Qiu Fazu
Encyclopedia
Qiu Fazu, , pinyin
: Qiú Fǎzǔ (December 6, 1914; Hangzhou
, Zhejiang
– June 14, 2008; Wuhan
, Hubei
) was a Chinese surgeon
and a saviour of Jewish prisoners. In the People's Republic of China
, he is considered the father of modern Chinese surgery.
and inadequate medical assistance at a young age in 1933, which motivated Qiu to study medicine. Qiu studied at Hangchow University Preparatory School
(current Zhejiang University
) in Hangzhou
and graduated in 1932. He initially graduated from the German School of Medicine in Shanghai
, the predecessor of today's Tongji University
. In 1936, he won a Humboldt
scholarship
and went to study at the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich. He graduated from the LMU in November 1939 with honours and received his PhD
and the license to practise his profession in Germany.
In September 1944, at the age of 31, Qiu was advanced to the rank of attending physician
and headed the Jodquellenhof in Bad Tölz
, which had been turned into a makeshift hospital. On 30 April and 1 May 1945, thousands of concentration camp prisoners passed through Bad Tölz on their death march from the Dachau concentration camp. One day, a student nurse called Loni, from Munich, led him to a group of about 40 prisoners, guarded by the SS
on the street in front of the hospital. Qiu later recalled the incident: "They were wrecks, sick and weak, they could walk no further and were huddling on the ground." He gathered all his courage and told the soldiers that"These prisoners have typhoid. We must take them." He hid the concentration camp prisoners until the end of the war in the basement of the hospital and treated them. His German colleagues, as well as Loni, the student nurse, helped him . In 1945, after the war ended, Qiu and Loni married.
In 1946, Qiu returned to Shanghai with his German wife. She adopted the name Qiu Luoyi and in 1958 attained Chinese citizenship. There, Qiu worked as the head of the surgical department at the Sino-US Hospital that was attached to Tongji University. During Mao Zedong
's Cultural Revolution
(1966–1976), he was made to clean toilets, amongst other things. During this time, he found great support in his wife.
In 1978, after the revolution, Qiu was made Vice-President of Tongji Medical University in Wuhan
, which by then had completely moved out of Tongji University in Shanghai to Wuhan and was now a department of the local Huazhong University of Science and Technology. He was also made the head of the organ transplant research institute there. In 1981, he became the Head of the University and in 1984, he was made the Honorary Head, the post of which he remained at until his death in 2008.
Qiu was one of the most acclaimed surgeons of China and a pioneer of Chinese organ transplantation, who wrote a standard textbook of surgery that is still in use and has been reprinted many times. He was a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
and, from 1975 to 1993, was a member of the Chinese Communist Party,the deputy
to the 4th-7th National People's Congress
es.
Qiu died aged 94 and was buried on 7 April 2009 at Qiu Fazu Square in Tongji Medical College in Wuhan.
Pinyin
Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...
: Qiú Fǎzǔ (December 6, 1914; Hangzhou
Hangzhou
Hangzhou , formerly transliterated as Hangchow, is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in Eastern China. Governed as a sub-provincial city, and as of 2010, its entire administrative division or prefecture had a registered population of 8.7 million people...
, Zhejiang
Zhejiang
Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...
– June 14, 2008; Wuhan
Wuhan
Wuhan is the capital of Hubei province, People's Republic of China, and is the most populous city in Central China. It lies at the east of the Jianghan Plain, and the intersection of the middle reaches of the Yangtze and Han rivers...
, Hubei
Hubei
' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...
) was a Chinese surgeon
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
and a saviour of Jewish prisoners. In the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, he is considered the father of modern Chinese surgery.
Life
Qiu's mother died of appendicitisAppendicitis
Appendicitis is a condition characterized by inflammation of the appendix. It is classified as a medical emergency and many cases require removal of the inflamed appendix, either by laparotomy or laparoscopy. Untreated, mortality is high, mainly because of the risk of rupture leading to...
and inadequate medical assistance at a young age in 1933, which motivated Qiu to study medicine. Qiu studied at Hangchow University Preparatory School
Hangchow University Historic Site
Hangchow University Historic Site is a famous National Historic Site & Cultural Heritage under State Protection of the People's Republic of China. - Introduction :...
(current Zhejiang University
Zhijiang Campus, Zhejiang University
Zhijiang Campus , is a campus of Zhejiang University, which is located in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, People's Republic of China.- Introduction :...
) in Hangzhou
Hangzhou
Hangzhou , formerly transliterated as Hangchow, is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in Eastern China. Governed as a sub-provincial city, and as of 2010, its entire administrative division or prefecture had a registered population of 8.7 million people...
and graduated in 1932. He initially graduated from the German School of Medicine in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, the predecessor of today's Tongji University
Tongji University
Tongji University , colloquially known as Tongji , located in Shanghai, has more than 30,000 students and 8,000 staff members . It offers degree programs at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels...
. In 1936, he won a Humboldt
Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is a foundation set-up by the government of the Federal Republic and funded by the German Foreign Office, the Ministry of Education and Research, the Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development and others for the promotion of international co-operation...
scholarship
Scholarship
A scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
and went to study at the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich. He graduated from the LMU in November 1939 with honours and received his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
and the license to practise his profession in Germany.
In September 1944, at the age of 31, Qiu was advanced to the rank of attending physician
Attending physician
In the United States, an attending physician is a physician who has completed residency and practices medicine in a clinic or hospital, in the specialty learned during residency. An attending physician can supervise fellows, residents, and medical students...
and headed the Jodquellenhof in Bad Tölz
Bad Tölz
Bad Tölz is a town in Bavaria, Germany, and administrative center of the district of Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen.- History :Since the retreat of the glaciers at the end of the Ice Age, archaeology has shown continuous occupation of the site of Bad Tölz...
, which had been turned into a makeshift hospital. On 30 April and 1 May 1945, thousands of concentration camp prisoners passed through Bad Tölz on their death march from the Dachau concentration camp. One day, a student nurse called Loni, from Munich, led him to a group of about 40 prisoners, guarded by the SS
Schutzstaffel
The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
on the street in front of the hospital. Qiu later recalled the incident: "They were wrecks, sick and weak, they could walk no further and were huddling on the ground." He gathered all his courage and told the soldiers that"These prisoners have typhoid. We must take them." He hid the concentration camp prisoners until the end of the war in the basement of the hospital and treated them. His German colleagues, as well as Loni, the student nurse, helped him . In 1945, after the war ended, Qiu and Loni married.
In 1946, Qiu returned to Shanghai with his German wife. She adopted the name Qiu Luoyi and in 1958 attained Chinese citizenship. There, Qiu worked as the head of the surgical department at the Sino-US Hospital that was attached to Tongji University. During Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
's Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
(1966–1976), he was made to clean toilets, amongst other things. During this time, he found great support in his wife.
In 1978, after the revolution, Qiu was made Vice-President of Tongji Medical University in Wuhan
Wuhan
Wuhan is the capital of Hubei province, People's Republic of China, and is the most populous city in Central China. It lies at the east of the Jianghan Plain, and the intersection of the middle reaches of the Yangtze and Han rivers...
, which by then had completely moved out of Tongji University in Shanghai to Wuhan and was now a department of the local Huazhong University of Science and Technology. He was also made the head of the organ transplant research institute there. In 1981, he became the Head of the University and in 1984, he was made the Honorary Head, the post of which he remained at until his death in 2008.
Qiu was one of the most acclaimed surgeons of China and a pioneer of Chinese organ transplantation, who wrote a standard textbook of surgery that is still in use and has been reprinted many times. He was a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Chinese Academy of Sciences , formerly known as Academia Sinica, is the national academy for the natural sciences of the People's Republic of China. It is an institution of the State Council of China. It is headquartered in Beijing, with institutes all over the People's Republic of China...
and, from 1975 to 1993, was a member of the Chinese Communist Party,the deputy
Deputy (legislator)
A deputy is a legislator in many countries, particularly those with legislatures styled as a 'Chamber of Deputies' or 'National Assembly'.-List of countries:This is an list of countries using the term 'deputy' or one of its cognates....
to the 4th-7th National People's Congress
National People's Congress
The National People's Congress , abbreviated NPC , is the highest state body and the only legislative house in the People's Republic of China. The National People's Congress is held in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing, capital of the People's Republic of China; with 2,987 members, it is the...
es.
Qiu died aged 94 and was buried on 7 April 2009 at Qiu Fazu Square in Tongji Medical College in Wuhan.
Awards (selection)
- 1982: Honorary doctorate from the Faculty of Clinical Medicine I of the University of Heidelberg, with whom Qiu had arranged a partnership agreement in 1985 between the Medical School of Wuhan and the Medical Faculty of Heidelberg for the exchange of scientists and students.
- 1985: Grand Federal Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.
- 2007: Honorary member of the German Society for Visceral Surgery for the rescue of Jewish prisoners.
External links
- Biography
- Obituaries: Qiu Fazu - BMJBMJBMJ is a partially open-access peer-reviewed medical journal. Originally called the British Medical Journal, the title was officially shortened to BMJ in 1988. The journal is published by the BMJ Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Medical Association...
- Laudatory biography and (PACs) to 91st Birthday (photo)
- Personality description (s)
- Biography (PACs) with photo
- Obituary biographical
- Obituary of the Huazhong University with photo
- Qiu Fazuin Google Books