Česky
Did you know when you were a child that you would one day be a doctor?
I didn't know that at all. I grew up in a village. My father was a lawyer, quite famous in Beroun, because he was a notary. I wasn't fascinated by his work. I liked trains, I wanted to be an engineer on a locomotive. I didn't take the train, my parents already had a car then, except that once a year I took the train to Prague with my father, and that was a great experience for me. I went to high school, where I decided that technical studies were probably not for me. My sister was studying medicine, so I enrolled in that as well.
What do you like about your profession?
I studied in Prague at Charles University. I had no idea what I was getting into. I wanted to be a surgeon. When I entered practice, almost all the doctors were on vacation. The chief surgeon told me: if you need to know anything, there's Karel Beran on the first floor, he'll give you advice. I was writing a patient transfer report and I could hardly type at all. The ambulance driver was crossing himself, wondering what kind of a klutz was there, that it hadn't been typed yet. One day the chief of gynaecology came in and decided that I would start my round in his department. I liked it there, so I stayed.
Now you live in Hořovice, do you come from this region?
I come from Neumětel, not far from Hořovice.
How long have you been working at Hořovice Hospital?
It can't be published (smile), since 1980.
Hořovice Hospital has undergone great changes in recent years. The interiors are really beautiful. However, the most important thing for doctors is the equipment of the workplace. What changes have taken place in this respect?
The changes are spectacular. The new delivery rooms in 2003 were made according to a completely new concept so that the parturients have privacy. The owner of the hospital really wants our ward. I was literally in heaven after the renovation of the six-week ward, because the mothers have hotel-like comfort, just as I imagined it should be. And the owner continues to invest heavily in our wards. I have to admit that the private sector has great advantages, not being subject to all sorts of approval processes and so on.
How has the modernisation of the maternity ward affected the number of babies born?
Of course, the number of births in our ward has increased significantly and continues to increase. In 2002, there were 300 births. In 2013, it was 1470 births, and in 2014, we got to 1527 births, so we have surpassed the magic mark of 1500 births per year. We are the largest maternity hospital in Central Bohemia.
How many deliveries do you have per day in the department?
On average, four, five, the record was fourteen babies.
In 2013, one woman gave birth to her eleventh child in your maternity ward. I don't suppose you see that often?
That was truly unprecedented and unique. Today, the average number of births in the Czech Republic is 1.4 babies per woman. That's not enough.
How often are twins or multiples born in Hořovice?
We haven't had triplets here yet. Many years ago there were two mothers who had triplets, but for operational and other reasons, one of them gave birth in Rokycany and the other in Prague. So I'm still waiting for triplets. Right now it could come, we have good facilities, we have been giving birth since the 32nd week. So hopefully we'll live to see it.
What extra services does your department offer to patients?
Complete pain relief during labour, one or two people accompanying you. Accommodation will also be improved, and the six-room ward will be expanded. But we're often very full. We try not to have to declare a stoppage due to overcrowding, which happens more often in Prague.
Do only mothers from this region give birth in the hospital in Hořovice?
Many mothers come from Prague-West, of course from Berounsko, but also from elsewhere.
Thanks to the high quality "3D" ultrasound diagnostics, mothers can have photographs of the fetus and even a motion picture taken. Are mothers often interested in this?
This is now a common service and mothers take advantage of it a lot, because often the photos are really beautiful.
How do you provide information about the complete antenatal care of the mother at the maternity ward?
We have familiarisation sessions on the first and third Monday of the month, where midwives inform those who are interested about the environment they are going to, what examinations they can expect and other formalities. Mothers can also see a lot of information and get an idea of what it's like at our hospital through the demonstration videos at www.nemocnice-horovice.cz.
What are your views on home births?
The time before and during birth is one of the riskiest phases in a person's life. It's more risky than an adolescent learning to ride a motorbike. So if one decides to expose oneself to all the uncompromising conditions of natural development, then of course anything can happen. I'm not saying we're indispensable, fortunately a lot of births take place in such a way that we just supervise, but you never know what will happen when. A midwife in a home birth is basically bare-handed, she has no machines to monitor the baby's condition, and a number of other options available in the delivery room.
Do some mothers request special deliveries?
Of course there are fashion trends in midwifery, such as water births, but today mothers hardly ask for that anymore.
* You were among the first in the Czech Republic to try a new way of dealing with incontinence. How did it work?
Incontinence is a big problem for many women. This method consists of inserting a special tape that restores the ability of the relaxed urethra to hold urine. I believe that the effect is very good, it is reported that about 80 per cent of women are problem-free afterwards and 15 per cent show a marked improvement.
With such a demanding job, do you have time for any other interests or hobbies?
I go fishing. I also have a bicycle and try to ride to keep fit.
Your wife is also a doctor. Do you talk about your work at home?
When there are complications, you can't just close the door and go home with a clear head. So we talk about some of the problems and interesting things at work at home. We have two daughters, one works in hematology at the first internal medicine department in Prague, I think very dedicatedly.
What's your message to the readers?
I'm always happy when a mother comes in and has a third child. I would be happy if Czech women had more children. I think it's the best investment for the nation.
