“Puls Medycyny” magazine announced the contest results at a virtual meeting and Gala on 9 March 2021. The top position on the List of 100 most influential figures in Polish medicine and healthcare in 2020 share prof. Krzysztof Simon MD, PhD, head of the Department of Infectious Diseases and Hepatology at the Faculty of Dentistry of Wroclaw Medical University and head of the 1^st Isolation Ward of the Gromkowski Voivodship Specialist Hospital in Wrocław, and Adam Niedzielski PhD, Minister of Health. For the third time in a row, the honorable second place in the category “medicine” is occupied by Prof. Henryk Skarżyński MD, PhD, dr. h.c. multi, who has been in the Top 100 for 18 years, including 12 times in the Top 10, and twice (in 2013 and 2016) took the first place. The Top 20 list included, on the 16^th position, prof. Piotr H. Skarżyński MD, PhD, PhD in Health Sciences, MSc in management.

At this time of challenge for the medical community, words of thanks for courage, heroism, and devotion were particularly relevant at the Gala.

– 2020 was a time of heroes in medicine. I want to take this opportunity to thank all the doctors fighting against the pandemic, who, risking their health and life, stood by the beds of the sick.   Many a time, they worked beyond their strength, with the hospital becoming their home. Thank you. – said Patricia Deyna, chairwoman of Bonnier Business Polska, publisher of the “Puls Medycyny” magazine.

Prof. Henryk Skarżyński, thanking for the distinction, also spoke about difficulties and challenges brought by the pandemic: – Most importantly, we have to face reality during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of our plans, such as developing fMRI research programs or combating noise at schools, which is a massive threat to our children, had to be revised and postponed. Gradually, we are creating new solutions and preparing recipes for clinical, educational, or organizational activity in medical establishments. However, what is most important is that we have managed to fulfill the last year’s contract with the National Health Fund in 100%, despite working for a long time with reduced staff, which required an effort, for which I am grateful to all of them. This means that Polish patients still had full access to cutting-edge technologies and treatment methods in our field. 

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Prof. Henryk Skarżyński reminded that before COVID-19 restrictions were announced, surgeries to treat congenital and acquired hearing damage using the latest generation BB602 middle ear implants had been successfully conducted in the first patients in Poland, who were one of the first recipients globally.

– Last year, we implanted the highest number of such devices in the world, thus giving Polish patients a real chance to hear well or very well – added Prof. H. Skarżyński. – In most cases, these were complex and multiorgan inborn disorders, where hearing improvement was and is of particular importance. If I add that most of these patients were children, whom we helped successfully, this is a real success measure. We also minimized the potential risk of the loss of pre-operational hearing, often residual yet important. Preserving the intact structure of the inner ear allows the patients to function well today and gives them good future prospects. Last year we were a world leader in this area. Along with clinical work, we also pursue academic development. The Institute now has more titular professors and doctors. The scientific publications that appeared in 2020 in journals included in Journal Citation Reports alone would allow me to receive another professor’s title. An important event in the challenging year 2020 was the second Congress “Health of Poles” 2020, organized by the Institute’s team. I am happy that it was co-organized by distinguished experts from all communities and the largest university cities.     

The editors announced the previous edition of the List of Hundred results just before the outbreak of the pandemic. Nobody suspected at that time how the world would change in 2020 and what challenges medicine would face.

 – For that reason, the present List of Hundred is special – Małgorzata Konaszczuk, editor-in-chief of the “Puls Medycyny” magazine, said during the Gala.  – A year after the first case of SARS-CoV-2 was detected in Poland, may this meeting of selected representatives of the world of medicine and healthcare system be a remembrance of the applause with which people rewarded medical professionals fighting against the first wave of the pandemic. The applause has long fallen silent, although it was deserved every day in 2020 – added  M. Konaszczuk.

“The List of Hundred” is a contest organized for 18 years by the “Puls Medycyny” magazine to distinguish people who had a particular impact on Polish medicine and improvement of the healthcare system in Poland. The position in the List is decided by the contest jury composed of distinguished experts. They look at the achievements and accomplishments in the previous year, professional reputation and impact in the medical community or the Polish healthcare system, and the strength of public influence. Compared to last year, the 2020 List of Hundred most influential figures in Polish medicine recorded: 29 increases, 40 declines, 2 positions without change, and 29 new entries or returns.

The complete List is available at https://pulsmedycyny.pl/lista-stu/