Social engagement

Scientific and clinical Know-how transfer to Romania

From 1998-2009 a total of 8 young physicians and surgeons from Cluj Napoca (Clausenburg) in Romania were trained at the University Hospital of Heidelberg in scientific and clinical areas of abdominal surgery and transplantation. Research was also done in pancreatic and liver-cancer and from these projects numerous common internationally recognized scientific publications resulted.

For those services and efforts the University of Cluj Napoca (Clausenburg) was awarding the honour of “Doctor Honoris Causa” in the year of 2003.

Scientific and clinical transfer of Know-how to Lithuania

From the year 2002-2008 six young physicians and surgeons from the University of Kaunas in Lithuania were trained in clinical and scientific projects. As a consequence of this cooperation numerous common peer-reviewed publications resulted.

As a part of the «Da Vinci Program» of the European Union there several teams from Vilnius in Lithuania were treated in the area of liver-transplantation. Part of this team were are hepatologists, surgeons, anaesthesiologists, pathologists, radiologists and nursing staff.

Transplantation of children and adolescents in Georgia

Starting from 2003 there were several visits to Tiflis in Georgia to perform living related kidney transplantations and children and adolescents. In Georgia there`s a small renal transplant program running in adults, however this was not done for children as this is technically much more demanding. In the mean time there were more than 10 transplantations in children that were successfully performed. The next visit is planned in 2011.

For the services and efforts to build a kidney transplant-program for children and adolescents in Georgia the honour of “Doctor honoris causa” of the University of Tiflis was awarded in the year of 2006.

Liver and pancreatic surgery as well as living related liver transplantation in Egypt

Hepatitis C is in Egypt big health problem. More than 12 Million Egyptians are infected with Hep. C. The consequence is a huge wave of liver cirrhosis which occurs in about 10% of cases. For many patients with decompensated liver cirrhosis, liver transplantation is the last chance if the function of the liver has worsened seriously.

Since 2009 Prof. Schmidt is performing living related liver transplantation at the National Liver-Institute in Menofiya in the delta of the nile.

Also the own repertoire of surgical techniques has taken profit from this project. As a consequence an effective technique of liver transsection in the presence of liver cirrhosis was transferred Menofiya to Germany and now also to Switzerland. This technique is of great use in those conditions.

Soon, the Al Araby Hospital in the Nile Delta will be opened. Prof. Schmidt has visited the hospital with Egyptian partners. In the future complex oncology cases will be treated here in cooperation with Klinik Im Park and Klinik Hirslanden.

Complex liver and pancreatic surgery in Cairo, Egypt

The Theodor Bilharz Institute which was founded by the German Doctor who found out about the pathophysiology of Bilharziosis is located in Giza next to Cairo city. In the vicinity where one can also find the famous Egyptian pyramids this hospital and institute is taking care of poor patients and patients with liver and other gastroenterological diseases. Originally it was established to explore and fight the “Bilharzosis” which was very frequently seen at the delta of the nile and let to disabling disease in thousands of patients. Since 2011 Prof. Schmidt is performing free operations on the pancreas and liver, at this institution which cannot be performed by the local surgeons. In this way the local Egyptian surgeons are trained in this kind of complex surgery.

On the 2nd International Congress for hepatobilio-pancreatic and transplant surgery in Cairo in the beginning of 2014 Prof. Schmidt presented new treatments for liver metastases.

First living related kidney transplantation in Kosovo

In the year of 2007 a specialist team under the guidance of Prof. Schmidt was performing the first living related kidney transplantation in Prishtina. The mother donated her left kidney to her 16 years daughter. For this project the recipient daughter and the donor mother were in initially investigated and prepared without charge in Heidelberg Germany. After careful preparation of the operation and improving the local infrastructure this operation was then done and performed in a hospital in Prishtina with excellent result. The young girl is still without dialysis and in good condition.