László Simon

Between 1966 and 1968, he was an assistant professor at the First Department of Internal Medicine of the Medical University of Szeged (SZOTE); then between 1968 and 1980, he was the head of the gastroenterology department at the Second Department of Internal Medicine of the Jászberény City Hospital (where systematic screening of stomach tumors was first started in Hungary).

Between 1980 and 2007, he was the head physician of the Department of Internal Medicine, No. 2, of the Tolna County Hospital and Clinic. During this period, the first gastroenterological expert system in Hungary, GAIA (Gastroenterological AI Application), was developed with the active involvement of the doctors in his department. The health IT expert of the development was Dr. András Jávor, the head physician of the Documentation and Information Center of the Hospital; the software was developed by Számalk colleagues under the direction of János Aszalós with the financial support of the National Technical Development Committee (OMFB).

He defended his PhD thesis in 1981, on a topic related to stomach cancer. He taught at the Semmelweis University of Medicine (SOTE) in Budapest, then habilitated in 1995; in 1999 he was appointed as a private teacher.

At the same time, he was also the chief physician of the national gastroenterology specialist inspectorate of the State Public Health and Medical Officer Service (ÁNTSZ). He participated in numerous international and domestic clinical drug trials. He knew all branches of gastroenterology, and was also at home in nuclear medicine and informatics; in addition to his theoretical activities, he also performed operative endoscopic interventions with great success.

He has participated in numerous foreign training courses in Lyon (France), Genoa (Italy) and the United States. He has been a regular participant and speaker and chairman of many Hungarian and foreign congresses.
Between 1975 and 2004, he was a member of the board and then the presidency of the Hungarian Gastroenterology Society (MGT), and from 1990 he was its president for 2 terms; as president, he organized the official postgraduate training courses of the MGT. Since 1998, he has been a member of the Hungarian Gastroenterology Professional College. Between 1982 and 1996, he was a member of the European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Governing Board, and between 1990 and 1996, he was its vice president.

His awards: Markusovszky Award (editorial staff of the Medical Weekly, the Trade Union of Health Workers and the Youth Magazine and Book Publishing Company, 1972); Academic Award (MTA, 1975); Géza Hetényi Award (Hungarian Diabetes Society, 1991); Pro optimo merito in gastroenterology (MGT, 1997); Batthyány-Strattmann Award (Minister of Health, 1999); László Friedrich Award (MGT, 2005).