Professor İhsan Doğramacı (3 April 1915 – 25 February 2010) was a Turkish

paediatrician Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until the ...

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values t ...

, philanthropist,

educationalist Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Vari ...

and college administrator of

Iraqi Turkmen The Iraqi Turkmens (also spelled as Turkoman and Turcoman; tr, Irak Türkmenleri), also referred to as Iraqi Turks, Turkish-Iraqis, the Turkish minority in Iraq, and the Iraqi-Turkish minority ( ar, تركمان العراق; tr, Irak Türkleri ...

descent born in today's Erbil,

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

then

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. Doğramacı was a pediatric physician and an international leader of development. He was the founder of

Bilkent University Bilkent University ( tr, Bilkent Üniversitesi) is a private university located in Ankara, Turkey. It was founded by Prof. İhsan Doğramacı in 1984, with the aim of creating a center of excellence in higher education and research. It is constan ...

, a leading private university and

Hacettepe University Hacettepe University is a leading state university in Ankara, Turkey. It was established on 8 July 1967. It is ranked first among the Turkish universities by URAP in 2021. The university has two main campuses. The first campus is in the old t ...

, one of the overall highly ranked universities in Turkey which specializes in

medical science Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practic ...

s in

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

, chairman of the

UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to ...

executive board, founding President of the Council of Higher Education of Turkey (YÖK), executive director and president of ''International Pediatric Association (IPA)'', co-ratifier of

WHO Who or WHO may refer to: * Who (pronoun), an interrogative or relative pronoun * Who?, one of the Five Ws in journalism * World Health Organization Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Who, a creature in the Dr. Seuss book '' Horton He ...

's constitution, and he had been the first president and the chairman of its board of trustees in

(World Health Organization) since 1985. He was offered national political leadership positions such as ministry of foreign affairs and premiership by Cemal Gürsel and Süleyman Demirel, both of which he declined. Doğramacı spoke Turkish, English, French, German,

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

and

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

. He authored over 100 scientific articles, three books, six book chapters and served as the editor of four medical journals.

International organisations

He was a Fellow of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and has been an Honorary Scientific Advisor to the ''International Centre for Childhood Studies'' in England since 1982. Doğramacı was a member of the Board of Trustees of Heart International in 1981. He was the president of IPA/

/ FIGO/

UNFPA The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), formerly the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, is a UN agency aimed at improving reproductive and maternal health worldwide. Its work includes developing national healthcare strategies ...

Task Force (1997–1998). He was a member of the Board (1970–1984) of the International Children's Centre in Paris, and he had been a member of the Board of Regents of the International Association for Humanitarian Medicine since 2000. Professor İhsan Doğramacı co-founded the ''Assembly of the Parliament of Cultures'' with Prince Hassan of Jordan and joined members from many nations in

in 2004. The purpose of the Foundation is to promote and strengthen international and intercultural understanding among different cultures in the world and to enhance dialogue between their thinkers and intellectuals by means of peaceful dialogue.

International Pediatric Association (IPA)

He had been the Honorary President of the International Pediatric Association (IPA) since 1992 and was the president of IPA between 1968 and 1977 and the Executive Director between 1977 and 1993.

World Health Organization (WHO)

He signed the

Constitution in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, July 1946 (he was the last living signatory). He was the Vice President in 1976 and a member of the Executive Board between 1976 and 1982. He had been a member of many child health-related programs and groups in WHO.

UNICEF

He had been a member of the

Executive Board (1959–1985), and he was elected as Chairman of the Board for two terms. He had been the President of the Turkish National Committee for UNICEF (1958–2003). He was a major financial charitable contributor to the UNICEF co-sponsored Turkish educational community campaig
"Let's Go to School, Girls"

Turkey

İhsan Doğramacı matured in the secular Turkey of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. This was a political environment that Doğramacı endeavored to help develop, with his focus being medicine and child health. He also saw higher education as a parallel concern. He set out on the path to reform these fields, a path filled with obstacles of bureaucratic, legal and self-interested opposition by several circles. Sir Horace Phillips described him in his book: 'This is a likable man, emphatic in manner, but gentle with it; sometimes intolerant of those who do not share his ideals. But he has not been spoiled by his achievements.'

Administratorship

Doğramacı was the founding President of the Council of Higher Education of Turkey (YÖK) from 1981 until 1992. He chaired the Board of Trustees in Middle East Technical University in 1965 and held the rector position in Ankara University in 1963 and several other universities in Turkey.

Hacettepe University

After a rapid rise in academia, Doğramacı became a

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

of pediatrics in 1955. In the same year, Prof. Doğramacı founded ''The Child Health Department'' affiliated with Ankara University Medical School. In 1958 the ''Child Health Institute and Hospital'' started to serve the community as well as its researches and education. In 1961 School of

Health Sciences The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to health sciences: Health sciences are those sciences which focus on health, or health care, as core parts of their subject matter. Health sciences relate to multiple ac ...

was founded as the first instance of school healthcare science in Turkey. Subsequent to the establishment of some other departments such as dentistry, home economics the institute became another higher education center affiliated with Ankara University Medical School, and thus in 1967, the Hacettepe University was founded officially. After the establishment of some other departments under Hacettepe University, a need for a larger educational building complex aroused. İhsan Doğramacı endowed a considerable amount to foundations named ''Hacettepe Education Foundation'' and ''Hacettepe Health Foundation''. Thanks to these donations the new campus for Hacettepe University was built rapidly. Presently, Hacettepe University is one of the best state universities in Turkey in medicine-related areas.

Bilkent University

After the legislation allowing the establishment of private universities in Turkey upon Doğramacı's request and effort, he began his searches to found a private,

campus university A campus university is a British term for a university situated on one site, with student accommodation, teaching and research facilities, and leisure activities all together. It is derived from the Latin term campus, meaning "a flat expanse of ...

. Afterward, in 1984 between Middle East Technical University and

campuses, the first private university of Turkey,

was founded. Doğramacı founded some industrial companies such as Tepe construction to build educational buildings and to provide financial support for the university as well. All the companies incorporated under Bilkent Holding are now one of the major corporate groups of Turkey. All companies were endowed to the Bilkent University. Doğramacı's all heirs relinquished their rights to the companies. By this act, he donated nearly his whole fortune to the university. Bilkent University is now one of the best universities nationwide and according to

Times Higher Education World University Rankings The ''Times Higher Education World University Rankings'' (often referred to as the THE Rankings) is an annual publication of university rankings by the ''Times Higher Education'' (THE) magazine. The publisher had collaborated with Quacquarelli ...

, Bilkent is the 112. the best university worldwide. Affiliated with Bilkent University, Doğramacı had some other educational projects. The first of his university-level education centers of excellence (the opening of which had been his most recent project) was inaugurated in

Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...

''(Bilkent Erzurum Laboratory High School)'' in 2007 followed by three other centers in East and Southeast Turkey. Professor İhsan Doğramacı also provided charitable financial private scholarship support to university students in medical sciences and music for over 40 years. The Turkish

Foreign Policy Institute The Foreign Policy Institute ( tr, Dış Politika Enstitüsü or ''DPE'') is a Turkish think tank on foreign policy and international relations. It was founded in 1974. The Foreign Policy Institute is the first ever Think Tank formed in Turkey ...

of Bilkent University administers an award program of İhsan Doğramacı Prize of International Relations for Peace. Doğramacı, with his wife, Ayer Doğramacı, endowed their family wealth to the support of educational and medical projects. In more recent times the Founder had turned his attention to the place of his birth, Erbil. The vision of the Ihsan Dogramaci Erbil Foundation was to build a needed and unique school in a region that has had a troubled history. After the completion of construction, the first students of ''İhsan Doğramacı Bilkent Erbil College'' began classes in 2010.

Personal life

His father Doğramacızade Ali Pasha was the Mayor of Erbil and later a Senator in Baghdad; his grandfather Mehmet Ali Kirdar was a Member of the Ottoman Parliament for Kirkuk. Doğramacı was married to Ayser Süleyman in 1942. He had three children. His son, Professor

Ali Doğramacı ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, عَلِيّ بْن أَبِي طَالِب; 600 – 661 CE) was the last of four Rightly Guided Caliphs to rule Islam (r. 656 – 661) immediately after the death of Muhammad, and he was the first Shia Imam. ...

was the

Rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of Bilkent University until 1 March 2010. Currently his grandson-in-law Prof. Dr. Abdullah Atalar is the rector.

Death

İhsan Dogramaci died at Hacettepe University Hospital on 25 February 2010 from

multiple organ failure Multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) is altered organ function in an acutely ill patient requiring medical intervention to achieve homeostasis. Although Irwin and Rippe cautioned in 2005 that the use of "multiple organ failure" or "multisy ...

. He had been receiving treatment in the intensive care unit there since November 2009.

Awards, Prizes, and Decorations

Orders and Decorations

* ''1976'' – :

Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella The Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella (''Orden al Mérito de Duarte, Sánchez y Mella'') is the principal order of the Dominican Republic. It was established on 24 February 1931 as the ''Juan Pablo Duarte Order of Merit'' (''Orden al M� ...

* ''1977'' – :

National Order of the Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...

* ''1979'' – :

Order of the Lion of Finland The Order of the Lion of Finland ( fi, Suomen Leijonan ritarikunta; sv, Finlands Lejons orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty and the Order of the White Rose of Finland. The President ...

* ''1989'' – :

Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland The Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Order Zasługi Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) is a Polish order of merit created in 1974, awarded to persons who have rendered great service to Poland. It is granted to foreigners or Poles resident a ...

* ''1989'' – : Médaille de la Ville de Paris * ''1990'' – : Grand Cross Order of Christopher Columbus * ''1995'' – : State Medal of Distinguished Service * ''1997'' – :

Medal for Merit The Medal for Merit was, during the period it was awarded, the highest civilian decoration of the United States. It was awarded by the President of the United States to civilians who "distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious conduct i ...

* ''1997'' – : Golden Medal Health For All * ''2000'' – : Firs Class of Istiglal Order * ''2000'' – :

Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana ( et, Maarjamaa Risti teenetemärk, sometimes translated as the Order of the Cross of St. Mary's Land) was instituted by the President of Estonia, Lennart Meri, on 16 May 1995 to honour the independence of t ...

* ''2005'' – :

Heydar Aliyev Order Heydar Aliyev Order ( az, "Heydər Əliyev" ordeni) is the supreme order of Azerbaijan. The order was ratified by legislation of Azerbaijan Republic by the Decree No. 896-IIQ on 22 April 2005. The Heydar Aliyev Order is given to the citizens of th ...

* ''2005'' – : Golden Medal of Sevda-Cenap Music Foundation Honor Award * ''2009'' – : Iraqi Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Commendation Medal * ''2009'' – : Medal of Egyptian People's Assembly

Awards

* ''1978'' – :

TÜBİTAK The Scientific and Technological Research Institution of Turkey ( tr, Türkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Araştırma Kurumu, TÜBİTAK) is a national agency of Turkey whose stated goal is to develop "science, technology and innovation" (STI) policies ...

Service Award * ''1981'' – : Léon Bernard Foundation Prize * ''1986'' – : Christopherson Award ( American Academy of Pediatrics) * ''1995'' – : Maurice Pate Award * ''1995'' – : Soranus of Science and Friendship Award * ''1998'' – : “ Peace, Justice and Tolerance” Prize * ''1999'' – : Health and Education Award * ''2000'' – : Distinguished Service Award (

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey The Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( tr, Dışişleri Bakanlığı) is a Government of Turkey, government ministry of the Republic of Turkey, responsible for the nation's Foreign relations of Turkey, foreign policy and international relations. Es ...

) * ''2004'' – : Dr. Ju Shichiro Naito International Child Health Award * ''2007'' – : Honor Award of the

Grand National Assembly of Turkey The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( tr, ), usually referred to simply as the TBMM or Parliament ( tr, or ''Parlamento''), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Const ...

* ''2009'' – : Award of Islamic Organization for Medical Sciences

References

External links

Prof.Dr.İhsan Dogramacı

His photograph and CV

* ttp://www.milliyet.com.tr/2007/04/03/yazar/akyol.html An outline of his educational and charitable international activities(in Turkish)
Some of his Addresses

Assembly of the Parliament of Cultures

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dogramaci, Ihsan 1915 births 2010 deaths Deaths from multiple organ failure People from Erbil Turkish people of Iraqi Turkmen descent Hacettepe University faculty Turkish medical researchers Turkish non-fiction writers Chairmen and Presidents of UNICEF Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 3rd Class Rectors of universities and colleges in Turkey Recipients of the Heydar Aliyev Order Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Istiglal Order Recipients of TÜBİTAK Service Award Rectors of Ankara University Bilkent University people Turkish officials of the United Nations Iraqi Turkmen people Léon Bernard Foundation Prize laureates