Urologist Kaloyan Davidoff named Bulgaria's 'Doctor of the Year 2026'
President Iotova presented the award marking the Bulgarian Medical Association's 125th anniversary and warned the health minister about closures in small towns.
Archive image · Photo: Mick D Kirkov / Wikimedia Commons, CC0 (cropped and resized)
Urologist Prof. Kaloyan Davidoff has been named "Doctor of the Year 2026". President Iliana Iotova presented the award at a ceremony at the National History Museum marking the 125th anniversary of the Bulgarian Medical Association. According to BNT, Davidoff was the first Bulgarian surgeon to perform laser surgery on the prostate and trained in Japan, Britain and Greece, among other places.
Davidoff described the award as recognition of his daily work and of the people who walk the path with him. What matters most is not how impressive an operation is but the person undergoing it, he said.
Iotova said society needs inspiring examples and greater recognition for doctors, who deserve decent working conditions and adequate funding. Addressing Health Minister Katya Ivkova, she pointed to the closure of hospital departments in smaller communities and stressed that fair access to healthcare, as guaranteed by the Constitution, is the minister's responsibility.