SOVIET INFLUENCE ON MEDICINE IN HUNGARY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00457R006100050001-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: April 12, 2001
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: October 23, 1950
• Content Type: REPORT

''L LY
Approved ForRebititieR1121.294TD/M5457R0061ffiggirki
Fi .70 RAATOON REPORT CD NO..
COJNTRY Hungary-
CONFIDENTIAL
SU3JECT Soviet Influence on Medicine in 'Hungary
PLACE
ACQUIR
DATE 0
INFO.
1.
Doctors
Its?
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23 OCT 50
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SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
a. In 1946, the so-called oDoctorst Trade Union!' was inaugurated and the
Hungarian doctors were told that this would be the new version of the pre-
war Hungarian Medical Association. It was not necessary to belong to any
party in order to join the new group. However, the chief-secretary of this
organization, Emil iei4was an ardent Communist; and the state secretary at
the Ministry of .elfare? whem medical questions wore handled, Janos Vika,
MS also a Communist.
b. By the begtnning of 1947, every position was filled by those doctors who
had entered the party or else uere in sympathy with it. The heads of the
universities ? clinics were chosen from this group. However, it was still
possible for patients, if they could afford it, to have special medical
treatient from private aoctors.
co In 1947, all the health institutes and social insurance institutes were
nationalized and incorporated into the OTI (Orszagos Tarsadalom iiztosit
Intezet). This did not appear to mean much at first, but gradually it
became evident that the OTI appointed the doctors to the hospitals through-
out the entire country, The workers of a factory, a store, or a ministry
were only allowed to go to the doctor appointed in the district uhere they
lived and annual medical foes were automatically deducted from their slaries.
They could go to another doctor, if they paid him separately. This system
served two purposes. In the first place, the doctors were controlled, and
they earned a fixed salary. Secondly, each patient would have a file,
therefore if the party, the police, or the army needed any information
about an individual, the district doctor would be able to supply them with
it in detn11.
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CONFIDENTIAL In accordance with 'th,o
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Director of Central Intelligence to the
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d. This system haw resulted in the nationalization of almost all the doctors
and with them 11 the hospitals, and the medical profession has been gradu-
ally drawn into the Party. Those who could avoid membership in the Commu-
nist Party have to be experts and very much needed by the Party0 flowever5
ral doctors are required to attend seminars and learn the 2uss1an language.
2. Hospitals
a. In 1940 a attripe7 was made of the hospitals and reconstruction was promised
to many of them.
b. The first hospitals taken over by the 7.assians were the following:
Clinic for Internal diseases
General Hospital
2 Private Sanatoriums
General Hospital
General Hospital
Part of the Clinic
Dudapest.
- Szdkesfehe'rvdi..
- Dudapect.
Szombathely.
- Sopron.
Debrecen.
c. At the beginning of December 1949, the following hospitals in
also were handed over to the management of 2ussian doctors:
1) Szent Janos, Gyali ut
2) Jozsef Attila, Abonyi utcet
3) tJlidi ut klinika
4) -3aleset Kol.haz, Otba
5) Szent Janos csoport, Csengeri
6) :agdolnavarosi korhaz
7) Szemmelweis szulootthon
8) 7,ornayi felek hazcsoport
9)
Fasori szanatorium.
d. There has been no report on the hospitals taken over by the
utca
e. The following hospitals are beini,
finished by the end of 1950:
Gorombolytapolca (sic)
:askolc
Debrecen
Szentes
Karcag
Kiskun Felegyhaza
judapest
1",ussians0
constructed or enlarged and
C0 The Government has changed the names
nokus korhaz
Janos korhaz
Szent Laszlo korhaz
Szent Istvan korhaz
71adarasz utca korhaz
korhaz
korhaz
Kdrolyi korhaz UjpeA
400 beds new
950 " reconstructed
1500 enlarged
500 reconstructed
500 reconstructed
500 partly new
are to be
of the following ha3pita1s:
- Szemmelweis Ignaz korhaa
- Balasza Janos korhaz
- Fodor Jozsef korhaz
- Polya Jen 6 korhaz
Dokay Janos korhaz
- DAgat PA1 korhaz
Jendrassik :rno korhaz
FazekasITihalykorhaz-Ujpest
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3. Russian indoctrination
5.
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a, In .ugust 19492 the whole medical program was reformed with great rapidity.
The doctors were urged to form brigades for better work in both research
and attendance. The first such brigade was organized by Dr. Sandor aamm,
of the Rokus hospital in 3udapest; this brigade was named after the great
Russian doctor Eck. The members of this brigade promised to learn the
Russian language in the shortest possible time.
b. Further brigades were organized and some of their members went to the Soviet
Union to further their medical knowledge.
faced banks
In October 1949, some doctors returned from the Soviet Union and proposed to
Vikol and Jell that blood donor stations should be organized systematically in
the various towns of Hungary. Since very feu people presanted themselves:
rrs. Szakasits? wife of the president of Hungary, promised a gold medal to
those who gave blood, and at the sane time the Communist Party secretaries
in the various plants and enterprises urged the Hungarians to give blood. The
first successful station was at Szombathely, at the :alitary Hospital, already
under Russian control; the second station was in Eudapoot? Deroczy ut; the
third at the Clinic of Debrecen) and the fourth at the clinic o: Pecs. Informa-
tion from the donors was that either the doctor, or the nurses, or the clerk was
Russian.
Nursing
In the meantime, the nurses were gradually called and indoctrinated with Commu-
nist ideas; they had to finish the Communist seminars and learn the aussian
words essential for communicating with Russian doctors. Such an ideological
school was established at Szeged; its director was Piroska Ordogh, a former
worker at the Szeged Shoe :!lanufacturing Company. Further nurses schools were
organized under the directorship of Istvan Casvari: Budapest Nieronimi ut 26,
and Thinkacsy utca 19; at Szeged, Debrecen, Szekesfehdrvar? Sopron, Szombathely,
Hodmezo VdSgihe1y9and Badscsaba. Emphasis is placed on war diseases, surgery2
and the Russian language. These nurses were chosen from among the workers,
who *volunteer" and than return to their ordinary jobs after completion of
their studios. Each year, they have to report for one month.
6. Administration
a. In October 1949, a new Russian surgeon, accompanied by three young Russian
assisUants? arrived in Dudapcst to take over the "Third Surgical Clinic".
The :linister of Education reouired the Hungarian students to attend regularly
the classes given by Prof. Petrovs1y2 as he taught war surgery, a subject
which formerly had had no special chair at the Universi'ty.
b. At the beginning of July, Professor Petrovsky made a report to a commission
made up of Janos Vikol, Emil oil, LtG General Cola Revesz? and three
hial-ran!:ing Russian officers. The report stated that there wore about
1,000 surgeons who could be mobilized immediately. A list has been made
of their names and they have been advised not to travel without first informing
the "Doctors' Union" of their plans. Of this group, 250 have taken special
courses on war surgery during the winter. There are about 2,000 general
practitioners who would be immediately available. Also, the nurses ? training
schools had been placed under the control of Prof. Petrovsky and his Russian
colleague, Prof. Zhapozhkov. There are about 5,000 nurses, but only a part
of this number are wor!d.nn. This group can be mobilized immediately, and
had received its training in the last two years.
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7. plug
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A new and important styptic for war surgery is called nTrombofort". Tho
streptomycin and penicillin production has reached such a high scale that the
respective prices arc the follouing:
200 000 units C.00 forint, ready for penicillin cure.
100,000 units 4.00 forint, oil penicillin.
2009000 units 6.60 forint, oil penicillin.
3009000 units 9.20 forint, oil penicillin.
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