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CARDIOVASCULAR JOURNAL OF AFRICA • Volume 31, No 4, July/August 2020
216
AFRICA
Prof Solomon Elias Levin,
MB BCh, DCH, MRCP, FRCP
2 April 1929 to 12 July 2020
It was with deep sadness that I learnt of the passing of Prof Solly
Levin a mere 11 days after his wife Cynthia had also passed on.
Prof, as he was fondly referred to, was a legend in his time,
recognised internationally in the field of paediatric cardiology
and paediatrics. He was a giant of a man, a gentleman and
a gentle man who influenced countless students, registrars
and fellows over a career which spanned close to 70 years.
His reputation was far-reaching, and he made many close
friends with most of the top paediatric cardiologists around the
world. They all knew Solly well and referred to him with much
admiration and respect.
Prof was officially acknowledged as the grandfather of
paediatric cardiology in South Africa, a man who was willing
to train, teach and mentor numerous junior doctors in this field
over many years.
Generations of students, registrars, fellows and colleagues
are indebted to him as they clung to the pearls of wisdom
he willingly imparted, simplifying and bringing to life this
fascinating, growing, new field in cardiology.
Prof was born in Johannesburg on 2 April 1929. After
schooling at Boksburg High School, he matriculated at the
meagre age of 15 years with a first-class pass.
Medicine was a calling for him, and he qualified as a doctor at
the University of the Witwatersrand in November 1950 at the age
of 20 years. However, he had to wait another six months until he
turned 21 years of age before being allowed to graduate. While
waiting to qualify, he joined the Department of Physiology at
the Wits Medical School before commencing his internship year,
which was spent at Baragwanath Hospital in medicine, surgery
and paediatrics.
From 1953 to 1956 Prof studied in England, working in the
Paediatric Department at Guy’s and Hammersmith hospitals, as
well as in the Departments of Pathology and Infectious Diseases. In
1957, he joined the Department of Paediatrics at the Witwatersrand
University and completed his registrar time in 1960.
Taking his studies further, Prof went on to do a diploma in
child health (DCH) in London in 1955. He then qualified with
an MRCP in 1956, and thereafter an FRCP in 1972 at the Royal
College of Physicians in Edinburgh.
As a consultant, he worked in the Paediatric Department at
Baragwanath Hospital from 1960 and in 1965, he moved across
to the Transvaal Memorial Hospital (TMH) for Children, where
he remained until 1978.
In 1968, Prof was awarded the Cecil John Adams Memorial
Trust travelling fellowship, which enabled him to spend a year at
the Children’s Memorial Hospital and Northwestern University,
Chicago, as a fellow in the Department of Paediatric Cardiology.
From 1970 to 1978 he was appointed as a principal
paediatrician in the Department of Paediatrics at the TMH, and
then at the Johannesburg Hospital from 1978 until 1992. In 1974
he was appointed an associate professor in the Department of
Paediatrics and then in 1978,
ad hominem
professor of paediatric
cardiology through the University of the Witwatersrand.
At the age of 64 years, Prof went into private practice but
maintained a more-than-active, part-time academic presence
at the Johannesburg Hospital until 1998, which spanned an
illustrious academic career of 41 years.
Prof never really retired and he continued to teach students
and registrars with the same enthusiasm right until the very end.
He maintained an ongoing interest in academic medicine and
continued to contribute and present at our regular journal club
meetings.
Prof felt he was never too old to learn new things and was
always excited to hear about new cases and new technology
whenever he visited our practice. He continued to teach and
lecture right to the very end and he was working on a publication
just before his demise.
Prof’s contribution to the world of academia remains
legendary and he published well over 120 articles in both local
and overseas journals, including seven chapters in books. In
addition, he participated on the editorial board of the
Paediatric
Cardiology
and
Cardiology in the Young
journals.
He presented at numerous local and overseas congresses and
had a long association with the South African Heart Association,
the Paediatric Cardiac Society of South Africa as well as the
College of Medicine of South Africa, where he was a founder
and a member of the examination and credentials committee.
For years he maintained an active role as an examiner
for the Diploma of Child Health (DCH) and the fellowship
in paediatrics (FCP-Paeds) as well as an examiner for the
Fellowship of Paediatric Cardiology (SA).
In Memoriam