The historic Bersohn and Bauman Children's Hospital building at 60 Sienna Street – the future headquarters of the WMG – served its intended purpose until 2014, serving the needs of young patients. We spoke with Dr. Małgorzata Wieczorek, a radiologist who worked there in the late 80s and early 90s.
December 3, 2020
When and under what circumstances did you end up at the Provincial Infectious Diseases Hospital at 60 Sienna Street?
Immediately after graduation, at the urging of my colleague Dr. Michał Elwertowski, I worked at the Nuclear Medicine Department at the Central Clinical Hospital on Banacha Street. There, from him, I learned ultrasonography. This was the early days of this method. Back then, few hospitals in Poland had ultrasound machines for diagnostic imaging. During martial law, an embargo on technological devices was imposed on Poland, and only a few clever managers were able to bypass it. Our facility had, at the time, perhaps the only machine in Poland capable of simultaneous imaging and Doppler flow testing. This was very helpful in assessing, among other things, liver function. The children's hospital at 60 Sienna Street did not have an ultrasound facility, yet it cared for children with various types of viral hepatitis. Today, this would be impossible, but back then – without a formal agreement – several children were brought to us from Sienna Street to Banacha Street once a week for abdominal ultrasound examinations. First, Dr. Elwertowski, then I, performed these tests without additional compensation, satisfying our curiosity about inflammatory liver changes in children. Sometimes Dr. Maria Gajda would come with the children. Due to what we might call personal friction, Dr. Elwertowski was dismissed from the Central Clinical Hospital first, then I, in 1989. After passing my radiology exam, on December 1, 1989, I was hired, initially as a part-time assistant, then three-quarters time, in the ultrasound department at the hospital on Sienna Street, where I initially worked in shifts with Dr. Elwertowski, then on my own.
Have you heard about the extraordinary history of this place before?
Little was known about the ghetto back then. I knew the hospital had been built before the war, I knew it was located within the Warsaw Ghetto, and then, during the Warsaw Uprising, it served as an insurgent hospital.
What were your first impressions of working at this hospital?
Initially, the ultrasound lab was in a low building next to the main building. The hospital clinic was also located there. I didn't need to go to the main building. I performed ultrasounds on the children I brought in – in the winter, they were especially swaddled so they could move from building to building – and if necessary, I could contact the attending physicians by phone. Sometimes the physicians would bring the children if they were interested in the exam. They were familiar with my descriptions from earlier years – I think they were pleased that diagnostic tests were available on-site. I loved going to the hospital on Sienna Street, especially in the summer. I was captivated by the beautiful hollyhocks blooming there, in the hospital grounds. In 1991, I was on six months' maternity leave. Upon my return, I discovered that the lab had been moved to the main building. It was located on the ground floor, adjacent to Ward A. I have the impression that the hospital building underwent a major renovation at that time.
Did she meet interesting people, good, professional doctors, at the hospital on Sienna Street?
Here they are:
Prof. Monika Czachorowska – head of the neuroinfection department. She introduced decompressive drainage of the pericerebral spaces in children with acute subdural hydrops or developing hydrocephalus – this was the subject of her doctoral dissertation. She also consulted with children in the neurosurgery department at Omega Hospital at 57 Al. Jerozolimskie Street. She was the inspiration for my research paper.
Dr. Andrzej Pelc – at the beginning of my career, head of the diarrhea ward, later director of the hospital. I remember him as a pleasant person who smoked 40 cigarettes a day until a nighttime heart attack so frightened the doctor that he quit smoking overnight, without any unpleasant consequences.
Dr. Oziemska – in my day, she worked in the hospital's outpatient clinic. We met briefly, between patient appointments, or when we needed to discuss a child's examination. She was calm, composed, and professional. She impressed me and the nurse working in the clinic – Mrs. Elżbieta, I don't remember her last name – with her excellent eyesight. She didn't wear glasses to read, not even tiny letters from the phone book, printed on a yellow background, and in dim light. She claimed she inherited her vision from her father – so he didn't need glasses for the rest of his life.
Dr. Zofia Truchanowicz also worked at the clinic in my day. She was smiling and liked people. Dr. Alicja Wiśniewska was a well-groomed, elegant woman. She impressed me when she told me she was retiring from the hospital and moving to the United States to marry an American.
Dr. Marek Mokrowiecki – became the hospital director after Dr. Pelc. Handsome, cheerful, witty, a very good doctor, with extensive knowledge and experience. Dr. Maria Gajda – I believe we met while examining children at the hospital on Banacha Street.
Dr. Danuta Miłkowska – quiet, calm and concerned about children.
Dr. Mirosława Gołębiewska – very matter-of-fact, replaced Dr. Czachorowska as head of the neuroinfections department. She and her department were transferred to the hospital in Dziekanów Leśny. As far as I know, she still works there today.
How do you remember those few years you worked in the hospital?
I have very fond memories of my years working at the children's hospital – both from the perspective of my own development and as an employee fulfilling my duties in a pleasant environment, with friendly, competent people. Working there was both developing and satisfying. It was a pleasure to collaborate with specialists, knowing that they valued my test results. When my then-several-year-old stepdaughter was admitted to the neuroinfection ward with encephalitis, I knew she was in the right place, safe, and would be treated to the highest standards. My father was a pediatrician. I completed my studies with the same specialization in mind. As a student, I saw patients in his office with my father, learning how to perform clinical examinations of children and taking proper medical histories. During my studies, pediatrics classes were held at various children's hospitals, including the hospital on Sienna Street. I remember this hospital as small, clean, and with friendly staff. Back then, there was no running water in the patient rooms. There were sinks with tanks, and water flowed from a foot-operated faucet. It was the turn of the 70s and 80s. Because I remembered the clinics from the 60s, it didn't impress me. Back then, many hospitals were quite primitive compared to today's standards. When I graduated, I thought I'd go to the hospital on Sienna Street for an interview about a job and specialization. I saved my final exam for the fall session, and afterward, I wanted to go to a job interview. During the summer, however, I was persuaded to work in the ultrasound lab at the Central Clinical Hospital on Banacha Street – my colleagues convinced me that it would be easier to interview for a job if I had additional, practical skills.
Why didn't you ultimately become a pediatrician?
Ultrasonography captivated me, so I didn't specialize in pediatrics; instead, I specialized in radiology. By a twist of fate, I later landed at the hospital on Sienna Street – after purchasing an ultrasound machine, the management needed a doctor like me. After a few years of working there, I learned that it was possible to apply for a modern ultrasound machine at the Foundation for Polish Science. Thanks to my collaboration with the neuroinfection department, I was able to submit a research project, which was accepted by the foundation. The machine was purchased for the hospital, and I developed the project into a doctoral thesis entitled "Assessment of the value of cerebral blood flow studies in transfontanelle ultrasound examinations of the brain." One of the reviewers was Professor Monika Czachorowska. I specialized not only in transfontanelle assessment of intracranial structures but also in the evaluation of the liver and pancreas. With the management’s consent – again, without any additional money for the hospital or for me, such were the times – I performed abdominal ultrasound examinations on children from the Institute of Mother and Child suffering from cystic fibrosis.
Do you remember your little patients?
I remember many children from that time. Two particularly stick in my mind: a 14-year-old boy with acute liver failure – an ultrasound revealed specific, rare changes – in whom the cause of the disease could not be determined. Tests on a biopsy sample – a fragment of the liver obtained during the biopsy – were inconclusive in Poland. The biopsy was sent to the Netherlands, but the diagnosis came after the child's death: acute herpetic hepatitis, an inflammation that caused death very quickly. The second case ended well: a young child was admitted to the hospital with jaundice and liver failure – again without an identified cause… Until the child's mother came to visit with a large amount of carrot juice. When the nurse pointed out that children were not allowed to bring anything to eat or drink, she replied to those on a liver diet that her child needed to drink at least a liter (!) of carrot juice daily. From then on, it was clear that hypervitaminosis – an oversupply – of vitamin A and the associated liver failure should be suspected. After stopping the juice, the child recovered. I have few memories, a few anecdotes irrelevant to the hospital's history, including a dying cat that eventually came to live in my home for many years... I will never forget the hospital.
Interviewed by Anna Kilian
Photo: Magdalena Jonas-Poławska
