Founder and chairman of 'Refua Shlema', Rabbi Yossi Margalit
Rabbi Yossi Margalit - Worldwide Medical Practice
The founder and chairman of the ‘Refua Shlema’ organization, Rabbi Yossi Margalit, has been working at assisting the public in the medical field for 20 years. He started down this path after experiencing the hardship of complicated medical situations among several family members who needed a variety of procedures and lengthy hospitalizations. With an inspiring persistence and thoroughness, he navigated the complex processes, carried out extensive research and immersed himself in all the medical knowledge and experience needed to understand both the medicine and the management. Over time, acquaintances began turning to him for advice and assistance in similar situations.
In 2014, he worked as the director of community relations among the ultra-Orthodox sector in ‘Bellinson’ hospital. During this time, Rabbi Margalit came to the conclusion of the growing necessity for providing focused information and medical support, and he turned to hospitals all over the country for help.
At that point, he referred to country-wide medical practices in response to the multitudes of requests he was receiving. Throughout the years, the caseload grew, and the informational empire he had established grew and strengthened along with it, reaching far and wide; the network of connections crossed all medical fields, while keeping up-to-date with all new medical research, procedures, technology and publications. The years of widespread practice in the medical field allowed Rabbi Margalit to form many close connections with leading specialists, in-depth understanding of all the wards in Israeli hospitals and close relationships with hospital directors, making him one of the country’s top medical advisors.
Yossi is invited to medical conferences, seminars and multisystem staff meetings. He is requested to sit in on new surgical procedures in order to study the techniques or on behalf of the patients and their families. The chairman of ‘Refua Shlema’ is an integral part of the country’s medical clique, and he is present in all the major ribbon-cutting ceremonies of new wards and hospitals. He manages worldwide connections with leading hospital wards as well as international medical transportation, escorting the patient throughout their journey, mediating between Israeli medical bodies and medical institutions around the globe. He also offers advice to those who find themselves at a crossroads, unsure of which treatments, transplantations or other surgeries they are meant to approach.
Alongside Rabbi Margalit stand the dedicated members and noble-spirited volunteer staff of the ‘Refua Shlema’ organization, driven by a deep sense of achieving medical assistance to patients across all sectors to reach a complete recovery, ergo “refuah shlema”.
In 2017, Rabbi Yossi Margalit received the Minister of Health Medal, a respectable acknowledgement of all his accomplishments. Many health and medicine administrators of Israel’s hospitals graced this ceremony with their presence, as no less than 17 of them presented the document of recommendation for this title to be awarded to Rabbi Margalit.
Over time, a diverse medical community has formed around Rabbi Margalit, characterized by friendly and personal contacts who attend family functions and celebratory events hosted by the Rabbi year-round. Rabbi Margalit is a key character in the medical world, and doctors often refer to him to provide his collegial opinion.
In 2017, a presidential conference was established led by Rabbi Yossi Margalit, in cooperation with the leading experts and specialists representing their respective medical facilities, prepared to follow Rabbi Margalit and use their experience and knowledge to help patients by offering advice, direction and diagnostic assistance. For more about the presidential conference, read on.
Chaim Wilhelm is a founding partner of the medical assistance organization ‘Rofeh Cholim’ which was created by Shmuel Leiffer and was active throughout the pandemic. His background includes a rich portfolio of providing assistance and medical guidance to patients, many of them in severe and life-threatening situations. He accompanied many families during very difficult periods alongside their ailing loved ones, and provided not only medical support, but also emotional support in impossible situations. Chaim manages the logistical and operational aspects of the ‘Refua Shlema’ organization.
Rabbi Shmuel Leiffer is a well-known figure in the world of medical assistance, his activities spanning a wide range, including providing medical care equipment during at-home hospitalizations. Leiffer worked with patients from all over the country, at varying stages of sickness, throughout the COVID era under the organization ‘Rofeh Cholim’, which he established in order to assist Covid-19 patients. Many successful cases and lives saved testify to his dedicated work during the epitome of the pandemic. In addition, Leiffer deals in collecting funds and resources from philanthropists and other agencies of financial aid for multiple organizations and non-profit associations.
Moshe Anglerd has been with ‘Refua Shlema’ since its beginning, and has played a key role in its establishment, growth and development into the medical assistance empire it is today. Moshe is the Head of the Strategic Department and a managing partner of the organization, the right-hand man to Margalit over the last decade in affairs both internal and external. Anglerd’s background includes both mental and physical health, he is the founder of ‘Tkumah’ Center as well as a reputable psychotherapy clinic specializing in an assortment of treatment types. Moshe works nonstop to continue the development of ‘Refua Shlema’s outreach, drafting more volunteers, connecting the organization with additional medical institutions and to develop projects and further extend our helping hands to greater dimensions and to more people in need.
Presidential Conference
In 2017, the Presidential Conference was formed, established for Rabbi Yossi Margalit’s extensive activity, assisting and guiding the many patients that arrive at his doorstep. The Conference began its path in the offices of Yakov Weinrut, esq., z”l, where the Presidential members signed the Conference constitution
Professor Ido Nachmani
Dr. Nachmani is the department head of Surgery B in Sheba Hospital. He specializes in general surgery, liver, pancreas and bile duct surgery, organ transplantation and minimally invasive surgery (advanced laparoscopy and robotic surgery); he was the department head of General Surgery in Ichilov Hospital for 7 years and was the acting director of transplants for 2 years. He was the chairman of the salvage committee of the National Center for Organ Transplantation between the years 2012-2015
Professor Yehuda Kolander
Professor Kolander is the head of the oncological orthopedics ward and the pediatric oncological orthopedics unit in Ichilov Hospital. He studied at the School of Medicine in Tel Aviv University and specialized in orthopedic surgery at the Soroka Medical Center. Professor Kolander is a senior lecturer of orthopedic surgery in leading academic institutions.
Professor Ofer Yosopovitz
Ofer Yosopovitz is a urologist, a professor of urology in the Sackler School of Medicine in Tel Aviv University, the Head of the Department of Urology in Ichilov Hospital and a pioneer of robotic surgery in Israel using the Da Vinci chirurgical system. His main interest is oncological urological surgery.
Professor Anat Achiron
Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Center, a neurology specialist and the Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Center in Sheba Medical Center, Professor Achiron serves as an academic vice dean, is a graduate of the Sackler School of Medicine in Tel Aviv University, title-holder of an M.D. as well as a PhD in physiology and pharmacology.
Professor Yosef Chaik
Professor Yossi Chaik is the director of the Division of Plastic Surgery as well as the National Burn Center in Sheba Medical Center. He graduated from the University of Medicine of Bologna in 1994, has been a Plastic and Aesthetic Surgical specialist since 2002, and is licensed to practice medicine in Europe and Israel. He completed his plastic surgery residency at Sheba Medical Center and Edmonton University in Canada and Sao Paulo, Brazil. During his time in Canada, he developed advanced skills in reconstructive plastic surgery, burns treatment and microsurgery and in Brazil he gained expertise in aesthetic surgery and ear reconstruction. He specialized in techniques and materials previously unused in Israel. He is the current Chief of Medicine at the Shay Medical Center.
Professor Chaik Yossi is a member of the Israel Organization of Plastic and Aesthetic Surgery , chairman of the Israel Burn Association and a member of numerous professional boards all over the world. He founded and managed the Clalit aesthetic clinics in Rishon Letzion and Nes Tziona from 2005 until 2008. Professor Chaik completed a master’s degree in Public Health at Tel Aviv University and is a consulting specialist of Hashalom Courthouse. He is a professor at the School of Medicine in Tel Aviv University and teaches reconstructive surgery in institutions around the world.
Professor Alan Sharaf
Professor Sharaf is the president of the ‘Edmond Safra’ International Center for Congenital Heart Malformations. He is a specialist in the pediatric cardiac surgery unit and in the congenital heart defect surgery unit at Sheba Medical Center. Professor Sharaf is a graduate of the Paris School of Medicine and is a guest lecturer at universities around the world - Tel Aviv, Algiers and Kuwait. He specializes in cardiac surgery, vascular surgery, congenital heart diseases and pediatric cardiology.
Professor Merav Leiba
Professor Leiba specializes in internal medicine and hematology and is the acting manager and heads the research for multiple myeloma in the Hematological Department of Tel Hashomer Hospital. Following her fellowship and research of two years at Harvard University in Boston, she returned to work as a senior specialist in the hematological unit of Tel Hashomer Hospital.
In 2011, Professor Leiba founded the research laboratory and tissue bank which focuses on multiple myeloma and plasma cell diseases, and in 2013 she was named manager of the Hematological Unit’s research into multiple myeloma in Tel Hashomer Hospital.
In 2004, she won the award for Best Research Presentation at the Internal Medicine Association Conference. Professor Leiba Worked as lead and as partner to a considerable number of research projects in Israel and overseas, on the subject of multiple myeloma and development of new targeted medications for multiple myeloma.
Professor Shmuel Kviti
Allergologist, clinical immunologist and specialist in the fields of asthma and airways at the National Jewish Hospital in Denver, U.S.A. He is the former head of the department of allergies in Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv and currently receives patients at his private clinic in Givatayim. Since 2016, he has stood as chairman of the Helsinki Committee responsible for clinical trials in Ichilov and he continues to work there as a senior doctor of the Allergy Ward.
Professor Kviti possesses well-rounded professional expertise in the fields of asthma in all its forms, occupational exposure, chronic sinusitis, respiratory allergies and food and drug allergies.
Professor Shlomo Shanibaum
Professor Shanibaum is a surgical oncologist, director of the Center for Breast Diseases and director of the Isotope-Guided Surgical Unit of the Surgical Division. He is the chairman of the Israeli Society of Breast Diseases and former chairman of the Oncological Surgery Society and head of the Surgery Unit in Tel Aviv University. Professor Shanibaum has led and participated in multiple groundbreaking research into cancer treatments in Israel and the world and is a prominent pioneer in sentinel lymph node resection in breast cancer.
Professor Nevo Margalit
Dr. Nevo Margalit, a specialist of neurosurgery and surgery of the base of the skull, is the head of the Neurosurgery Ward in Sha’arei Tzedek Medical Center. Dr. Nevo Margalit performs top-of-the-line craniotomies and cranial surgery to remove tumors of the base of the skull using advanced and innovative technologies. Alongside his medico-clinical work, Dr. Margalit is a lecturer and student advisor of medicine at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He is a former professor of neuroanatomy at the Faculty of Medicine of Ben Gurion University.
Professor Dov Feldberg
Professor Dov Feldberg is one of the top doctors of fertility and gynecology in Israel, with experience spanning over 35 years. He is a substitute doctor and vice director of the Helen Schneider Women’s Hospital as well as manager of the day-hospitalization unit for women in Rabin Medical Center. He has a wide range of experience and manages fertility treatments and surrogacy monitoring at the Altra Vista Medical Center in Moscow.
Dr. Ze’ev Feldbrin
An orthopedic surgeon with a unique specialty in foot and ankle surgery, Dr. Feldbrin is the manager of foot and ankle issues and the head of the designated unit for diabetic foot complications at the Edith Wolfson Medical Center. In addition, he served as vice director of the top-tier orthopedic ward at Wolfson Medical Center for many years (1994-2011), and he is a senior lecturer at the Sackler Faculty of Medicine in Tel Aviv University.
Dr. Mony Arlich
A renowned ophthalmologist, Dr. Arlich has worked as an independent physician in the community in Bnei Brak since 1989, and is available to members of all the Kupot Cholim in Israel out of a sense of purpose.
Professor Dan Felis
Dan Felis is a professor of otorhinolaryngology, he established and managed the Ear Nose Throat and Head and Neck, Jaw and Oral Surgical Association as well as the Interdisciplinary Center for Head and Neck Oncological Surgery in the Sourasky Tel Aviv Medical Center (Ichilov). He is an institutional professor at the Sackler School of Medicine in Tel Aviv University and a member of the scientific division of the ENT and head and neck surgical ward in Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto as well as the University of Toronto. He is a respected lecturer and teacher in his field in academia at a global level.
Professor Felis is the Secretary of Science for the Asian Society of Head and Neck Oncology and a board member of the International Academy of Oral Oncology (IAOO), the International Federation of Head and Neck Oncology Societies (IFHNOS) and the Asian Association of Thyroid Surgery, as well as an honorary member of Head and Neck Oncology Societies in Italy, Greece, India and the French-Israeli Alliance.
Professor Anat Kesler
Professor Anat Kesler is a neurologist and a neuro-ophthalmologist and is a senior clinical professor at Tel Aviv University, her alma mater. She specialized in neurology in Meir Hospital in Kfar Saba and continued her subspecialty in neuro-ophthalmology at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center, New York and at the Mercy Neuroscience Institute, Miami. Between 2001 and 2016, Kesler managed the Neuro-ophthalmologist Unit as well as the Center for Autonomic Intracranial Hypertension in the Tel Aviv Medical Center, and then became a consulting neuro-ophthalmologist at the Hillel Yafeh Medical Center in Hadera.
Dr. Lev Lichtenstein
A specialist of gastroenterology, head of the department of inflammatory bowel diseases in Asuta Hospital in Ashdod. Specializing field: gastroenterology and inflammatory bowel diseases. He is a former senior doctor of the inflammatory bowel diseases unit in Bellinson Hospital. His professional repertoire includes a fellowship for inflammatory bowel diseases at the Chicago University Medical Center and memberships to an assortment of medical associations and unions, such as the Israel Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases Association.
Professor Yakov Schachter
Dr. Jacob Schachter is an oncologist, a leading specialist in skin cancer and malignant melanoma, a professor of oncology and, since 2014, the chairman of the Oncological Board at the Sackler School of Medicine of Tel Aviv University. He is the founder and manager of the Ella Institute of melanoma and skin cancer treatment and research at the Sheba Medical Center since 2004, and serves as the vice president of the oncological unit at Sheba.
Dr. Dorit Arlich
Specializing in family medicine and the holder of a master’s degree in health systems management and Planned Parenthood, Dr. Arlich currently works as a family doctor at Clalit Health Services.