Obituary Martin De Smet 1956-2021
The ISN was saddened to learn of the death of Dr. Martin De Smet on November 21, 2021.
Martin De Smet graduated as a medical doctor from Ghent State University and the Antwerp Institute of Tropical Medicine in Belgium. He joined Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in 1991 and worked in many different roles for the organization in several countries, including as the emergency unit coordinator in Belgium.
Dr. De Smet was the ISN’s Renal Disaster Relief Task Force (RDRTF) first contact person from MSF. He was instrumental in the RDRTF’s first major intervention onsite at the 1999 Marmara earthquake in Turkey. He was involved in many other RDTF interventions either on the ground or as a coordinator from the Brussels MSF headquarters. He will be sadly missed by his colleagues at the RDRTF, where he was known as an inspiring person who could bring people together as a team to work toward a common goal.
The ISN offers its deepest condolences to Martin’s family, colleagues, and friends.
