Academician Professor Dr Rimantas Benetis Re-elected as Rector of LSMU for the Second Term
The Council of the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences (LSMU) has re-elected cardiac surgeon, academician, Professor Dr Rimantas Benetis, as Rector of the University. This marks Professor Benetis’s second term in office.
According to the LSMU Statute, the Council announces a public competition for the position of Rector, and a candidate is considered elected if no fewer than three-fifths of all Council members vote in favour. The Rector’s term of office lasts five years.
During his second term, Professor Benetis plans to actively contribute to shaping the University’s future strategy, ensure the continuity of traditions and principles of academic life, and strengthen LSMU’s position as a prestigious university that focuses on scientific research and a leader in life sciences both nationally and internationally.
The Rector emphasised that a strong university depends on a strong academic community, and he called upon colleagues to unite in working towards the University’s future.
Professor Rimantas Benetis is a Doctor of Biomedical Sciences (Medicine), full member of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences, Rector of the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, and long-standing Head of the Department of Cardiac, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery.
Prof. R. Benetis’ professional career is marked by outstanding achievements, distinguished positions, and notable recognition.
Professor Benetis led the team of cardiac surgeons that performed the first heart transplant in Kaunas, as well as the first lung and combined heart-lung transplant in the Baltic States. The Ministry of Health of the Republic of Lithuania has awarded him the highest qualification category in cardiac surgery.
He is a member of the Lithuanian Society of Thoracic and Heart Surgeons, the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons. He is also a foreign member of the Latvian Academy of Sciences, Honorary Professor of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and a member of the board of the “Santaka Valley” Association.
Professor Benetis has been awarded the Lithuanian state decoration – the Cross of the Officer of the Order for Merits to Lithuania, the Officer’s Cross of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas, and the First Class Santaka Badge of Honour. He is also an Honorary Citizen of the cities of Kaunas and Plungė.
This year, Professor Benetis was also re-elected for a second term as President of the Lithuanian University Rectors’ Conference (LURK).
Professional Path
Rimantas Benetis was born on 3 July 1957 in Noriškiai village, Plungė district. From 1974 to 1980, he studied at the Faculty of Medicine of the then Kaunas Medical Institute (now LSMU).
In 1980–1981, he was a surgical intern at the Klinikos under Kaunas Medical Institute of the Ministry of Health (now the Hospital of the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences Kauno Klinikos).
In 1981–1984, he worked as a surgeon and trauma specialist at Ukmergė District Hospital.
He has gained professional experience both in Lithuania and abroad. From 1997 to 1998, he completed a six-month fellowship at the Department of Cardiac Surgery at the Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospital in London, England. From 1998 to 2000, he worked as a consultant surgeon at Umeå Regional Hospital in Sweden (24 months). From September 2004 to September 2020, he was Director of the Institute of Cardiology at Kaunas Medical University (now LSMU). Since 2005, he has been a member of the Senate of Kaunas Medical University/LSMU, and from December 2015 to July 2020 – a member of the LSMU Council. From September 2016 to September 2020, he chaired the University Senate. He defended his doctoral dissertation in 1990, was awarded the title of Associate Professor in 1995, and was granted the title of Professor in 2005.
Professor Benetis has published more than 500 scientific papers and delivered presentations at international conferences and congresses, as well as at specialist training events in the United States, India, Germany, Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Iceland, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Brazil, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Poland.
He continues to consult and treat patients with heart and vascular diseases, lecture students and residents, and lead training courses, seminars, and practical classes. Since 1996, he has supervised 23 doctoral students and consulted 10 doctoral students. From 2010 to 2020, he participated as a principal investigator in eight international biomedical clinical trials.