Géza Kresz

Géza Kresz of Szemlőhegy (30 August 1846 – 10 April 1901) was a Hungarian physician, founder of the Budapest Voluntary Ambulance Society and the Pest Skating Club.

Early life Kresz was born in Pest to Carl Kresz, a son of a fruiterer from Merseburg, who fled to Hungary to avoid impressment, and a daughter of a bookseller. He was the youngest of the six children of the couple. He studied for physician and earned his medical degree in 1871 in the University of Pest.

Work Kresz first worked as a general practitioner and later became a health officer in the 5th district of Budapest. In 1876 the law for the organization of ambulance institutions was enacted, by that it became the responsibility of the police, thus the central district police stations were operating as the first ambulance stations. However, this system could not cope with the increasing number of tasks in the period of industrialization, and to be able to carry out the rescue missions, Géza Kresz founded the Budapest Voluntary Ambulance Society (Budapesti Önkéntes Mentő Egyesület, BÖME) in 1887, utilizing the model that was used in Vienna since a few years.

In 1890 the Ambulance Palace (Mentőpalota) - designed by Zsigmond Quittner - was erected on the proposal of Kresz. This was the first building in Europe that was built as an ambulance station and it still serves as the headquarters of the National Ambulance. The building process took one and a half years and was financed by the donations of wealthy citizens. In the yard were found the stables with hayloft and the horse-drawn ambulance coaches. Kresz also had his residence in the Ambulance Palace, where he lived with his family on the second floor. Ice skating quickly became a beloved sport, which is shown that the number of skating club members grew from 35 to 432 in the first year.

Later life and legacy During the Millennial Exhibition in 1896, Kresz made an X-ray image of Franz Joseph's right hand.

On 1 November 1885 he was awarded with the Order of Franz Joseph (Knight Class).

For the founding of the Budapest Voluntary Ambulance Society, he earned the title royal councilor on 3 January 1897.

In the 1900s a series of ambulance stations were created in Hungarian cities and villages, for them the example to follow was the Budapest Voluntary Ambulance Society.

Publications Elmeállapotok megvizsgálása. (Államorvos 1879/3.) Miként lehetne Budapest fővárosát jó, egészséges és megbízható tejjel s gyermek-tejjel ellátni? (Budapest, 1883) A tuberculosis és annak pusztítása ellen való védekezés, tekintettel hazánk és a főváros közegészségi viszonyaira. (Budapest, 1884) Gyakorlati tapasztalatok a berlini közegészségi kiállításon. (1884) Miként gátoljuk meg a gümőkór kifejlődését. (Államorvos 1884/7.) Első segély rögtöni baleseteknél az orvos megérkezéséig. (Budapest, 1884) Adatok a croup, álcroup és a diphtheritis kezeléséhez, fő tekintettel a meleg gőzök ujabb sikeres helyi alkalmazására. (Orvosi Hetilap 1885/18.) A mentés és első segély szervezése a fővárosban. (Budapest, 1885) A Budapesti Önkéntes Mentő-Egyesület uj központi állomása. (Budapest, 1891) A cholera és az ellene való védekezés. (Budapest, 1892) A Budapesti Önkéntes Mentő-Egyesület 1887–1893. (Budapest, 1894)