Professor Henryka K. Siwińska-Gołębiowska was born 14 July 1932 in Warsaw. In years 1938-1950 she attended primary and secondary school and then she graduated Medical Faculty of Medical Academy in Warsaw (years 1950-1956). Her
occupational life from the beginning was associated with Mother and Child Institute in Warsaw where she had been working continuously in Pediatrics Clinic, first (since 1956), as an assistant, then as the Head of Older Children Department (since 1998).
In 1974-2002 she was the head of Clinical Immunology Institute.
Her life and occupational path consisted of following steps: specialization in Pediatrics in 1961, title of Doctor of Medicine in 1965, habilitation in 1973 (scientific title in Poland). In 1984 she was granted the title of Professor of Pediatrics. In 2003 she specialized in Clinical Immunology. Since that year she became the Consultant in Clinical Immunology Institute. In May 2004 she was nominated for the position of Deputy Director for Science and Postgraduate Education in Mother and Child Institute. Since 1966 she took part in numerous internships: in England (1966), Sweden (1969, 1970, 1973, 1978, 1985, 1989), USA (1973,1999), Switzerland (1973), Since the 70’s till 1998 she was elected a Member of the Drug Registration Commission of the Ministry of Health. She participated in the activity and science work of many Committees (Pediatric, Allergological, European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology (since 1985), European Society of Immunodeficiencies (since 1984), International Society of Cystic Fibrosis (since 1970). However, Professor Henryka was most closely associated with the Polish Society of Experimental and Clinical Immunology being the First Lady of Immunology among pediatricians. She was the author of more than 300 scientific publications and over 50 chapters in academic books of pediatrics, pharmacology and immunology. Author,
co-author, editor of 2 books from the field of immunology and pharmacology.
Her book Immunopathology of The Developmental Age, PZWL Warszawa 1980, was a keystone publication on which populations of pediatrics were “growing up” for many years, that will never be forgotten. She wanted to come back to this book and modernize and perfect it as her life-mission.
The most popular and famous in general-pediatric literature “Drugs doses in neonates, children and youth” PZWL was already published 8 times!!!
Professor Gołębiowska as a clinical expert has been the author of 20 reports for world registration of many drugs since 1998.
As a human being she was unusual, indeed. Always with great proper self-culture, warm heart for everyone, real angel behaving, bold and elegance, never waiting for “the lights”.
Her wide hobbies, not only medical, allowed us to talk with her whenever and whatever as friends knowing each-other for ages. Professor had always much time and understanding for young doctors, who just started in job, she support their enthusiasm and fascination. I was lucky to get all of it personally, when I worked under her supervision in The Immunological Department of Mother and Child Institute in Warsaw.
Delicately and calmly “motherly” she carried about me by giving many scientific materials to read (she always checked if I did), she supported me in weakness by awaking the power inside to go active again.
She brought up many doctors, scientists and people, being for them a master, a symbol of a deep knowledge,
a hard-working and a very ethic person.
Having a great clinical, experimental knowledge,
a medical intuition together with all world news and future plans, she played as a rock in difficult clinical decisions.
Professor H.S.G. was stable in her opinions, keeping the forehead up against all “strong winds and new waves” that Polish Health Service faced. For all her life she was always in right place to help everyone in need keeping Hippocrates Oath in heart.
14-th day of September 2006 she left us, after a long and hard fight with untreated disease. She went to a far away land with “silence and rest”, leaving us “mother-less”.
To The Warsaw Powązki Cemetery, where she was buried, the Family and friends, doctors and co-workers made a last walk with her. After those months with her absence we still feel the pain and empty space and we know it will never end.
Aleksandra Lewandowicz-Uszyńska
Department of Propedeutic Pediatrics,
Children’s Clinic of Immunology and Reumatology, Medical University of Wrocław, Poland
