Upon the dissolution of the Dr. G.J. van Hoytema Foundation in 2024, the remaining cash balance was donated to the Twente University Fund and allocated to the newly established Dr. G.J. van Hoytema Fund.
Dr. G.J. van Hoytema Foundation
The Dr. G.J. van Hoytema Foundation was founded in 1968 on the initiative of several physicians who were strong advocates of combining research with continuing education. At that time, travel distances were long, and all professional training and continuing education were organized in the western part of the country. The idea of developing continuing medical education in Twente was revolutionary. The foundation focused on providing continuing education for academic professionals in healthcare and was one of the recognized institutes for Post-Academic Education in Medicine and Dentistry (PAOG and PAOT) in the Netherlands.
After many years of success, the increasing availability of digital education and improvements to the road network led to a steady decline in the number of participants in the extensive course offerings. This decline prompted the foundation to dissolve and transfer its resources to a Named Fund in the spirit of the original Dr. G.J. van Hoytema Foundation at the Twente University Fund.
Neurosurgeon Van Hoytema
Gerard Johan van Hoytema was born on 27 January 1915 in Batavia in the Dutch East Indies. He attended secondary school in Hilversum and then studied medicine in Groningen up to the doctoral examination phase. On 30 September 1942, he completed his medical degree at the University of Amsterdam. He then pursued training as a general surgeon at the Municipal Hospital in Arnhem until 1945. In 1947, he was registered as a surgeon in the Dutch Specialist Register.
In October 1949, Van Hoytema began his neurosurgery training at the Wilhelmina Gasthuis in Amsterdam. On 1 July 1953, he settled in Enschede. He was the first neurosurgeon in Twente and practiced in both hospitals in Enschede. Despite his demanding practice, Van Hoytema succeeded in obtaining his doctorate in Amsterdam in April 1956 with his dissertation “Hydrocephalus. A disorder in the absorption of cerebrospinal fluid.”
Collaboration with THT/University of Twente
From the establishment of the Neurosurgery Centre Enschede on 1 July 1953, Van Hoytema was intensively involved in the development of depth measurements and stimulation of deep brain nuclei (deep brain stimulation). He was one of the first to recognize the benefits of collaboration between the clinic and engineers at the then Technische Hogeschool Twente (now the University of Twente) for technological innovation in medicine. “At that interface, interesting possibilities can arise,” Van Hoytema said.
On 24 March 1966, Van Hoytema suffered a heart attack and passed away on the same day. He left behind a wife and six children.
For more information on nominating candidates for the Dr. G.J. van Hoytema Award and the applicable criteria, please visit our page on the Dr. G.J. van Hoytema Award.