Andrija Štampar
Encyclopedia
Andrija Štampar was a distinguished scholar in the field of social medicine
from Croatia
.
(part of Pleternica
), at the time part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire
, in modern Požega-Slavonia county
.
From 1898 to 1906, he attended grammar school in Vinkovci
. During his secondary schooling, Andrija was a brilliant pupil and, at that time, he wrote his first literary attempt, published in the periodical Pobratim in 1902. He enrolled at the Medical School in Vienna
in 1906, which was at the time the most important medical center in the world. As a medical student, he initiated the editing of medical papers and wrote pamphlets and articles with the intention of educating people in health matters. In 1909 in Nova Gradiška
he started publishing the series called Public Health Library discussing numerous topics regarding health and prevention. On December 23, 1911, he was awarded the title of Doctor of Universal Medicine (doctor medicinae universae).
and remained at this post till August 8, 1913. He enrolled in the Croatian Medical Association, an organization of physicians, and published a few articles in their journal.
By a decree of the Župan, (Prefect) of the Požega
District, he was appointed district health officer of Nova Gradiška in 1913. In 1919, he attended the Congress of Inter-Allied Countries for Social Hygiene in Paris
giving a lecture on children's health. It showed at that time that he had a clear concept of organizing the public health service. Andrija Štampar is universally known as "the man of action".
It was justifiable that he, although only 31 years old, be principal of the former Yugoslav Health Service in Belgrade
(Beograd). Thanks to Štampar's endeavours, a special Institute of Social Medicine was founded affiliaed with the University of Zagreb School of Medicine. From 1924 he was the member of several international expert committees, which through his efforts received grants from the Rockefeller Foundation
.
King Alexander
's dictatorship suddenly put a stop to his work at the Ministry of Public Health in 1930 and, in 1931, he was put on the retired list by the King's decree and came into personal conflict with King Alexander due to his refusal to enter the government. He was offered the portfolio of the Minister of the Interior, but he refused and asked for free elections as a condition.
. He entered upon a new kind of work; study travels, extensive lecturing in different parts of the world, confronting health problems at the international level. From October 1931 till January 1932, Štampar was in the United States
and Canada
as the guest of the Rockefeller Foundation. The League of Nations
also entrusted him with the task of acquainting himself with the work of a special American Committee dealing with the costs of medical care.
He also spent time in China
. The Health Organization sent him as an advisor to help the Chinese health administration in the control of the mass infectious diseases that cropped up after devastating floods in 1931.
In 1936, he received an offer from the Secretary General of the League of Nations for the post of an expert at the Health Organization in Geneva
. In 1938, he received an invitation from Harvard University
in Boston, where he delivered a lecture. After Boston, he toured a great part of North America and lectured on hygiene and social medicine at a series of universities (Yale, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Cincinnati, Vanderbilt, McHarry, Tulane, Texas, Los Angeles, Berkeley, Portland, Minnesota, Toronto, McGill, Columbia, Galvestone).
A statue has been dedicated to Dr. Štampar in Morocco for his work in curing malaria.
Andrija Štampar founded School of Public Health in Zagreb in 1927.
By the decree of March 5, 1939, eight years after his election as full professor of Hygiene and Social Medicine in Zagreb, he finally became a professor at Zagreb University. Elected by the Council of the Medical School in Zagreb, Štampar became the Dean
of the School for the academic year 1940/41. With the energy so characteristic of him, he set to work on the reform of medical training.
On the third day of the occupation of Zagreb, Štampar was arrested by the Ustaša police. Released, he was arrested again by the German
police and sent to Graz
, where he was imprisoned and interned until the arrival of the Soviet Red Army
. On his return in May 1945, he resumed his duty as Professor of Hygiene and Social Medicine at the Medical School and became head of the School of Public Health in Zagreb.
The International Health Conference held in New York in the summer of 1946 was attended by the official representatives of 51 nations. With only a few minor alterations, they accepted the draft of the World Health Organization
(WHO). The First World Health Assembly was called with the ratification of the WHO Constitution. It was in session from June 24 to July 24, 1948. in Geneva, Štampar was elected as the first President of the Assembly unanimously. At the 8th regular session of WHO in Mexico City
, in 1955, Štampar was awarded the Leon Bernard Foundation Prize and Medal, the greatest international recognition of merit in the field of social medicine.
Štampar was the Rector
of Zagreb University for the academic year 1945/46. In 1952, he was again elected the Dean of the Medical School, for 5 years consecutively. He also had an important role in founding of the Medical School at Rijeka
in 1955.
Social medicine
The field of social medicine seeks to:# understand how social and economic conditions impact health, disease and the practice of medicine and# foster conditions in which this understanding can lead to a healthier society....
from Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
.
Education
Andrija was born September 1, 1888 in Brodski DrenovacBrodski Drenovac
Brodski Drenovac is a village in Požega-Slavonia County, Croatia. The village is administered as a part of the City of Pleternica.According to national census of 2001, population of the village is 828....
(part of Pleternica
Pleternica
Pleternica is a town in the region of Slavonia, Croatia, southeast of Požega, in the Požega Valley . The population of the municipality is 11,286, with 3,443 in Pleternica itself ....
), at the time part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
, in modern Požega-Slavonia county
Požega-Slavonia County
Požega-Slavonia county is a Croatian county in western Slavonia. Its capital is Požega. Population: 85,831 .-Geography:The Požega-Slavonia county borders on the Bjelovar-Bilogora County in the northwest, Virovitica-Podravina County in the north, Osijek-Baranja County in the northeast,...
.
From 1898 to 1906, he attended grammar school in Vinkovci
Vinkovci
Vinkovci is a city in Croatia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County. In the 2011 census, the total population of the city was 35,375, making it the largest town of the county...
. During his secondary schooling, Andrija was a brilliant pupil and, at that time, he wrote his first literary attempt, published in the periodical Pobratim in 1902. He enrolled at the Medical School in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
in 1906, which was at the time the most important medical center in the world. As a medical student, he initiated the editing of medical papers and wrote pamphlets and articles with the intention of educating people in health matters. In 1909 in Nova Gradiška
Nova Gradiška
Nova Gradiška is a city located in the Brod-Posavina County of Croatia, population 14,196 . It is located in the historic region of Slavonia, near the border to Bosnia and Herzegovina....
he started publishing the series called Public Health Library discussing numerous topics regarding health and prevention. On December 23, 1911, he was awarded the title of Doctor of Universal Medicine (doctor medicinae universae).
Career
On January 1, 1912, Dr. Štampar started working at the town hospital at KarlovacKarlovac
Karlovac is a city and municipality in central Croatia. The city proper has a population of 49,082, while the municipality has a population of 59,395 inhabitants .Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County...
and remained at this post till August 8, 1913. He enrolled in the Croatian Medical Association, an organization of physicians, and published a few articles in their journal.
By a decree of the Župan, (Prefect) of the Požega
Požega, Croatia
Požega is a city in western Slavonia, eastern Croatia, with a total population of 26,403 . It is the administrative center of the Požega-Slavonia County.-Geography:...
District, he was appointed district health officer of Nova Gradiška in 1913. In 1919, he attended the Congress of Inter-Allied Countries for Social Hygiene in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
giving a lecture on children's health. It showed at that time that he had a clear concept of organizing the public health service. Andrija Štampar is universally known as "the man of action".
It was justifiable that he, although only 31 years old, be principal of the former Yugoslav Health Service in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
(Beograd). Thanks to Štampar's endeavours, a special Institute of Social Medicine was founded affiliaed with the University of Zagreb School of Medicine. From 1924 he was the member of several international expert committees, which through his efforts received grants from the Rockefeller Foundation
Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
.
King Alexander
Alexander I of Yugoslavia
Alexander I , also known as Alexander the Unifier was the first king of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia as well as the last king of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes .-Childhood:...
's dictatorship suddenly put a stop to his work at the Ministry of Public Health in 1930 and, in 1931, he was put on the retired list by the King's decree and came into personal conflict with King Alexander due to his refusal to enter the government. He was offered the portfolio of the Minister of the Interior, but he refused and asked for free elections as a condition.
International activities
From 1931 to 1933, Štampar was permanently employed as the expert of the Health OrganizationHealth organization
Health organizations vary in scope from municipal to global. The World Health Organization is a health organization of such global scope. Organizations exist for all fields of health, such as medicine, health promotion, and health education....
. He entered upon a new kind of work; study travels, extensive lecturing in different parts of the world, confronting health problems at the international level. From October 1931 till January 1932, Štampar was in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
as the guest of the Rockefeller Foundation. The League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
also entrusted him with the task of acquainting himself with the work of a special American Committee dealing with the costs of medical care.
He also spent time in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. The Health Organization sent him as an advisor to help the Chinese health administration in the control of the mass infectious diseases that cropped up after devastating floods in 1931.
Dr. Štampar has come to China to help our Government in its work on reconstruction based on the plan of technical cooperation with the League of Nations. He went round several provinces, from Kansu and Shanghai in the West to Kwangtung and Kwangsi in the South, and made a valuable contribution to the reconstruction of our villages, especially in the field of rural health protection services. On his departure we wish to give this to him as a remembrance of his work in China, hoping he will come to visit us again.
-- Ching Feng
In 1936, he received an offer from the Secretary General of the League of Nations for the post of an expert at the Health Organization in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. In 1938, he received an invitation from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in Boston, where he delivered a lecture. After Boston, he toured a great part of North America and lectured on hygiene and social medicine at a series of universities (Yale, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Cincinnati, Vanderbilt, McHarry, Tulane, Texas, Los Angeles, Berkeley, Portland, Minnesota, Toronto, McGill, Columbia, Galvestone).
A statue has been dedicated to Dr. Štampar in Morocco for his work in curing malaria.
Zagreb
By the decree of March 5, 1939, eight years after his election as full professor of Hygiene and Social Medicine in Zagreb, he finally became a professor at Zagreb University. Elected by the Council of the Medical School in Zagreb, Štampar became the Dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
of the School for the academic year 1940/41. With the energy so characteristic of him, he set to work on the reform of medical training.
On the third day of the occupation of Zagreb, Štampar was arrested by the Ustaša police. Released, he was arrested again by the German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
police and sent to Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
, where he was imprisoned and interned until the arrival of the Soviet Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
. On his return in May 1945, he resumed his duty as Professor of Hygiene and Social Medicine at the Medical School and became head of the School of Public Health in Zagreb.
The International Health Conference held in New York in the summer of 1946 was attended by the official representatives of 51 nations. With only a few minor alterations, they accepted the draft of the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
(WHO). The First World Health Assembly was called with the ratification of the WHO Constitution. It was in session from June 24 to July 24, 1948. in Geneva, Štampar was elected as the first President of the Assembly unanimously. At the 8th regular session of WHO in Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
, in 1955, Štampar was awarded the Leon Bernard Foundation Prize and Medal, the greatest international recognition of merit in the field of social medicine.
Štampar was the Rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
of Zagreb University for the academic year 1945/46. In 1952, he was again elected the Dean of the Medical School, for 5 years consecutively. He also had an important role in founding of the Medical School at Rijeka
Rijeka
Rijeka is the principal seaport and the third largest city in Croatia . It is located on Kvarner Bay, an inlet of the Adriatic Sea and has a population of 128,735 inhabitants...
in 1955.