It is my pleasure to introduce Dr. Fernando Iudica. Fernando was born on September 19, 1964, in Necochea, and was the second child of Eduardo Sebastián Iudica and Malisa Mobahied, who raised a family of five children. The eldest, Eduardito, passed away in 1983; on that occasion Fernando coined his phrase “We must go on, we must always go on...”, which he uses in the difficult moments of his life. Eduardo, his father, joined the Air Force as a doctor, so they moved to El Palomar, where Fernando spent his childhood. He studied at Tte. Benjamín Matienzo school and Colegio Emaús. He was always a good student and a classmate, and very respectful of all his teachers (Fig. 1).

Figure 1 

He says that he knew he would become a doctor since he was 10 years old; when they used to fight in the housing projects of El Palomar, he always acted as a doctor and treated the wounded, who were really injured in many occasions. He studied medicine at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA), where he graduated with honors. He then entered the residency program at Hospital Pirovano, where he became a surgeon. His teachers were Dr. Viaggio, Dr. Badaloni, Dr. Olaciregui, Dr. Hersage and Dr. Pellegrini, among others, whom he respects and admires. He was always very grateful to all those who were part of his life. He married Débora Vázquez Durrieu in December 1991 (Fig. 2).

Figura 2 

Their 9 children were born between 1993 and 2007. He moved with his family to Pilar in 2000, when Hospital Universitario Austral became reality. The hospital was a family and professional project; thus, he built his house in Pilar and the children started school there. He was part of this project from the very beginning, hand in hand with Dr. Mc Lean. Trainer of residents, he enjoys working with them in the operating room. In 2005, life posed him a new challenge, a hard disease to put up with, and he had to demonstrate his resilience, always with a smile and with the love of his family, supported by deep faith and inner strength, and very close to his four siblings. Again, he said: “We must go on, we must always go on...”

In 2007, they thanked God who blessed them with the birth of their ninth child, Nacho. He loves the sea, more specifically Pinamar, and is fond of fishing, sunsets and sunrises on the beach, a good wine, music and cigars, always celebrating life! He enjoys lighting the fire, the after-dinner conversations with family, chats with friends. A friend of his friends, he became an expert barbecue chef. He is a very sporty person and a fan of River, a passion he shares with his children, although not with all his sons-in-law. I want to thank one person who knows him best, Debora, his wife, who helped me with this introduction.

Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce the President of the 92nd Argentine Congress of Surgery, Dr. Fernando Iudica.