In Memoriam: Hamit Ziya Gökalp, 1929 to 2022.

Abstract

Hamit Ziya Gökalp, the pioneer neurosurgeon, outstanding academician, and mentor of modern Turkish neurosurgery, died at the age of 93 on July 07, 2022 (Figure 1).FIGURE 1.: Hamit Ziya Gökalp. All individuals depicted in these images or those authorized to act on their behalf have consented to publication of the images.Dr Gökalp was born in 1929 in Elazığ, Turkey, where he had also completed his primary and secondary education. He started his medical education in the Ankara University Faculty of Medicine in 1946 as a military student and graduated in 1952. Dr Gökalp had participated in NATO maneuvers in Greece and Germany from 1955 to 1956 as the flight physician of the Turkish Fleet. After working as a general surgery resident (aviator first lieutenant) in the Gülhane Military Medical Academy (GATA) between 1957 and 1959, he had an interest in neurosurgery and moved to America to specialize in the field. During his volunteer neurosurgery residency at the Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, he was among the few people who had passed the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMC) equivalency examination. He completed the neurosurgery residency at George Washington University, and after working as a lecturer for a while, he had been and still was among the few Turkish neurosurgeons who are certified by the American Neurosurgery Board. He returned to Turkey in 1965 and founded the Neurosurgery Clinic in the GATA. Dr Gökalp had become Associate Professor in 1960, left GATA in 1972, and moved to the Ankara University School of Medicine. He gained the title of Professor in 1974. In 1988, he was elected as Head of the Department of Neurosurgery at Ankara Medical School and held this position until July 1996. Later he had established the Neurosurgery department at Ufuk University School of Medicine in 2005. Hamit Ziya Gökalp was a neurosurgeon who had never retired, and he had symbolized the life of a truly academic and talented neurosurgeon all his life. He had actively participated in national and international congresses till the latest period of his life. He was a member of 10 international and 4 national neurosurgical associations including CNS, AANS, EANS, WFNS, Aero-Space Medical Association, International college of Surgeons, Joint Section on Tumors, International Society of Pituitary Surgeons, International Society for Laser Surgery and Medicine, Turkish Neuropsychiatric Society, Turkish Surgical Society, and Turkish Neurosurgical Society. Dr Gökalp had 138 national and 46 international publications and a textbook. Dr Gökalp is one of the 5 people who have received the American Board of Neurosurgery in Turkey. He had also been awarded the “Medal of Honor” by the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS) in 2007 for his contributions to neurosurgery on a global scale. Also, he was deemed worthy of the “Outstanding Service Award” by the Turkish Neurosurgery Association. Gökalp made important contributions to this field by training many neurosurgeons in his 60-year career. Hamit Ziya Gökalp was a man who dedicated his life to neurosurgery. We present our deepest condolences to everyone who knew Prof Gokalp and enjoyed his bright presence in the field. We appreciate all his achievements and passion for knowledge and scientific contribution to neurosurgery worldwide. We will all hold him in our memories forever. —Y. Sukru Caglar, MD, Professor and Chairman, Department of Neurosurgery, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey AN OBITUARY COMMENTARY FROM DR EDWARD LAWS With the passing of our dear friend and Neurosurgical pioneer, Dr Hamit Ziya Gokalp, we have lost one of the true giants in the field of neurosurgery. He began his career many years ago in Turkey, and he enhanced his career by traveling to the United States, where he became a Neurosurgical resident at the George Washington University Hospital in Washington DC. He was an extraordinary resident and achieved accreditation by the American Board of Neurological Surgery, after which he returned home to Turkey to establish a Brain and Nerve Surgery practice, which was totally outstanding and led the way for further development of Neurosurgery not only in Turkey but also in many other European countries. Prof Gokalp maintained his excellence as an intellectual giant, a superb teacher, and the recipient of many medals and honors from Neurosurgical organizations, including the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies. My personal recollections of times that I have spent with Prof Gokalp are marvelous. In addition to our experiences in Washington, DC and other American centers, he was kind enough to welcome us to Ankara as a Visiting Professor, with a memorable trip to Cappadocia. His memory will last with us forever. —Edward R. Laws, MD, Professor of Neurosurgery, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA, Former Chairman of Neurosurgery, George Washington University AN OBITUARY COMMENTARY FROM DR RUDOLF FAHLBUSCH With great sadness I received the message that my friend Hamit Gökalp had passed away. My deep condolence to his family, his former and actual coworkers, and pupils. Hamit was a great mentor and had contributed intensively on the international reputation of Turkish neurosurgery. I remember well Hamit's visit and participation at the first International Symposium on meningiomas in Bamberg in 1992, which we had organized from our nearby department at the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, just after the International Skull Base Congress in Hannover. We enjoyed meeting each other frequently in international meetings and discussed the management of pituitary tumors and meningiomas and our way of leading our academic departments. A picture shows both of us in October 1998 in front of the Taj Mahal, a symbolic monument for beloved personalities who had passed by. Close by, we had our meeting of the International Society of Pituitary Surgeons, following the WFS congress in New Delhi (Figure 2).FIGURE 2.: Hamit Ziya Gökalp and Rudolf Fahlbusch in October 1998 in front of the Taj Mahal. All individuals depicted in these images or those authorized to act on their behalf have consented to publication of the images.—Rudolf Fahlbusch, MD, International Neuroscience Institute, Hannover, Germany