Poznan University
of Medical Sciences

DEPARTMENT
OF THE HISTORY
AND PHILOSOPHY
OF MEDICAL SCIENCES

History of the Department

The Department of the History and Philosophy of Medical Sciences is one of the oldest units of the Poznan University of Medical Sciences. It was established on April, 25th 1919, when the Poznan University Senate passed a resolution to nominate Prof. Adam Wrzosek (1875-1965) to the post of the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Professor of History and Philosophy of Medicine.

Professor Adam Wrzosek gave lectures on the history of medicine, introduction to medicine and methodology of research. Thanks to his engagement an extensive research program have been launched and a specialist collection of books have been assembled. In addition, a Museum of the History of Medicine as well as a journal entitled “Archives of the History and Philosophy of Medicine” have been established.

 

wrzosek

During the Stalinist times Professor Wrzosek was considered a “politically inconvenient” person and on the 1st of September 1947 he was moved to retirement. His lectures and seminars have been indefinitely suspended.

The Department of the History of Medical Sciences was re-established on the 1st of January 1957. Its Head was again Professor Wrzosek who, however, within a month, assigned his responsibilities to his daughter, Assistant Professor Ludmila Krakowiecka. At the same time, the lectures on the history of medicine for medicine and dentistry students have been restored, but the Department was deprived of the rights to teach medical ethics, medical logic, and introduction to medicine.

Temporarily, from the 1st of October 1970 till the 28th of August 1971, the Head of the unit was Assistant Professor Mieczyslaw Stanski, a historian who lectured on Marxist philosophy.  

In 1971, the Department of the History of Medical Sciences was closed down. A History of Medicine and Pharmacy Workshop that was established on the 1st of October 1978 became its poor substitute. The Head of the Workshop was Assistant Professor Witold Wlodzimierz Glowacki and, since the 1st of October 1980, Dr. (from 1999 Assistant Professor) Roman K. Meissner. Thanks to his efforts, the Workshop has been transformed into the Unit of the History of Medicine and Pharmacy (since the 1st of October 1982), the Unit of the History of Medical Sciences (since the 30th of April 1985), and finally into the Department of the History of Medical Sciences (since the 25th of June 2008). Since the 1st of October 2009 the Head of the Chair is Assistant Professor Anita Magowska.

 

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