If there’s a patient in critical condition at Hadassah’s hospitals, it’s Dr. Vernon Van Heerden who is on the front lines. As the head of Hadassah’s General Intensive Care Unit, Dr. Van Heerden treats patients in need of organ transplants, dialysis support, and recently, his ICUs have been heavily focused on treating COVID-19 patients. 

Before the coronavirus outbreak, Dr. Van Heerden sat down with Benyamin Cohen, host of the Hadassah On Call podcast, to share tales of live organ transplants, near death experiences and stories of ordinary people who save lives by donating their kidneys. 

“That’s an amazing thing,” says Dr. Van Heerden. “That someone [will] donate a kidney to someone that he doesn’t even know.”  

Healing and compassion are an integral part of Dr. Van Heerden’s lifesaving work -- and the mission of Hadassah’s hospitals. Even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, altruistic individuals have continued to donate organs to help people facing life-threatening circumstances.  

Let Dr. Van Heerden take you behind the scenes of Hadassah’s ICU in Hadassah On Call's latest episode. And make sure to subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.