February 12, 2026 – What is the mortality rate for cardiac surgery in Israel compared to Europe? How many children underwent surgery compared to retirees? Which team is known as the “ECMO Commando Unit”? And what profession did a nurse choose after leaving the department—only to return to it? The largest cardiac surgery department in Northern Israel concludes an intensive year of activity.

On February 11, 2026 the Department of Cardiac Surgery at Rambam Health Care Campus (Rambam)—Northern Israel’s only tertiary hospital with one of the leading such departments in the country—hosted its annual conference. A tradition initiated more than a decade ago by the department’s director, Professor Gil Bolotin, the conference has been held annually since it began, even through wars and the COVID-19 pandemic.

This year’s conference focused on personalized cardiac care—tailoring cardiac care according to gender, age, and background—with special emphasis on women’s heart health. The event drew experts from hospitals across Northern Israel, in keeping with Professor Bolotin’s vision of Rambam to closely collaborate with cardiologists, internists, and family physicians from Hadera to Metula.

The conference opened with a compelling keynote lecture by journalist Ilana Dayan, who offered a behind-the-scenes look at the investigative journey in Israel’s long-running flagship program Uvda (Fact). Professor Bolotin then presented the department’s achievements and growth over the past year.

In 2025, Rambam performed 740 cardiac surgeries—an all-time record for the department and an increase of more than 200% compared to 2006, when 306 procedures were performed. An analysis by age group shows that 292 surgeries were conducted among patients aged 50–65. Another significant cohort was children and adolescents: 109 cardiac surgeries were performed in patients under 18 last year.

Encouragingly, despite the high-risk nature of many of these procedures, outcomes surpassed expectations. Based on European data for patients with comparable risk profiles, an expected mortality rate of 5.25% was projected. In practice, Rambam’s mortality rate among these patients was just 0.9%—a dramatically lower figure than anticipated.

In 2025, Rambam also performed 364 coronary artery bypass surgeries, with a mortality rate of just 0.3%—an exceptional result by global standards.

Professor Bolotin emphasized that advanced techniques and technologies in bypass surgery account for nearly half of all cardiac procedures. Some of the new technologies highlighted were developed through research conducted at the Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine of the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, and were first implemented at Rambam.

Following the clinical and technological review, Professor Bolotin turned the spotlight over to the department’s expertise and training pipeline. Rambam is the only hospital in Israel where three professors of cardiac surgery are practicing simultaneously, and the department invests heavily in sending young specialists abroad for essential fellowships. He underscored the excellence of the nursing staff—including the remarkable story of a nurse who attended medical school before returning to the department as a physician—as well as the strength of the allied health teams.

Special recognition was given to the department’s heart-lung machine and ECMO team, who have been nicknamed “the Commando Unit” of cardiac surgery. They respond to emergency call-ups at night and on weekends, traveling long distances across the country to connect critically ill patients to ECMO machines as a near last resort to save their lives. In 2025 alone, the team performed no fewer than 59 missions to initiate ECMO support for severely ill patients.

The conference also highlighted the department’s collaborative culture and the diverse voices that power it—physicians, nurses, administrative, and support staff representing every sector of Israeli society. Professor Bolotin described the department’s strong ties to the broader community and noted a recent philanthropic gift from Mahmoud Dabbah, to help Rambam acquire advanced cardiac surgery technologies for the benefit of all residents of Northern Israel.

A defining moment of the conference occurred when Officer A.* stepped onto the stage. He had sustained a devastating injury in combat on the northern border several months ago while serving as a reserve paratrooper officer. A bullet had penetrated his heart and lodged inside one of its chambers—an injury that is almost always fatal. In critical condition, Officer A. was airlifted to Rambam by military helicopter. His life was saved through the swift and precise action of Dr. Majed Mahoul, a senior cardiac surgeon, who successfully repaired the bullet wound in the left ventricle. Following consultation with Professor Gideon Sahar, who joined the operation, the bullet was left in place.

At the conference, just months after his near-fatal injury, the officer stood on stage and shared his story—describing both the trauma and the confidence he gained from the department that he would recover and stand on his feet again. His words moved the entire audience to rise for a standing ovation.

*Name not given for security reasons