The sudden and unexpected passing of Professor Petr V. Morozov on the 17th July 2022 has come as a great shock and with huge sadness to his family, friends, colleagues and members of the psychiatric fraternity, all over the world.
As World Psychiatric Association’s (WPA) current Secretary General, the news of Professor Petr Morozov has hit the WPA organisation deeply. He was an esteemed psychiatrist and mental health advocate who demonstrated immense enthusiasm and extraordinary commitment to his profession and colleagues. His impact on psychiatry, and on those of us who were fortunate to know or work with him, is difficult to summarise in one article.
Professor Petr V. Morozov was born into a family of hereditary doctors. His father Viktor Mikhailovich Morozov was a psychiatrist, Corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences, and his grandfather Mikhail Akimovich Morozov was a well-known Soviet virologist, academician of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences.
In 1971, Professor Morozov graduated from the Second Medical Institute and entered the Scientific Center for Health Care of the Russian Academy of Sciences, where he worked his way up from a resident to the head of a department. From 1994 to the present, he has worked as a professor at the Department of Psychiatry at the Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University.
Professor Morozov was the founder and editor-in-chief of the Gannushkin Journal "Psychiatry and Psychopharmacotherapy", Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper “Diary of a Psychiatrist”, the author of 10 books and more than 250 Russian and foreign publications published in 9 languages. He worked at the WHO Secretariat, where he headed the Biological Psychiatry and Psychopharmacology Programme. He was the author of the original methodology for multi-center international studies in psychiatry, publisher, and co-author of a collective monograph on the viral hypothesis of the etiology of mental illness.
For many years, Professor Morozov represented Russia in authoritative national and global organisations in the field of psychiatry. Over the years, he has been a WPA representative for Eastern Europe, an ECNP ambassador in Russia, an expert of the Council of Europe, a member of the Council of the European Psychiatric Association, a curator of the WPA-Servier Academy for young scientists in the CIS, a member of the Supreme Council of the Union for Mental Health, a publisher and a member of the editorial board of a number of foreign publications.
Since 2015 he has been Vice-President of the Russian Society of Psychiatrists (ROP), focusing on the implementation of various projects of international cooperation between the ROP and foreign psychiatric public associations, and in 2020, he was elected Secretary General of the WPA.
Undoubted professional scientific and social achievements of Professor Morozov does not fully reflect all the facets of his creative personality. In his youth, Professor Morozov was a member of one of the first Soviet vocal and instrumental ensembles "Kamerton", the author of two rock operas and author of several well-known sonnets. In 1983-84. Professor Morozov successfully played in the Swiss Football Veterans League and was the owner of the Swiss Championship Cup.
The multifaceted talents of Professor Morozov received well-deserved worldwide professional recognition. He was awarded the “Excellence in Health Care” badge (1982), the Kraepelin-Alzheimer medal of the University of Munich “For scientific achievements and the treatment of patients” (2014), is a laureate of the National Public Prize “Harmony” in the nomination “For contribution to science, education and education" - for special merits in the field of mental health (2016).
Prof. Morozov had a great insight to all aspects of the promotion and development of mental health services in Russia and worldwide, and his work at all levels of teaching, training and policy making will be remembered by all of us.
“We are extremely saddened and sorry to hear of the sudden death of Prof. Morozov", said WPA President, Professor Afzal Javed, “we offer our sincere condolences not only to his colleagues, but especially to his family and friends for whom we recognise this great loss.”
Rest in peace Professor Petr V. Morozov.
A memorial ceremony will take place on Thursday, 21st July 2022 at 12am in the "Mourning Hall" of the Central Clinical Hospital at the Russian Federation's President's Office (Address: Moscow, Marshal Timoshenko Street, House 25, Big Hall).
Author: WPA