In memoriam Janusz A. Indulski
(1930-1999)

CEJOEM 1999, Vol.5. No.3-4.:199-200



Janusz A. Indulski, co-editor of this Journal since its foundation, the outstanding scientist and apt manager died on August 3, 1999 aged 69.
     Educated in medicine at the Pomeranian University Medical School in Szczecin (Poland), Indulski received his MD in 1955. His scientific career also commenced in Szczecin at the Department of Human Biology, but at the same time having the charge of Chief Medical Officer of the harbor he faced problems of health sciences soon. This new field of interest put him on the way of appropriate postgraduate trainings. In 1959-1961 he studied public health in the Semashko Institute for Advanced Studies in Health Care Organization (Moscow). Having returned home, he continued his postgraduate studies in health care planning and organization at the Warsaw Center for Postgraduate Training (1962) and in hygiene and epidemiology at the Military Medical School of Lodz (1965). The series of postgraduate studies ended with a course of social medicine in the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (1970-1971). His experience was also enriched by his numerous visits and research stays at various scientific institutes in Europe and America. In the mean time, he obtained his PhD degree (1962) and DSc degree (1965) from the Military Medical School of Lodz.
     Indulski was a loyal resident of Lodz for the past 40 years. In 1959, he started as the director of the municipal Department of Health and Social Welfare, but soon he affiliated himself with the University Medical School of Lodz where he became full professor in 1974. He was the founder of the Department of Social Medicine and remained its chairman till 1977. For six years he was the Vice-Rector for research of the University. From 1977 until his death, he managed as its director the Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine and was at the same time professor of epidemiology and occupational medicine. For his services rendered, Lodz presented the freedom of the city to him.
     He was a renown expert of occupational health and medicine in the international medical relations, too. First in 1964, he was invited as a temporary consultant to the World Health Organization (WHO) Headquarters in Geneva, and then he served as adviser of 69 Technical Meetings in 24 countries. He spent several years in many developing countries as WHO Consultant.
     Indulski was also met with great recognition by the professional and scientific communities. Beyond the societies of his own country in which he was founder, president or honorary president as that of the Polish Associations of Social Medicine, of Occupational Health and of Public Health, he was Board Member of the International Commission of Occupational Health and of MEDICHEM Occupational Health in Chemical Industry (Basel, Switzerland), member of American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists, American Public Health Association, and Association for Health Services Research (Washington, DC). He was elected to be member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, honorary member by the Hungarian, Czech and Russian Societies of Hygiene and Occupational Health. He was Honorary Fellow of Faculty of Occupational Medicine, Royal College of Physicians (London), and fellow of Collegium Ramazzini (Milano-Carpi, Italy).
     His literary activity as well deserved appreciation: he published over two hundred scientific papers, more than half of them being original ones. He took his share of the editorial work at scientific periodicals, too. He was the editor-in-chief of a polish bimonthly journal (Medycyna Pracy) and of an international quarterly (Internat. J. Occupat. Med. Environ. Health) and board member of several scientific journals in Europe and USA.
     Equally important was his skill as a manager, shown over the decades he wisely and compassionately directed the Nofer Institute. He was a leader and teacher of the first rank. Under Indulski's guidance almost seventy young scientists have obtained their degrees (MD, PhD, DSc): he developed a reputable school of science. So far, this school has also yielded twelve full professors. His co-workers esteemed it as an honor and privilege to have the opportunity of working with him. He was a man of irreproachable character who maintained high standars in both science and human behavior. At the same time, he was not a narrow-minded specialist. He was fond of classical music, he liked to play chess, he had a large collection of books about the history of World War II, and he was pleased to hike in the Polish forests. He was at the same time an outstanding scientist and an amiable man. Those of us who were privileged to have known him have lost a good friend and colleague.
Attila Mitsányi


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