Václav Trnka (1897-1965)

Among the most important personalities of the Příbram hospital and the local health care in the 20th century was MUDr. Václav Trnka, who, with the help of other doctors and nuns, significantly contributed to the consolidation of this medical facility. In 1932, he won the position of chief physician by winning an audition among 11 candidates. What do we know about Trnka's life?

He was born on 17 August 1897 in Jarovo near Beroun. After studying at the real grammar school in Beroun and a three-year stay at the front of the First World War in the uniform of a soldier of the Austro-Hungarian army, he graduated from the Faculty of Medicine of Charles University in Prague in the newly established Czechoslovak Republic in 1919-1923. After a short internship with Professor Kukula, he worked from 1925 at the First Surgical Clinic under Professor Jirásek, from 1929 as an assistant at the clinic, and at the same time in 1928-1930 he was deputy head of the District Hospital in Slany. In 1931, he participated in a military exercise as a reserve officer of the medical service of the Czechoslovak Army. He successfully replaced the head of the surgical department of the Divisional Military Hospital in Košice.

MUDr. Václav Trnka joined Příbram at the age of 35 and did not disappoint the hopes with which he was received. He did not indulge in cheap gestures; on the contrary, he always approached the performance of his tasks with the utmost responsibility, was extremely hard-working, acted matter-of-factly and with a high degree of professionalism. He handled all medical and administrative duties in an exemplary manner, as required by the increasing frequency of the institute. This soon earned him the respect of his superiors. Because of his friendly nature, he was popular not only with the patients but also with the doctors and other subordinates.

He quickly gained authority in the hospital thanks to his expertise, qualifications, work ethic and manly honesty, which, symbolically speaking, illustrated his tall, sturdy figure. In his position as chief physician, he was forced to work not only in the difficult conditions of the medical establishment of the time, but also had to face the initial distrust of those near and far. Thanks to his efforts, however, the hospital in Příbram soon became a solid and respected medical institution with a good reputation. Chief Trnka pushed through the acquisition of new equipment in the form of an X-ray machine, an operating table and many other innovations. In 1938, by a contract with the Czechoslovak Red Cross, he took over the use of an ambulance, which was a great event for Příbram at that time. A doctor's job at that time lasted 15 hours a day. Chief Trnka had at his disposal 4 doctors, 10 order nurses and 5 clerks and orderlies; all this with 170 beds and more than three thousand patients admitted for treatment annually.

Dr. Václav Trnka also acted as a true patriot on more than one occasion and demonstrated a high degree of courage and heroism. For example, during Hitler's occupation during World War II (1939-1945), he secretly provided the local anti-Nazi resistance movement with medicines and other aid. During the May Uprising in 1945, he also helped to treat many resistance fighters wounded in battles with Hitler's armed forces in the vicinity of Slivice and Milín, where one of the last major battles of World War II in Europe took place from 11 to 12 May 1945.

Even in the restored Czechoslovak Republic, MUDr. Václav Trnka tried to provide the best possible medical care to his fellow citizens and to contribute to the further development of the local hospital. He valued the work of the nuns immensely and therefore spoke out very critically and reluctantly against the proposal of the then District National Committee in Příbram, controlled by communist officials, to terminate the employment contract with the nuns. In a letter addressed to the Provincial National Committee in Prague, he pointed out the "catastrophic" shortage of staff in the event of the dismissal of the nuns, since most of the newly recruited nurses were without any professional qualifications, only two belonged to the category of diploma nurses. His efforts were temporarily successful and the nuns remained in the hospital. However, only until 1950, when the Communist state leadership decided to attack the Church with the aim of liquidating the convents and interning the religious. The infamous action was codenamed "K" ("Monasteries") and was carried out by the State Security Service with the complicity of the National Security Corps. First, on 13 April 1950, an armed intervention against Svatá Hora was carried out, which involved the occupation of the Svatá Hora complex and the forced concentration of the monks into a transport marked with the number 52, followed by their internment in the so-called centralisation centre in Králíky and the internment monastery in Želiv. The next blow of the state came less than six months later, on 26 September 1950, when the nuns who had been taking care of the sick and children in the church kindergarten in Příbram were also taken to the internment camp. However, the headmaster could no longer influence this...

Dr. Václav Trnka worked at the institute for 30 years. His pedagogical activity dedicated to the education of nurses is also not insignificant. He died in Vinohrady Hospital in Prague on 8th August 1965.

He elaborated: PaedDr. Josef Velfl, Director of the Mining Museum Příbram