Journal of Research on History of Medicine (May 2024)
Foreign Medical Professionals at Istanbul University Faculty of Medicine: Insights from the Documents between 1950 and 1973 of the Turkish State Archives of the Republic Archive
Abstract
During the 1930s, a significant number of physicians, nurses, and scientists sought refuge in Turkiye as they fled the oppressive regimes in Nazi Germany and its neighboring countries. They were employed in educational and health institutions in Turkiye, especially at Istanbul University. Although the number decreased in subsequent decades, foreign physicians and specialists continued to migrate to Turkiye even after the 1950s. This qualitative study analyses the documents and materials available in the Turkish State Archives to shed light on the experiences of these foreign medical professionals. According to documents examined, from 1950 to 1973, the Faculty of Medicine of Istanbul University employed a total of 18 foreign physicians and specialists: four in the Department of Pediatric Surgery and Orthopedics, three in the Department of Histology and Embryology, three in the Surgery Clinic I, two in the Internal Medicine Clinic III, one in the Department of Physiology, one in the Department of Experiential Research, one in the Department of Biophysics, one in the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, one in the Department of Pharmacy, and one in the faculty staff. Then, it is reasonable to assume that the contributions of these foreign physicians and specialists played a significant role in the development of the departments they were associated with at the Istanbul University Faculty of Medicine.
