Born in 1919, Ivan Barnat studied medicine at Witwatersrand University and qualified MB ChB in 1942. After serving in the South African Medical Corps during the second world war, he came to Britain and became FRCS in 1947. Following his return to South Africa he practised in Durban, specialising in thoracic surgery. He was visiting thoracic surgeon to the Addington and Wentworth Hospitals in Durban, thoracic surgeon to the King George V Hospital, Durban and senior lecturer in thoracic surgery at the University of Natal. In 1968 he moved to the United States, obtaining the FACS in 1969. He became associate clinical professor at Mount Sinai Hospital, New York City and chairman of the division of thoracic surgery at the City Hospital at Elmhurst. He died on 14 March 1985 at Old Westbury, New York.