Dr. Kadirawel Iswara is not only an outstanding healer, but a bona fide hero committed to helping his patients, colleagues and community at large to thrive and live their best lives. Born in the city of Kalmunai, Sri Lanka, Dr. Iswara obtained his medical degree at the University of Ceylon, then accepted an offer from the US Embassy to sit for the US medical exams. He wasn’t planning a permanent move to the States, but after three years of training in gastroenterology, he was offered permanent resident status. There was one catch: he would need to serve in the military. Being ready and willing to give back to his adopted country, Dr. Iswara agreed. He served as a Lt. Colonel in the reserves until called up for Operation Desert Storm, during which he served actively with the 82^nd Airborne in Fort Bragg, NC, and for which he received a National Defense Service Medal, among other commendations. When the 2004 Tsunami devastated Sri Lanka, Dr. Iswara returned home, determined to save as many lives as possible. He set out with a group of doctors from across the US, and soon led the effort as the only rescuer fluent in the local language. He even went into dangerous sections of the country controlled by Tamil rebels who were suffering horribly without government aid.

A brilliant and innovative Top Doctor recognized time and again by Castle Connolly and New York Magazine, Dr. Iswara has been a clinical leader at Maimonides for more than 40 years. He did his gastroenterology fellowship at the medical center and eventually went on to direct the division. While providing the highest standard of care to patients in his busy practice, he simultaneously trained multiple generations of budding gastroenterologists and helped guide their future careers. He also faithfully served New York’s Finest and was certified as an Honorary Police Surgeon in 2015. Dr. Iswara’s prestigious awards, accolades, publications and podium appearances are myriad – far too numerous to list here. But even more profuse are the words of praise spoken of him by all those he treated and whose lives he touched. His compassion, kindness and collegiality are legendary, and he is beloved by thousands of people worldwide.

We now take pride and pleasure in hailing Dr. Iswara as the recipient of the 2023 Distinguished Clinician Award in Private Practice, which he will accept this May, in Chicago. Given by the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), this prize honors a practitioner who combines the art of medicine with the skills demanded by the scientific body of knowledge in service to their patients.

We also look forward to inaugurating the Dr. Kadirawel Iswara Reception Lobby in Maimonides Ambulatory Surgical Center – a facility which the doctor is generously dedicating with a legacy gift to benefit the gastroenterology department he has led with love for so many years.

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Phone: Call our Development Office at (718) 283-8113 to make a credit card payment by phone or discuss other giving options.

Mail: Enclose your check made payable to Maimonides Medical Center in an envelope and mail it to the following address:

Maimonides Medical Center
Office of Development
4802 Tenth Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11219