Thirty-seven years working for the women and families of Szeged

Gábor Németh has been working at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in Szeged for 37 years, and he also delivered his own grandchild 3 years ago. He has been running the department for many years, during which time it has undergone significant development. Last year, for instance, a neonatal intensive care unit was opened on the third floor. The professor has recently received a state decoration.

Gábor Németh started working at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the University of Szeged after his graduation in 1985, and for the past 7 years he has been the head of the department. He has further expanded the surgical repertoire of the department and implemented reforms in undergraduate and postgraduate training, while striving to further strengthen the scientific performance of the department and its relations with other Hungarian institutions

The professor places great emphasis on the protection of families and women and, as a member of the Pro Familia Hungarian Scientific Society, on improving the demographic situation as well. As a result, it came as no surprise when he was recently awarded the Knight's Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit in recognition of his professional activities. He believes that this could not have been achieved without a stable family background, just as you cannot live a full life without a family.

- My father was a biologist, and even some of my current colleagues attended his premedical course. He taught me as well. I had never considered any other option but to become a doctor. However, obstetrics and gynecology only captured my interest in the third or fourth year, when I did some student research work at the department, and then I stayed for good. Professor László Kovács, the former head of the department, played a very decisive role in my professional development; he was an icon in my life, he introduced me to laboratory work at a very young age - recalls the Vice-Dean for General Affairs and Professional Training at the Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical School.

It was at the suggestion of László Kovács as well that he travelled to the United States early in his career to work in the field of gynecological endocrinology at Yale University under the guidance of Frederick Naftolin. Gábor Németh is also grateful to his father-in-law, who helped him get a job at the department. Today the situation is different: it is much easier to get a position as a gynecologist, since is not a very attractive career for young doctors because of being a very demanding and challenging field.

- In our profession, too, it is true that you can only be good at it if you do it meticulously and love what you do. It's also important to have a good team and cooperation at the workplace. I think our team is like that; my colleagues hang together, especially the young ones. But as a young doctor, you also have to keep in mind what Professor János Gellén taught me earlier, that in order to be able to get something out of the basket when you are older, you have to put it in first, that is, you have to learn, you need practice and experience so that you can feed off the basket later on, he emphasized.