He served in the Peace Corps in Tunisia, where he heard on Arab radio of the Six Day War in Israel.
“This had a profound impact on my attitude to Israel,” he says. He returned to the United States to complete a second internship in Boston, and because of the Vietnam War, he moved to Montreal, working at the Royal Victoria Hospital.
In 1969, he went to Israel. He worked in pathology at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem for six months and served as a medical officer with the Israeli air force. Among other things, he assisted with helicopter evacuations. When he competed his regular military service, he became a medical resident at the Old Shaare Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem.
During this period, he would go, as a medical adviser, to the Old Ezrath Nashim Hospital, which was then primarily a psychiatric hospital.
In 1973, Gordon returned to Canada for postgraduate training at the University of Toronto. He worked at the Toronto General and Mount Sinai hospitals.
After two years, he decided to remain in Canada and accepted positions as an internist with an interest in aging with both Baycrest Centre and Mount Sinai Hospital .
“By the time I was offered amnesty in 1976 to return to the United States, I was enamoured by Canada and the Canadian health-care system,” Gordon says. He received certification as a geriatrician and moved up to his current positions.
His connection with Herzog Hospital was renewed, Gordon says, when Dr. Mark Clarefield, a former Torontonian who moved to Israel and became head of geriatrics at Herzog, invited him to Israel to speak at Herzog Hospital.
“Since that time, I have increased my connection to Herzog, to give lectures, and we have trained a number of physicians who became staff members at Herzog Hospital,” Gordon says.
“That is why I consider this tribute as a great honour.”
Gordon is a regular contributor and commentator on the joys and problems of the elderly for various television programs and radio shows. He has published a number of books and numerous articles for the general audience and professionals.
Recently, Gordon became a featured columnist on aging for The CJN. He is a sought-after speaker whose accomplishments include participation on professional and governmental committees on aging and related subjects.
For more information on the concert and the Dr. Michael Gordon tribute, call 416-256-4222 or e-mail herzoghosp@on.aibn.com.
