Karel Raška

Czech epidemiologist (1909-1987)

Karel Raška

Born| (1909-11-17)November 17, 1909

Strašín, Czech Republic

Died| November 21, 1987(1987-11-21) (aged 78)

Prague, Czech Republic

Alma mater| Charles University
Known for| Smallpox eradication
Awards| Edward Jenner Medal (1984)
Scientific career
Institutions| Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology
World Health Organization

Karel Raška (Czech pronunciation: [ˈkarɛl ˈraʃka]; 17 November 1909 – 21 November 1987) was a Czech physician and epidemiologist, who headed the successful international effort during the 1960s to eradicate smallpox.

## Early life

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Raška was a Director of the WHO Division of Communicable Disease Control since 1963. His new concept of eliminating the disease was adopted by the WHO in 1967 and eventually led to the eradication of smallpox in 1977.[1] Raška was also a strong promoter of the concept of disease surveillance, which was adopted in 1968 and has since become a standard practice in epidemiology.[2]

At the end of World War II, together with epidemiologist František Patočka, he was personally leading measures to stop the spread of epidemic typhus in the Terezín concentration camp.[3]

Despite being respected abroad, Raška's contribution to eradicating smallpox was not appreciated in Communist Czechoslovakia. In 1970 he was fired from the leadership of the Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology by communist authorities.[3] In 1972 he was forced to retire, and was even banned from entering the Institute premises.[4] The reason was personal enmity from the communist minister of health, Jaroslav Prokopec [cs]. Raška revealed Prokopec plagiarized his doctoral thesis.[3]

## References

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1. ^ "Karel Raška and Smallpox" (PDF). Central European Journal of Public Health. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 17 November 2010.
2. ^ "Karel Raška — The Development of Modern Epidemiology. The role of the IEA" (PDF). Central European Journal of Public Health. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 March 2013. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
3. ^ a b c "Čech, který porazil neštovice. Komunisté ale epidemiologa Rašku o zásluhy připravili". ČT24 (in Czech). Czech Television. 21 November 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
4. ^ Anděl, Michal (13 November 2020). "Jak jsme si zničili českou hygienickou a epidemiologickou školu, která měla svého času ve světě skvělé jméno". Deník N (in Czech). N Media. Retrieved 18 February 2021.

## External links

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* Academic Bulletin of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic Archived 10 February 2013 at archive.today

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* WorldCat

National|

* United States
* Czech Republic