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The First Eighty Years of Otorhinolaryngology in Nis

Milan Stankovic

ORL Clinic, Medical Faculty Nis, Serbia

The City of Nis is situated in southern part of Serbia, representing the industrial, cultural, educational and medical center of the region with about two million people. Otolaryngologic healthcare in this region has some particularities with wide range of ENT diseases. During the previous eighty years otorhinolaryngology in Nis has signifficantly changed and adapted to the needs of people and to the development of medical techiques, with adequate results in therapy. University ENT Clinic in Nis is one of the leading otorhinolaryngologic institutions in Serbia.

Systematic archeological excavations in old Turkish fortress in Nis have discovered the unique monument dedicated to a good health of Roman emperor Lucius Septimus Sever (193-211). The first medical institution in Nis was Military hospital that was opened in 1878, right after the liberation. Three years later the first civilian hospital started to work, but it took almost 30 years until it moved to properly built building. In year 1901 Pasteur’s institute for producing vaccines for Serbian people was established.

Serbian king Alexandar the first wrote his charter concerning permanent position of dr Josif Valcic as the first otorhinolaryngologist to work in Nis in year 1923. This year is just fully used as the initiation of otorhinolaryngology in Nis and southern Serbia as well. Doctor Valcic has studied in Bern (Switzerland). He was a chief of a small ENT department until his retirement in 1946. The next chief of this department was dr Denes Fodor. Dr Denes Fodor was born in near Osijek (Croatia), he finished Medical faculty in Graz (Austria), and ENT specialization in Belgrade. He improved medical work in Nis significantly by performing many of classical ENT operations, strumectomies and drainage of brain abscess, as well. Enlargement of space and education of new colleagues took place during his leadership.

 

Retired Professors S. Rancic, D. Stankovic and M. Jovanovic in 1973.
 

University ENT Clinic Nis.

 

Medical faculty in Nis was established in year 1960, forty years after Belgrade. Lectures in otorhinolaryngology for students of medicine and stomatology started in 1964. The first assistant was dr Dusan Stankovic, and few professors from Belgrade were engaged in education, lectures and examinations. One year later dr Mihailo Jovanovic came from Medical hospital as elected docent, and later head of otolaryngology in Nis.

ENT CLINIC IN NIS

International ENT meeting in Nis in 2001 (Professors Burian, Baumgartner, Dimov, Stoyanov, and Stankovic).

University ENT Clinic in Nis was built and started to work in year 1969. This enabled adequate space for medical and educational activities and caused rapid improvement in otorhinolaryngology in Nis. After retirement of Professor Jovanovic, the head was Professor Popovic, and now the head of the Clinic is Professor Stankovic.

ENT Clinic in Nis has 60 beds, two operating rooms, and departments for otology, rhinology, laryngology and oncology, as well as departments for audiology and phoniatry. Now, ENT Clinic employs 19 otolaryngologists and five anesthesiologists. Complete education of students, scientific projects, and specialization programmes are permanently performed.

Many prominent otolaryngologist gave lectures in ENT Clinic in Nis, such as: Prof. Pfaltz (Switzerland), Prof. Cachin (France), Prof. Burian and Baumgartner (Austria), Prof. Jovanovic (Germany), Prof Dimov and Stoyanov (Bulgaria).

ENT Clinic in Nis has organized national and international Conferences, and September ENT meeting in Nis has become traditional.

Clinical ENT practice has gone through marked development especially during the last ten years. Classical otologic operations are routinely performed, with particular attention on microtia and skull base surgery. Cochlear implant program is in progress. Endoscopic sinus surgery, malignant tumor operations, as well as rhinoplasties and reconstructive procedures after tumor removal are represented. Lower respiratory tract and esophageal endoscopy are well established and widely done. Laryngeal and hypopharyngeal tumor surgery are one of the most frequent oncologic procedures with good result and outcome represented by five year survival period.

ENT DEPARTMENT
IN MILITARY HOSPITAL NIS

Otolaryngology in Military hospital in Nis started from year 1936 when dr Tanasije Jovanovic has started to work after finishing specialization in Zagreb (Croatia). New building was opened in 1960, and further development followed.

This department now has four otolaryngologists that perform numerous diagnostic, therapeutic and outpatient procedures for military and civilians.

OUTPATIENT ENT PRACTICE

Starting from 1964 public healthcare system organized permanent ENT practice. Well organized and equipped outpatient otorhinolaryngology has central Institution for ambulatory ENT practice, Institution for medicine of work, and for railroad workers with totally 10 otorhinolaryngologists.

ENT specialists and anesthesiologists working in ENT Clinic Nis 2003.
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