Dr. William Rosenberg, a neurosurgeon at Research Medical Center in Kansas City, was recently visited by a group of three wounded Israeli soldiers. The visit occurred through Rosenberg’s involvement with Brothers for Life, a nonprofit that helps link injured soldiers to potential healthcare treatments outside of Israel when they may have difficulty getting them in Israel.
Rosenberg, who specializes in spinal surgery and pain, became involved with Brothers for Life seven years ago when an Israeli commando paratrooper was brought to Kansas City for injuries he suffered while on patrol in the Golan Heights. The soldier was experiencing intense chronic nerve pain in his foot. He also happened to be the son of one of Rosenberg’s friends.
Rosenberg said Brothers for Life missions bring these injured soldiers to see physicians and get opinions, direction and help for pain or PTSD treatment. He currently serves on the organization’s Medical Advisory Board.
“We basically take turns and help with the missions to understand what kind of doctors the soldiers should see,” Rosenberg said. “We then figure out the best doctors for them to see by specialty and geography, and we help the leaders of Brothers for Life to coordinate the missions.”
Because everyone on the Medical Advisory Board is a physician, they also may see the patients themselves. With the most recent mission in mid-October, Rosenberg helped arrange for the three soldiers to see three different doctors for unique evaluations and treatment; he was one of the three doctors. After Kansas City, the soldiers flew to Chicago, and then back to Israel. They will analyze the recommendations they were given and then schedule a Zoom call with Rosenberg to review. The Israel Defense Forces makes the final decisions on treatments for the wounded soldiers.
According to the Brothers For Life website, former officers and soldiers help newly injured soldiers by informing them about the organization and its resources. They then determine if there are any medical, financial or psychological needs that are not being addressed before providing care through Brothers for Life. Disabled soldiers also are introduced to a community of people who have faced similar challenges. On average, between 12 and 14 new injured soldiers join Brothers for Life each month.
A LIFELONG INTEREST; A REAL IMPACT
Rosenberg grew up in southern California. He became interested in neurosurgery at an early age — he even gave his Bar Mitzvah speech about it. Although he says he “drifted away” from it, he returned to his interest in neurosurgery at the end of medical school. He earned his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and finished a residency in neurosurgery at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He later served as an assistant professor in neurosurgery at the University of California, San Francisco, where he also co-directed the Neurospinal Disorders Program. He came to Kansas City in 2002 after deciding to leave academia and to join his current partners.
According to his biography on HCA Midwest Health’s website, Rosenberg has been involved in developing image-guided surgery for spinal procedures for more than 25 years. He also treats pain with procedures such as spinal cord and peripheral nerve stimulation, and deep brain stimulation. He is a founder of the Center for the Relief of Pain in Kansas City and the Cancer Pain Research Consortium.
“I have different things that I do for pain that are really not available in a lot of places,” Rosenberg said.
“I think my work [with Brothers for Life] touches on two of the great motivating aspects of my life: caring for people as a physician and being a Zionist,” Rosenberg said. “To be able to help Israeli soldiers who have been injured while defending the State of Israel improve their quality of life… it sort of hits all my buttons. I’m an ardent Zionist, I’m an Orthodox Jew — it’s without question [that Judaism affects my work].”
