November 2017
Background:
What is "Gender- and Sex Conscious Medicine" (in short: Gender Medicine)?
Gender medicine is probably one of the most important universal changes affecting medicine today. This statement is based on the insight, that the two sexes may have different experiences of the same disease: they may present with different symptoms, respond differently to therapy and tolerate/cope with the disease differently. This is the result of the biological and anatomic changes in physiology and pathophysiology which both sexes have undergone during millions of years of adaption to their different roles in society. Both, the biological differences between men and women and implications of the environment have profound influences on our health.
Gender Medicine in Israel has become almost synonymous with the Rabin Medical Center
Experts at the Rabin Medical Center (RMC) have been and are at the forefront of developing Gender Medicine in Israel.
Milestones:
- 2008: An interest group on Gender Medicine is established at Rabin Medical Center which includes 24 department heads and three hospital directors.
- 2009: At the RMC, the Israel Society for Gender- and Sex Conscious Medicine (IsraGem) is founded by Prof. Marek Glezerman, the past chairman of the Hospital for Women at the RMC. IsraGem (www.isragem.org.il) has currently over 130 members who represent 14 medical disciplines from 11 Universities and medical centers in Israel.
- 2009 to 2016: IsraGem, in collaboration with the RMC is organizing annual congresses dedicated to specific topics in Gender Medicine, including Cardiology, Nutrition, Medications, Pain, Obesity, Psychiatry/Psychology which attract hundreds of professionals from throughout the country. All meetings are taking place at the RMC.
- 2009: Experts from the RMC introduce Gender Medicine in the curriculum for medical students at Tel Aviv University.
- 2010: At the International congress for Gender Medicine in Tel Aviv, co-organized by the International Society for Gender Medicine and IsraGem, the CEO of the Rabin Medical Center, Dr. Eran Halpern announces that RMC will be the first major health care facility in Israel, dedicated to the promotion of Gender Medicine. At this International meeting, Prof. Marek Glezerman of the RMC is elected President of The International Society for Gender Medicine (www.isogem.com ), a position he held until 2017.
- 2011 RMC offers research grants (80.000 NIS) for projects related to Gender Medicine
- 2012: The first Research Center for Gender Medicine (RCGM) is founded at the RMC.
- 2013: The first inter-disciplinary Gender- specific cardiology out-patient clinics, headed by Dr. Avital Porter is inaugurated at RMC.
- 2013/14: Tel Aviv University and Galey-Zahal offer a broadcasted course on Gender Medicine. All lectures are given by senior RMC staff.
- 2013/14: The Research Center for Gender Medicine at RMC and Isragem jointly organize a postgraduate course on Gender Medicine at Tel Aviv University. Most lectures are given by the senior staff of the RMC.
- 2014: A course on Gender and Sex-Specific Medicine is given for the staff of the Rabin Medical Center.
- 2016: The prestigious Dean's lecture series at Tel Aviv University is dedicated to Gender \medicine and most lectures are given by RMC staff
- 2009- to date: Numerous research projects are being conducted and published with inter-departmental collaboration.
