Pavel Traubner (2 May 1941 – 14 November 2024) was a Slovak neurologist.

Life and career

Traubner was born in

Ilava Ilava (, ) is a town in the Trenčín Region, northwestern Slovakia. Name The name is of uncertain origin. The historic medieval names were ''Lewe'', ''Lewa'' (the same historic name as Levice), ''Lewa de cidca fluviom Vag'', later ''Ilava''. ...

on 2 May 1941, to a Jewish family, which faced persecution by the Hlinka Guard. His father was a dentist. In 1944, a policeman, who was a patient of Traubner's father, warned the family that it is about to be deported to a

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

. The family hid in a disused military bunker hidden deep in a forest, leaving all their possessions behind. Traubner studied medicine at the

Comenius University Comenius University Bratislava () is the largest university in Slovakia, with most of its faculties located in Bratislava. It was founded in 1919, shortly after the creation of Czechoslovakia. It is named after Jan Amos Comenius, a 17th-century ...

. As a medical student, he moonlighted at a morgue to support himself, as his family fell into poverty after a sudden death of his father due to a stroke. Traubner graduated with a medical degree in 1964. In 1985, he defended his candidature. In 1991, he became a professor of neurology at the Comenius University, where he taught until his death. Between 1991 and 2008, Traubner was the head doctor at the neurology department of the university hospital. Between 2000 and 2007, he served as the Dean of Faculty of Medicine. In addition to medical and academic career, Traubner was active as the honorary chairman of the Central Association of Jewish Religious Communities (UZZNO) and of

B'nai B'rith B'nai B'rith International ( ; from ) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit Jewish service organization and was formerly a cultural association for German Jewish immigrants to the United States. B'nai B'rith states that it is committed to the se ...

. In 2001, he was awarded the Pribina Cross, 2nd class for his medical and academic achievements by the president

Rudolf Schuster Rudolf Schuster (born 4 January 1934) is a Slovak politician, who served as the second president of Slovakia from 1999 to 2004. He was elected on 29 May 1999 and inaugurated on 15 June. In the presidential elections of April 2004, in which he so ...

Personal life and death

In 1974, Traubner married Katerína, a chemical engineer. They had two daughters; Ronnie, who also became a neurologist, and Wanda, a child psychologist. Trauber died in

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

on 14 November 2024, at the age of 83.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Traubner, Pavel 1941 births 2024 deaths 20th-century Slovak physicians 21st-century Slovak physicians People from Ilava Slovak Jews Comenius University alumni