|
Homage to Tarnaveni Hospital Romania
In Memory of my Father Dr.Ioan Dumitrescu
"When the war started, the hospital fell in the front area. The first images Jan would remember were the wounded soldiers crying out their pain and despair in languages he would not understand. The first sounds he would remember were the sounds of the war airplanes bombing all around. And the endless evenings when he would be left alone, with a nanny while his parents were in the operating room, tending to the soldiers, for hours upon hours until exhaustion. The first images he would carry with him were those of his father, the doctor, transfigured by fatigue and throwing away his perspired, bloody soaked surgeon outfit. And his beautiful mother, who had helped her husband as a nurse all day long, always finding some moments to smile and comfort him. Jan would feel such an intense love for her making him unable to utter a word. He would just kneel by her and fondle the hem of her dress in silence and adoration." (excerpt from the novel "Living Shadows" by Liliana Badd, page 18.)
 |
The Târnaveni Hospital in Romania celebrated 100 years in 1998. Built in 1897 it was officially inaugurated on April 11, 1898. Starting with only 40 beds, this hospital was to become one of the largest hospitals in South Eastern Europe before the First World War.
|
Some Historical Data related to the Hospital :
 |
Dr. Moise Szöcs was the first director of the hospital from 1899 to 1930. During his appointment, the medical activity was extended and new departments were opened: the neuropsychiatric, infectious disease and laboratory departments. During and after the First World War the hospital passed through difficult moments as a direct consequence of the general economic crisis that had ensued. |
 |
Dr. Ioan Dumitrescu was appointed at the Târnaveni hospital as a primary surgeon in 1925. He had achived his medical education in France. During the First World War he served as a chief military surgeon in the Royal Regiment and was honored for his merits by Romanian and French military distinctions. Dr. Ioan Dumitrescu was appointed as director of the hospital in 1930, after Dr. Szöcs's retirement, and served as such until 1946 when the Communists after repeated drastic political persecutions (incarcerations, beatings, assignment to forced residence) managed to have him resign. He had refused to become a member of the Communist party. At one official dinner, during the war, he had stated: "I will never sit at my table with anarchists and communists." Statement which did not pass un-noticed.
During his appointment as a director of the hospital, the hospital underwent major organizational restructurings. New buildings were built. Qualified medical doctors and nurses were hired in pace with the hospital's new development strategy. The hospital also developed a medical scientific activity thus becoming the center of interest of some prestigious medical personalities who would constantly visit in order to contribute to the consolidation of its reputation. |
Some Scientific Personalities related to the Tarnaveni Hospital:
 |
Prof. Dr. Gheorghe Marinescu was one of the founders of modern neurology, internationally recognized for his scientific merits. Professor of neurology at the University of Bucharest, he published about 2,000 papers and books on his contributions in the study of the physiological mechanism of speech and its troubles, the senescence mechanisms, the traumatic nevroses, the nature and the treatment of general progressive paralysis, the biology of the nervous cell, the study of medical hypnosis. |
 |
Prof. Dr. C.I. Parhon was one of the founders of modern endocrinology in Romania. He is the author of the first treaty published on scientific endocrinology. He studied the mechanisms of neuro-endocrine interconnections, the complex function of the thyroid gland and the biochemical phenomena involved into the humoral regulation processus. |
|
 |
Prof. Dr. I. Jianu was a surgeon, well-knwon for his contributions on tissue and organ transplants and for his original techniques applied in vascular surgery. Jianu is one of the pioneers of the ultra-sound techniques in the treatment of kidneys lithiasis.
|
Some Historical Events related to the Hospital :
 |
During the Second World War (1940 to 1946), the Târnaveni Hospital while continuing its full activity was additionally in charge of attending to the war-wounded soldiers. The lives of thousand of soldiers would be saved here.
During 1945-46 the hospital due to the war geographical evolution, found itself on the front line, under the crossed-artillery firings. The hospital staff would honor their mission with courage and responsibility. |
 |
This page is an homage to the physicians, nurses and staff at the Târnaveni Hospital. A grateful memorial for their professional and moral devotion under extremely difficult historical events. These brave women and men do not belong to this life anymore. Yet, this page may serve as an example for the next generations. |
|
