Janina Murawska, Elżbieta Kuriata

Władysław Szczepański – przewodniczący Oddziału Olsztyńskiego Polskiego Towarzystwa Farmaceutycznego w latach 1973–1982
2017-01-25

Władyslaw Szczepanski – Chair of the Polish Pharmaceutical Society's Regional Branch in Olsztyn between 1973–1982

In 1972 Wladyslaw Szczepanski moved from Czestochowa to Olsztyn. The reason behind it was relocation due to work. He was approaching 50 years of age, had experience, professional reputation, a PhD in pharmaceutical sciences and signficant research experience. He had quickly gained approval amongst the pharmaceutical community and soon, in May 1973, was chosen as the Chair of the Polish Pharmaceutical Society’s Regional Branch in Olsztyn. He continued to lead as the Chair until 1982. As, during that time, there was no medical school in the region of former voivodship of Olsztyn, and no professional body had been established, it was the role of the Regional Branch of the Pharmaceutical Society to be the place where pharmacists keen to continue professional development would gather. Dr Szczepanski was the one to lead the pharmaceutical development in the region of Olsztyn, as then as of 1976 Ostroleka and Ciechanow. His most important goal was to ‘improve the theoretical and practical skills amongst pharmacists and to promote new academic findings’. He proudly invited everyone to join the Polish Pharmaceutical Society and attend its meetings. In his first year as the Chair, the number of members increased from 120 to 232, so did the number of presentations. Around 1974 new Sections were created including: Section of Hospital Pharmacies, Section of Economics, Section of the History of Pharmacy and in 1976 local subbranches in Ostroleka and Ciechanow. Wladyslaw Szczepanski was a true passionate of the history of pharmacy. He wrote down biographies of many pharmacists and their pharmacies preventing them from being forgotten about. During his term, 172 essays were presented, 112 conferences were held and the Branch tripled the number of its members.

Keywords: history of pharmacy, biography, passionate

© Farm Pol, 2017, 73(1): 13-16