Idriss Pediatric Library Renovated

Left to right: Leila and Imad Idriss, Mikati, Sherine Idriss, and Cortas

With its renovation now complete, the Hassan and Leila Idriss Pediatric Library was unveiled to the public in a ceremony held recently at the AUB Medical Center.

Located on the sixth floor of the center, the library houses a sizable collection of pediatrics-related references, books, periodicals, softwares, and CD-ROMS. The renovation had allowed the medical center to upgrade its collection of state-of-the-art technologies in healthcare education, thus providing students and residents with access to the most advanced online databases and search engines.

Dr. Mohammed Mikati, who chairs the Pediatrics Department, thanked the Idriss family for its "very thoughtful and valuable donation" in providing for the renovation. The library was established in 1980 as a tribute to the late Dr. Hassan Idriss, who was one of the fathers of pediatric medicine at AUB.

Dr. Idriss, who finished his training at AUB, joined the hospital in 1939 and was one of the founders of the department's emerging specialty of pediatrics. He quickly became a leading pediatrician, not only in Lebanon but also throughout the entire Middle East, as children from all over the region flocked to receive his medical care.

"He left an indelible mark as an extraordinary diagnostician, as a clinician's clinician, and as a superb teacher," Mikati said. "Even up till a few days before his death in 1979, he was actively seeing patients and teaching students with unequalled enthusiasm, dedication, and skill." Throughout his life, his wife, Leila (who was present at the ceremony), was at his side supporting his career and taking care of the family, which now has three generations of pediatricians.

Dr. Mikati also remembered the late Dr. Salim Ferzli, one of the founding fathers of pediatric oncology in Lebanon, who died earlier this year. He noted, as well, the loss of Dr. Nancy Malek, the young neurological pediatrician who had recently joined the AUB faculty before her untimely death earlier this month.

Dr. Nadim Cortas, vice president for Medical Affairs and the dean of the Faculty of Medicine, spoke about Dr. Hassan Idriss as one of the first doctors to practice pediatrics in Lebanon and the region. "The impact of this early group was tremendous," Cortas said, "and we are proud today that they continue, through their families, to care for children and adolescents." Also present at the ceremony were the children of Dr. Idriss, Sherine Idriss Daouk and Imad Idriss, as well as a number of AUBMC medical staff.

Following the ceremony, Dr. Ibrahim Shareef, a medical resident at the Pediatrics Department, offered Dr. Mikati a silver tray as a token of appreciation on behalf of all the residents at the department, since Mikati will be taking a one-year leave of absence to teach at Duke University in the United States.