- 10
- May
- 2024
Tribute to Dr. Robert Sacy: Limitless Empathy
modified on 12 May 2024 à 19:16 Read : 3 minute(s) A A A
Lebanon and its children mourn the loss of an emblematic figure in medicine, care and benevolence with the passing of Dr. Robert Sacy.
His departure leaves a profound void in Lebanon's charitable sector and pediatric healthcare, as well as in the hearts of all who knew him, touched by his compassion and dedication.
Dr. Sacy pursued his medical studies at Saint Joseph University in Beirut and specialized at the same university and at Necker Hospital for Sick Children in Paris.
For many years, Dr. Robert Sacy served as a pediatrician at Saint-Georges Hospital University Medical Center (SGHUMC), where he led the pediatric care department.
There, he founded Cap-Ho (Pediatric Assistance Committee-Orthodox Hospital) in 1995 with a team of dedicated female volunteers. Their mission: to ensure that no patient would be turned away due to financial constraints or lack of space.
“He was a deeply humane physician, remarkably approachable, and possessed an excellent knowledge of his profession. Sweet and kind with children, he also provided reassurance to parents. He joked with the patients to create a relaxed atmosphere,” recounts the mother of one of his patients to This is Beirut.
Yet, it was his momentum of solidarity towards the underprivileged that drove him to go even further. In 2016, he founded a pediatric wing at the Governmental Hospital of Beirut – Quarantine, made possible by contributions from the Carlos Slim Foundation, among others. It allows patients to receive treatment without any consideration of their financial status, documentation or nationality. This pediatric wing, which he established in 2015, operates under the umbrella of the Mother and Child Care Association Health Center (Assameh, Birth and Beyond).
“He was the pediatrician of two or three generations of children,” asserts Mrs. Neda Farah, a committee member of the Association, to This is Beirut.
The hospital, ravaged on August 4, was one of the most important pediatric facilities, annually welcoming between 800 and 1,000 patients under the age of 18. The hospital’s operations were sustained by donations from individuals, associations and foreign countries. Thanks to Dr. Sacy's courageous leadership and determination, the hospital was renovated in 2023, and these donations also enabled the acquisition of cutting-edge equipment and materials.
“This hospital is very well-stocked and competes with the best healthcare institutions,” says Farah. “Dr. Sacy received countless sick children who couldn’t afford healthcare; he even rescued many ‘rubbish children’.”
Just a month ago, Dr. Sacy was honored by all his friends who gathered to express their gratitude. “He’s someone who has extensively worked for Lebanon; he has performed a colossal task,” concludes Farah.
Today, we bid farewell to an exceptional man who was “a man of values, an irreplaceable one,” according to one of his friends, interviewed by This is Beirut.
One day before his passing, Dr. Sacy posted a quote by Jean d'Ormesson on his Facebook page: “Men are truly great only through their dreams and convictions. What elevates them beyond themselves is faith, science, beauty, concern for justice or truth, love for their homeland, and for the miserable.”
A quote that reflects the life journey of Robert Sacy, acknowledging that his legacy will persist through the lives he has touched and uplifted.
Dr. Sacy is survived by his wife, Nicole, and daughter, Kim. His passing leaves a grieving family, friends, colleagues and especially patients, who are all better individuals for having known him.
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