[RAMBAM - WHERE MEDICINE, TECHNOLOGY AND HUMANITY INTERTWINE]

In this issue, we present a series of articles written by Rambam's physicians, which reflect the scope of research that takes place in the hospital. This incorporates physicians, nurses and related professions, and progress in health care attained through research and technology-based medicine. A central part of our values is a combination of medicine, technology and humanity. Thanks to our unique location in close proximity to the Technion's Baruch and Ruth Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, our commitment to the combination of research and medicine has a unique impact. We invest in the development and promotion of the physician-researcher and the allied health professions involved in the research. We provide a range of research grants throughout the researchers' careers. The "Futures" grant is for a young doctor who wants to be exposed to basic or applied research under the guidance of a senior scientist. The "Ofakim" grant is intended for the senior physician in his initial steps, who is interested in establishing research activity. The "Nitzotz" grant is intended for an entrepreneur who has an idea for a product and wants to build a prototype, as a first step towards establishing a medical technology company. The "Maof" grant is intended for the nurse-investigator, and there are additional grants for other disciplines. In addition, there is a variety of national and international sources to fund research on a competitive basis in all fields, and we encourage our teams to turn to these sources. Cooperation with our neighboring universities, the Technion and the University of Haifa, with the industry around us and with other research and educational institutions, is of paramount importance for the continued development of the basic, applied and clinical research culture on our campus. We recently published an article describing the reasons why Israel has become a medical start-up country in many fields, and one of the leading reasons is the combination of clinical medicine, research and industry. The papers presented in this issue reflect our wide interest in the entire scope of medical professions. It spans internal medicine, surgery, nephrology, cardiology and cardiac surgery, genetics, organ transplantation and other topics. I wish you an interesting and joyful reading of this special issue.