Dr Mitchell James Notaras
See also - Wikipedia entry
From the Greek Australian Vema. November 2003. 12/34.
1 million gift to boost medical research.
In 1908 Anthony (Tony) Lambros Notaras arrived In Australia. [See entry for Tony in this section, High Achievers]. Originally from Frilingianika, Kythera, he later returned to the Island and in 1932 brought his wife, Ianthe (nee Megaloconomou), from the village of Potamos, to Australia to settle.
They emigrated for economic reasons, but grew to love Australia for Its quality of life and the many opportunities the country offered.
Anthony went on to become a benefactor of his adopted NSW town of Grafton, and their children, twins Angelo and Mitchell, and Irene, John and Betty, have continued this tradition. The Notaras family is known for their generous support of the Greek community and the broader Greek community....
The younger twin, Dr Mitchell James Notaras, who divides his retirement time between England, Australia and Greece, has made a unique contribution to further scholarship in the land of his birth, Australia.
Dr Mitchell Notaras was born in Grafton on 26 March, 1933, and received his early formal education in Grafton, leaving Grafton High School to do his schooling at Newington College in Sydney. He entered Sydney University Medical School at 16 years of age. While studying, he resided at St. Andrew's College but returned home during the holiday breaks. At this time, as a medical student, Dr Notaras was greatly inspired by the local doctors, Mulhearn, Harris and Holland who gave him every opportunity to obtain medical and surgical experience at the Grafton Base Hospital.
After graduation, he spent two years in the posts of Junior and Senior Resident Medical Officer at the Royal Prince alfred Hospital (where he has earlier undertaken his clinical undergraduate studies). Like many other young doctors wishing to work and gain experience abroad, he travelled to England working as a ship's surgeon on a cargo boat for the princely sum of a shilling per month.
After graduation, he spent two years in the posts of Junior and Senior Resident Medical Officer at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (where he has earlier undertaken his clinical undergraduate studies). Like many other young doctors wishing to work and gain experience abroad, he travelled to England working as a ship's surgeon on a cargo boat for the princely sum of a shilling per month.
In the UK he studied for the Fellowship in Surgery while working at Hamersmith Hospital, and was successful in obtaining Fellowships of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and England. Other posts he held included Senior Registrar and Medical Research Council Fellow at St Marks Hospital for Colorectal Diseases, London; and Senior Registrar in Surgery, University College Hospital, London.
Dr. Notaras, who is married with five children, also became a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. As well he has held a number of consultant posts including Senior Lecturer and Hon. Consultant Surgeon, at University College Hospital, London.; and has been Consultant Surgeon to the Italian Hospital, London, St Lukes Hospital for the Clergy, and Barnet and Edgeware General Hospitals. He was recognised teacher in surgery at the University of London, and has visited and lectured in 28 countries.
Dr. Notaras has special interest in colorectal surgery, mesh repair of hernias and rectal prolapse. He introduced Lateral Subcutaneous Internal Anal Spincterotomy, for anal fissure, now an established procedure.
Visiting academic posts include Professor in Surgery, at the University of Curatiba, Brazil, the University of Bergen, Norway, and the University of Khartoum, Sudan.
Dr. Notaras has published in various surgical journals and has written chapters for a number of surgical textbooks, including Maingot's Textbook of Abdominal Surgery, Robb and Smith's, Textbook of Operative Surgery, Nyhus's Textbook of Hernia Surgery, Textbook of Abdominal Surgery (Spanish), and Surgical Clinics of North America. He is also a member of the Editorial Board of two Journals, ColoProctology, and Hernia.
Despite his surgical commitments, Dr. Notaras established a company, Advanced Biotechnology (later known as Abgene). Abgene later became a leader in Europe, specialising in the manufacture of molecular biological reagents, special plastic consumables and intrumentation for life sciences; and involved in research, both inhouse and through collaborations with universities and industrial partners, particularly in Gene and DNA technology. Abgene) was recently taken over by Apogent Corporation of the USA.
Although now retired and devoting time to restore his grandfather's house on the island of Kythera, Dr Notaras has not forgotten his Australian citizenship and the opportunities that were avaialble to him as a young student.
At university he was a recipient of the Commonwealth Government Scholarship that paid all his unversity educational fees. This scholarship made university studies affordable for many students, including many of immigrant origin.
Like many of these graduates, Dr Notaras has always been grateful to the Australian people for his university education. Working abroad he was conscious of his inability to directly contribute anything in return. After consulting an old surgical friend, Dr. Brian Morgan, and Professor Micheal Solomon, it was decided that as a form of appreciation Dr Notaras would donate $1.1 million as an endowment to Sydney University for Fellowships in the spciality of Colorectal Surgery.
Colorectal disease afflicts plenty of Australians many of whom are of Greek descent, and is becoming a specialty on its own. The Fellowship funded by Dr Notaras is both a generous gift to further expertise in this medical area within Australia, and a benefit to the communutv at large. It will give aspiring young Australian surgeons the opportunity to spend three years involved in Colorectal clinical work at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital., Colorectal research, and a period of one year abroad at a centre of excellence in Colorectal surgery
The Vema is pleased to pay tribute to the many achievements of Dr Notaras and his generosity to the Australian community, and also those of his parents and siblings. Their example serves to emphasise how the next generation of hard working migrants has benefited by local opportunities and edycatio, reaching senior and eminent positions in many areas enabling them, in turn, to serve the community.
Surgical News
Royal Australian College of Surgeons.
Vol.4 No.10 November/December 2003
Fellow Establishes Colorectal Scholarship
Mitchell Notaras, a graduate of Sydney University and a resident at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital has founded a scholarship in perpetuity in colorectal surgery. The University has received a donation of $1.1 million.
Mitchell is the son of a Greek immigrant. His father came from the island of Kythera and settled in Grafton, News South Wales. The family became prominent citizens in the town. Mitchell was educated at Grafton High School and Newington College in Sydney. Drs Mulhearn and Harris, both of whom were doctors in the town and had sons who later joined the staff of RPA, stimulated Mitchell’s interest in medicine.
After graduation, Mitchell spent two years as a resident medical officer at the hospital. During that time he became interested in surgery and met various visiting surgeons, including Rodney Maingot, with whom he was associated at a later time in London. He then travelled as Ship’s Surgeon to England and obtained jobs at Hammersmith, St Marks and University College Hospital. After obtaining his Fellowship he became Senior Lecturer and Consultant Surgeon at University College Hospital.
Mitchell was appointed Consultant Surgeon at Barnet and Edgeware General Hospitals where he met and assisted Australian trainees. He visited and lectured in many countries and was named visiting Professor in Norway, Brazil and the Sudan.
Throughout his surgical practice his main interest was Colo-rectal surgery. This was stimulated by his time at St Marks, where he described and published the operation of Lateral Anal Sphincterotomy which remains the procedure of choice for the treatment of anal fissure.
Despite having a busy surgical practice, he established, with others, a company called Abgene which became a leader in Europe, specialising in the manufacture of molecular biological reagents, instrumentation and, through collaborations with universities and industrial partners, Gene and DNA technology. After some years Abgene was taken over by the Apogent Corporation of the USA.
Dr Notaras studied medicine in Australia with the help of a Commonwealth Scholarship. He has remained grateful for the education he received at the University and the Hospital. He also has a desire to contribute to education, particularly in the field of Colo-rectal cancer. As a result, he has established a scholarship of three years duration. This is available to post Fellowship scholars. The program is for one-year of research at the University of Sydney, a year in an approved overseas unit of excellence and a year as a senior registrar in Colo-rectal surgery at RPA. The recipients will be selected jointly by the University and the Colo-rectal Surgical Society. The scholars will be expected to proceed to a Higher Degree at the University.
To fund the scholarship Dr Notaras has donated $1.1 million from the income of which a scholar will be appointed each second year in perpetuity. The scholarship will be advertised in the College’s publications. For further information contact Associate Professor Michael Solomon at the RPA Hospital, Camperdown, NSW.
- Brian Morgan. AM MS FRACS
Left to right:Professor Ben Freedman, Mitchell Notaras and Rowan Nicks at a recent function to announce the Fellowship
.
From: Radius.
Newsletter of the Faculty of Medicine and Medical Graduates‘ Association:
April, 2004. p. 19
Mitchell Notaras, a graduate of Sydney University and a resident at the Royal Prince Hospital, has founded a scholarship in at the Royal Prince Alfred perpetuity in colo-rectal surgery.
The University has received a donation of $1.1million. Mitchell is the son of a Greek immigrant. His father came from the island of Kythera and settled in Grafton,
in NSW. The family became prominent citizens in the town. Mitchell was educated at Grafton high school and
Newington College in Sydney. Drs Mulhearn and Harris,who were doctors in the town stimulated his interest medicine. Both of them had sons who later joined the staff of RPAH.
After graduation he spent two years as
resident medical officer at the hospital. During that time he became interested in surgery and met various visiting surgeons including Rodney Maingot with whom he was associated later in London.
Mitchell travelled as a ships surgeon to England where he obtained jobs at Hammersmith, St Marks and University College Hospital. After obtaining his Fellowship he became Senior Lecturer and
Consultant Surgeon at University College Hospital.
Mitchell was appointed Consultant Surgeon at Barnet and Edgeware General Hospitals where he met and assisted Australian trainees.He was a teacher in surgery at the University of London.
He visited and lectured in many countries and was a named visiting Professor in Norway, Brazil and the Sudan.
Throughout his surgical practice his main interest was colo-rectal surgery.This was stimulated by his time at St Marks. While there he described and published the operation of lateral anal sphincterotomy which remains the procedure of choice for the treatment of anal fissure.
Despite having a busy surgical practice he established,with others, a company, bgene, which became a leader in Europe, specialising in the manufacture of molecular biological reagents, instrumentation and, through collaborations with universities and industrial partners, gene and DNA technology.After some years Abgene was taken over by the Apogent Corporation of the USA.
Dr Notaras studied medicine in Australia with the help of a Commonwealth Scholarship. He has remained grateful for the eduction he received at the Univeristy and the Hospital. He also had a desire to contribute to education, particularly in the field of colorectal cancer. As a result he has established a three-year scholarship which will be available to post fellowship scholars. The program is for one-year research at the University of Sydney, a year in an approved overseas unit of excellence and a year as a senior registrar in colo-rectal surgery at RPAH. The recipients will be selected jointly
by the University and the Colo-rectal Surgical Society. The scholars will be expected to proceed to a higher degree at the University.
To fund the scholarship, Dr Notaras has donated $1.1million. A scholar will be appointed every two years.
Brian Morgan AM MS FRACS
The 2004 Fellowship has been awarded to Dr Chris Byrne.
