Dr. János Gál has been responsible for communication with foreign universities and international cooperation in the field of Military, Disaster and Law Enforcement Medicine since his appointment as Commissioner for Foreign Affairs and Strategy by Dr. Ágoston Szél, Rector on 1st October 2015. According to Dr. Gál, director of the Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Therapy, opportunities arising from cooperation with foreign universities are a great way to motivate colleagues. On the other hand, emphasizing the importance of military, disaster and law enforcement medicine is essential in an environment where natural disasters and terrorist attacks are getting more and more frequent.
As a commissioner, Dr. János Gál is responsible for the maintenance and development of the partnerships that he was managing during his term as Vice-Rector for General and Clinical Affairs.
“It is one of my priority tasks to strengthen partnerships with those universities that we have already established relationships with. I have personal ties with universities in the United Kingdom, therefore agreements are to be signed with the University of Oxford and the Imperial College London and negotiations are underway with Lomonosov Moscow State University.”, he said.
Such agreements create a great way for physicians and health care workers to gain experience abroad and to extend their professional knowledge.
“My aim is to give access to such opportunities not only to professionals working in the field of anaesthesiology and intensive care. As a commissioner, I would like to synchronise the endeavours of the other departments as well.”, Dr. János Gál said.
Dr. János Gál is also the representative of Semmelweis University in the cooperation with NATO Centre of Excellence for Military Medicine (MILMED COE). The collaboration started as a pilot programme in 2011, which was the first in Europe to be based on the partnership of a civilian health care institution and a military organisation.
He is also the coordinator of joint projects with the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Counter Terrorism Centre.
“Due to changes in the environment, such as the increasing number of natural disasters and terrorist threats, health care faces new challenges. Unfortunately, there are only a few professionals who have the necessary knowledge in case of crisis. As a result of the successful NATO collaboration, Semmelweis University was asked by the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to take part in the development and renewal of Military, Disaster and Law Enforcement Medicine.”, he said
The cooperation with the Counter Terrorism Centre mainly focuses on education by simulation. Currently the second international training course is being prepared and at the end of March Semmelweis University’s congress on Intensive Therapy, Anaesthesiology and Emergency Medicine will give the opportunity to 100 medical students to practice patient care in situations arising during crisis at.
Pálma Dobozi
Photo: Attila Kovács
Translated by: Ágnes Raubinek
