Prof. Nachman Ash, the former head of the IDF Medical Corps, will replace Prof. Ronni Gamzu as the next coronavirus commissioner. Ash served as chief of IDF Medical Corps from 2007 to 2011. Previously was doctor for elite Sayeret Matkal commando unit.The transition will begin on Wednesday, the Health Ministry and the Prime Minister’s Office said. Gamzu will end his role on November 13. Gamzu took on the role of head of the Magen Israel program in August after multiple others turned it down. He was committed to returning to his job as the head of Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center sometime in November.Gazmu praised the selection of Ash and said that “we are in particularly challenging times, in light of the need for a safe and gradual return to the coronavirus routine.” He added that he would continue to assist even after the end of the transition period as an advisor.Health Ministry Director-General Chezy Levy said he is “very happy with the selection” of Ash.Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi said that Ash served under him in the IDF and “is suitable by virtue of his experience, professionalism and personality, to lead the medical and national system in the fight against the coronavirus and to continue the professional and quality activities of Prof. Ronni Gamzu.”Ash, 59, is a senior staff member in the Health Management Department of Ariel University. He is also the director Division of Medicine for Maccabi Healthcare Services. He received his medical degree from Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University in 1986, and completed his residency in Internal Medicine at Sheba Medical Center in 1997.Ash completed his Master’s degree in Medical Informatics from the Harvard-MIT Division of Health, Sciences and Technology in Boston. He also has a Master’s degree in political sciences from Haifa University. Ash was a military physician for 25 years, retiring at the rank of Brigadier General in 2011, after completing four years as the IDF’s surgeon general. Before that he served for a number of years as the top doctor for Sayeret Matkal, the IDF’s elite commando unit.He also served in the Health Ministry in the past. He was a senior deputy director-general for health informatics between January 2012 and July 2013.He is married to Shifra, also a doctor. They have twin boys and a daughter.
“I welcome the appointment of Prof. Nachman Ash as coronavirus commissioner,” said Dr. Zeev Feldman, chairman of the State Physicians Association. “I am not surprised by his willingness to enlist in this national mission. I hope that his balanced, professional voice will be heard, and will not fall victim to political struggles and narrow interests. The success of Prof. Ash will be a success for all of us.”Gamzu’s office said it had no comment at this time.
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