Dr. David Gryn: The Canadian doctor in Israel with inspiring optimism

In these times, how inspiring it is to feel the optimism and enthusiasm of Dr. David Gryn.

“To me,” Gryn says, “aliyah means moving to the more vibrant and youthful culture of Israel, with a more family-oriented life. A society that focuses on children is positive and optimistic. There is a strong sense of growing our families and communities, reaching out to be with one another. Through aliyah, we are choosing to live an optimal Jewish life, imbued with our Jewish values and heritage.”

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Gryn, a neonatologist (newborn intensive care specialist) and pediatrician, shaped his destiny and fulfilled a long-time yearning to live in Israel. In August 2023, he made aliyah with his family, from Toronto to Modi’in.

“If we had not moved here last year, two months before Oct. 7, we would have done so during the war. We were not moving away from antisemitism but forward, to a different and better way of life,” he says.

The idea of living in Israel began when he was a teenager. He met his wife, Talya, in high school and, although the concept of aliyah was foremost on their minds and in their conversations, they decided to stay in Toronto after they were married. 

“We procrastinated until our children gave us the gentle nudge to help us make that very good decision,” he says. “We have four children. The oldest, Yael, decided to make aliyah on her own in 2022 after graduating from high school. As a new immigrant without her immediate family nearby, Yael chose to contribute to the country by taking on full army service. She began as a chayelet bodedah, a lone soldier, and is now continuing to serve in the IDF.

“Our son Joshua followed in his sister’s footsteps a year later and completed a mechina [pre-military] program. Ezra and Daniel, our younger sons, were soon starting high school, and we realized then we had a window of opportunity to do what we wanted to do for decades – live in our homeland.”

Gryn works in Mayanei Hayeshua Medical Center in Bnei Brak, which began as a birthing hospital 30 years ago and has since expanded its services. There are 12,000 births a year there, far more than in any single hospital in Canada. 

“My core interest is and has always been neonatology,” he says.

He and his colleagues care for babies born too early or too ill to make the adjustment to life independently outside the womb. In the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), their multidisciplinary, collaborative team uses hi-tech equipment and applies the latest in research to support these smallest of patients. 

“Today, we are blessed with the technologies that help 95% of infants to go home completely healthy with normal long-term growth and development,” he explains. “The field of neonatology has developed dramatically in the last few decades, and it is rewarding for me to be a part of it.”

Gryn comments that the focus on pediatric care in Israel is more significant than in other countries. “In the Western world, there has been a misplaced, pessimistic introspection, for different reasons, varying from sociological to political. One of the symptoms is a decreased birth rate and interest in building the future.” 

Gryn graduated from the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine in 2003, and then specialized in pediatrics at the University of Saskatchewan. He later returned to the University of Toronto to subspecialize in neonatology.

After completing his studies in 2008, he joined Mackenzie Health Hospital in Richmond Hill, north of Toronto, where he was recruited to help develop the NICU. In 2013, Gryn became chief of the Department of Pediatrics and head of the Neonatal Division. 

Alongside his clinical work, he was a lecturer at the University of Toronto and participated in the education of medical trainees and residents.

Passionate about his work, about learning, about teaching, about making a difference, Gryn is involved in clinical and non-clinical research, with a primary focus on quality improvement (QI) in healthcare. 

“This is a formal system of methodology and techniques used to improve the quality of clinical outcomes, services, teamwork, performance, and both patient and staff satisfaction,” he explains. 

His goal is to apply his experience to the field of neonatology in Israel and to encourage more physicians to consider the specialty.

One year post-aliyah

It is a year after aliyah. “We feel at home here despite the challenges,” Gryn says. “What engenders hopefulness is the feeling, in all strata of society, of being a part of the incredible success of the Zionist project that we have dreamed of for thousands of years. Modi’in mirrors our modern state. It dates back to the Hasmonean period; during the construction of the city, ancient Jewish ruins, homes, and synagogues were unearthed and preserved. In Modi’in, we feel rooted in the past while living for the future. We are living our lives right here in the footsteps of our ancestors and rebuilding and revitalizing our heritage.” 

Gryn’s impetus in doing this interview is to encourage and assure physicians and healthcare professionals that the process of aliyah is not as difficult as they may believe. Yes, there will be challenges in going from the known to the unknown, but at the same time there are support systems at all levels, which continue even after settling in the country. 

He emphasizes that the Nefesh B’Nefesh team, in cooperation with the Aliyah and Integration Ministry, helped him every step of the way, along with The Jewish Agency for Israel, Karen Kayemeth LeIsrael and the Jewish National Fund-USA. And the medical license transfer process is becoming easier every year.

Two main steps he refers to are his accreditation by the Health Ministry Licensing Division to practice medicine in Israel, and the accreditation by the Israeli Medical Association of his professional status in his dual specialties. 

“An amazing event,” Gryn describes with excitement, “is the annual conference Nefesh B’Nefesh hosts every spring in the US called MedEx for medical professionals considering aliyah.”

He explains that applicants attending the conference meet with Israeli representatives from government and medical associations who can answer questions about working in Israel and provide personalized assistance with applications and specialty recognition. Since everyone is present simultaneously, applicants are able to immediately submit all necessary documents for approval. What would take weeks remotely is done promptly. 

“You leave knowing you are going to be certified,” he says. 

There is faith and courage in this journey. “I feel satisfaction living here, raising my family and seeing my family thrive here. There is a sense of eternal continuity,” says Gryn. “We are living in a beautiful and unique land with resilient, generous people. One cannot reflect on Israel without a feeling of hope. War does not change my optimism for the future of our country.” 

The prayer “Al Kol Eleh” (For All These Things), written by Naomi Shemer, comes to mind: 

Please do not uproot what has been planted

Do not forget the hope 

Lead me home, and I will return 

To this good land  ■

Dr. David Gryn From Toronto to Modi’in, 2023

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