An Outstanding Ophthalmologist-Scientist

Research article: An Outstanding Ophthalmologist-Scientist

Authors: Academician Isa Habibbeyli    pdf     10.5281/zenodo.8004144

The 100th anniversary of the birth of the outstanding scientist, founder of the Azerbaijan Scientific School of Ophthalmology, academician Zarifa Aliyeva is widely celebrated in our country. The Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences celebrates the jubilee of academician Zarifa Aliyeva due to her great services in the field of medicine development, as well as her valuable scientific contributions to the development of Azerbaijani medical science, at the level of the celebration of science in modern times.

Academician Zarifa Aliyeva lived an honorable and meaningful life. She was raised in an excellent educational school, in the family of Aziz Aliyev, a prominent statesman and scientist of Azerbaijan, and received higher education at the Azerbaijan Medical Institute named after Nariman Narimanov. Zarifa Aliyeva, who started working as a practical ophthalmologist, was also engaged in scientific activities, defended PhD and doctoral dissertations on current topics, and rose to the level of an academician of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (Fig. 1). She was recognized and accepted as an outstanding scientist who brought innovations to medical science throughout the former Soviet Union and beyond. Academician Zarifa Aliyeva's authority was multifaceted and covered various fields of medical science, the medical profession, and social activities. In each of the areas she was engaged in, she showed high professionalism and an example of true citizenship belonging to the people of Azerbaijan.

First of all, it should be noted that Azerbaijan's medical science has specialized mainly in the fields of treatment, therapy, and surgery for many years. In our country, both medical science and treatment work in areas such as neurology, eye diseases, oncology, and others have begun to develop since the sixties-seventies of the XX century. In particular, ophthalmology was one of the lagging fields during this period. Thanks to the effective scientific and practical activity of the outstanding scientist, academician Zarifa Aliyeva, Azerbaijan has become one of the main scientific and medical centers developed from a republic that provided primary medical treatments.

Thanks to the efficient and tireless work of Zarifa Aliyeva as a doctor, the flow of patients forced to go from Azerbaijan to other allied republics due to eye diseases was stopped. Zarifa Aliyeva also prevented the flow from the region to the capital for the treatment of widespread eye diseases, including trachoma. Under her leadership, a team of doctors specializing in trachoma went to the regions of Azerbaijan and provided necessary assistance to patients on the spot. The team of doctors headed by Zarifa Aliyeva showed a real example of an organized fight against trachoma in Ganja city, Alibayramli (now Shirvan), and Salyan regions. The treatment work of her medical team fighting trachoma in Baku city, Baku villages, the Absheron region, and other regions was highly appreciated by thousands of people.