Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Nov. 20, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Every 20 seconds, an individual with diabetes loses a limb due to poor foot health. Each year, over 700 Albertans undergo diabetes-related lower-limb amputations. Sadly, 90% of these amputations are preventable. A long-time Calgary community partnership hopes to better these statistics and improve outcomes for those living with diabetes.
A significant philanthropic gift, made by the Zivot Family and matched by the Calgary Health Foundation, has established the Rose Zivot Fellowship in Limb Preservation and Foot Reconstructive Surgery, a one-year fellowship in limb salvage and foot reconstruction—the first of its kind in Canada.
Based out of the Zivot Limb Preservation Centre at Peter Lougheed Centre in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the fellowship is a collaboration with the University of Calgary Department of Surgery. The opportunity will offer recipients the chance to be part of a world-class, multidisciplinary team of podiatric and vascular surgeons, endocrinologists, and infectious disease specialists, with the opportunity to conduct top-tier research in both hospital and community-based settings.
The November timing of the announcement comes during Diabetes Awareness Month in Canada.
Calgary Health Foundation President & CEO, Murray Sigler stated, "By matching Dr. Mark Zivot and his family’s special philanthropic gift, we will be better able to advance podiatric surgical training, dramatically reduce hospitalizations and length of hospital stays for patients, and advance world-class research in limb preservation.”
The Zivot Family, passionate and committed advocates of podiatric medicine, limb preservation, and patient care, come by their propensity for giving honestly. Long-term supporters of Calgary Health Foundation, the Zivots attribute their family's devotedness to philanthropic giving, education, community, and health to their matriarch, Rose.
“Our family believes that it is every person’s obligation to put back into this world at least the equivalent of what they take out of it,” said family spokesman, Dr. Mark Zivot. “To be able to provide the only specialty training in Limb Preservation Surgery in Canada would not just be a donation, but it would be a gift that truly makes a difference not just in Alberta but likely globally. This gift is in honour of our family matriarch, Rose Zivot, in appreciation for instilling in us that kindness determines the significance of the life we lead.”
Dr. François Harton, Section Chief, Podiatric Surgery, Zivot Limb Preservation Centre, believes the fellowship will be a game changer for care delivery in Alberta and across Canada.
“Because of Dr. Zivot’s unwavering support of the Centre over the years, we were able to accommodate close to 7,000 patient visits and over 2,000 surgeries in our minor surgery clinic last year,” said Dr. Harton. “The family’s funding of the new fellowship will allow us to further expand patient care, serve more people, and offer groundbreaking procedures not available anywhere else in Canada.”
The first appointed Fellow, Dr. Ali Manji, a born and raised Calgarian, has a keen interest in limb preservation and early intervention. His evidence-based research approach will look at patient hospitalization rates and length of stays in Alberta.
“It’s an enormous honour to be selected as the fellow for the Rose Zivot Fellowship in Limb Preservation and Foot Reconstructive Surgery, the first of its kind in Canada,” says Dr. Manji. “This fellowship will offer an abundance of learning opportunities. Through being part of the Zivot Limb Preservation Centre and the University of Calgary Department of Surgery, I will have the chance to develop as a world-class podiatric surgeon and researcher in limb salvage, diabetes patient care, and vascular medicine.”
Applications for the 2024/2025 Rose Zivot Fellowship in Limb Preservation and Foot Reconstructive are now open. The deadline to apply is December 1, 2023.
To learn more about the Fellowship, visit zivotlpc.ca.
FAST FACTS
What? The Rose Zivot Fellowship in Limb Preservation and Foot Reconstructive Surgery is a comprehensive fellowship in Limb Salvage and Foot Reconstruction. Offered through the University of Calgary Department of Surgery and based out of the Zivot Limb Preservation Centre, the program is balanced between both a hospital and community-based practice involving a group of highly trained podiatric surgeons.
Why? Each year, over 700 Albertans undergo diabetes-related lower-limb amputations. Sadly, 90% of these amputations are preventable.
Who? Fellow Dr. Ali Manji is from Calgary, Alberta. He completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Alberta, majoring in Biological Sciences. He spent the next 7 years in Cleveland, Ohio. As a graduate of Kent State University College of Podiatric Medicine, he completed his comprehensive Podiatric surgical residency at Mercy Regional Medical Center. He is interested in both limb preservation and reconstructive surgery.
Where? The Zivot Limb Preservation Centre at the Peter Lougheed Centre in Calgary, AB, provides expert care for diabetic patients with foot ulcers and infection. As a centre, they seek to advance excellence in patient care, education, and research related to diabetic foot disease and amputation prevention. To learn more about the Zivot Limb Preservation Centre, visit zivotlpc.ca.
The Calgary Health Foundation is a philanthropic organization uniting our donors, four hospitals, care providers, and community partners with the ambitious aim of revolutionizing health outcomes. Through deep cooperation, unrelenting persistence and a sharp focus on care, wellness and research, we are unyielding in our efforts to ensure Calgarians receive the most progressive care in the world — because our loved ones and yours deserve nothing less. calgaryhealthfoundation.ca
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