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MUMC+ honorary medal for professor Guido de Wert

As a token of great appreciation, Guido de Wert received the MUMC+ honorary medal from FHML Dean Annemie Schols on Friday 3 October. This took place during his farewell lecture on the occasion of his retirement. The medal is awarded to officials who have been of significant importance to Maastricht UMC+ or who have made special contributions outside their own field of expertise.

Since the 1980s, Guido played a key role in the development of a new field: the ethics of reproductive medicine and genetics. His work at the former Institute for Health Ethics in Maastricht laid the foundation for how we think today about technology, responsibility and humanity in healthcare. He was also one of the founders of pre-implantation genetic testing (PGT) in Maastricht and helped put Maastricht UMC+ on the map nationally and internationally in this field.

Preventing suffering

With sharp analyses and sincere commitment, he managed to connect science, policy and practice. As a crown member of the Health Council, chair of the Task Force Ethics & Law of the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology and as a member of the ethics committee of the European Society of Human Genetics, he made a significant contribution to national and international policy. His vision on embryo selection, which is not about striving for perfection but about preventing suffering, has gained lasting social significance. Thanks in part to that vision, 1,800 children have now been born in the Netherlands who are free from serious hereditary disorders.

The award to Guido de Wert is in recognition of his exceptional contribution to medical ethics and its lasting impact on healthcare, policy and society. We congratulate Guido on this special distinction and wish him good luck in his next phase of his life, in good health and together with his loved ones.

 

Photo: Joey Roberts

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