Cnaan Liphshiz is The Times of Israel's Jewish World reporter
Dr. Mike Varshavski at a charity fashion show in New York City on July 2, 2019. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images via JTA)
JTA — Celebrity physician Mikhail Varshavski administered emergency treatment to a participant of Birthright aboard a flight to Israel, possibly saving the patient’s life.
The incident last week occurred about two hours after takeoff, Ynet reported.
Varshavski, who is Jewish and also known as Dr. Mike, treated the 26-year-old’s acute allergic reaction after flight attendants asked whether there was a doctor on board, according to the report Thursday.
Varshavski, who participated himself 10 years ago in the Birth Taglit Israel program for Diaspora Jews, monitored the patient’s condition until the plane landed.
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This time, though, Varshavski, who is 29 years old and was born in Russia, was a guest of the group America’s Voices in Israel, which performs advocacy work by bringing celebrities to the Jewish state.
Varshavski, whose family immigrated to the United States when he was 5, has featured in Buzzfeed and in People magazine’s 2015 issue of The Sexiest Man Alive. He has a YouTube channel that provides medically-themed educational entertainment.
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