Minister says Budapest’s Semmelweis University is Central Europe’s best, makes huge promises concerning higher education
The Semmelweis University (SE) is Central Europe’s finest institution, and the goal is for the Budapest medical school to become one of Europe and the world’s leading universities in the coming years, declared the Minister of Culture and Innovation on Monday at the opening of SE’s new Diagnostic and Therapeutic Centre at the Városmajor Cardiology and Vascular Clinic.
Government poured money on the sector, says the minister
Balázs Hankó explained that in recent years, following universities’ proposals, the government has overhauled Hungarian higher education, injecting 600 billion forints in development funding and tripling operational financing. This has pushed higher education spending to 2 per cent of GDP.
He also addressed how the European Commission “penalises, denies, and excludes Hungarian universities in the name of autonomy.” “The Commission aims to ‘protect’ Hungarian universities from their own rectors and wants to reclaim property allocated to them,” he said, adding that six “heroic universities” have taken legal action against the Commission’s decision.
The minister emphasised the government’s unwavering support for Hungarian universities and ongoing higher education investments. Over the next few years, 1,300 billion forints will be invested in university development across the Carpathian Basin.
Semmelweis University on the track to become one of the world’s top 100
He called the Hungarian Pannonia programme superior to Erasmus, highlighting how it connects Hungarian students with leading universities worldwide — both westwards and eastwards. The HU-RIZON programme fosters research cooperation with global giants such as Yale, MIT, and Stanford.
By 2030, Hungary will boast a university ranked among the world’s top 100, and several institutions will join Europe’s top 100, the minister predicted. He highlighted that Semmelweis University currently ranks 272nd globally but is on track to reach the top 100.
According to Balázs Hankó, SE already ranks among the world’s top 100 universities scientifically, in research, and internationalisation. Specifically, it is 181st in medical sciences, 35th in cardiology, and 82nd in pharmaceutical rankings.
The minister noted that Semmelweis University has benefited from 100 billion forints in recent development funding, including 13.5 billion forints for the newly opened centre. Plans also include the construction of a National Medical Innovation, Training and Research Centre.
European super-centre, says the rector
Rector Béla Merkely described the new diagnostic and therapeutic centre as a major milestone that will transform daily operations and offer new horizons for patients, research, and education. The seven-storey building adds 4,500 square metres, almost 50 per cent more space for research and patient care within the clinic.
The rector explained that a bridge connects the new building to the main one, allowing intensive care units and surgical and interventional operating theatres to be accessed without level changes, all under one roof.
This development equips the clinic to function as a “European super-centre.” The new facility houses a high-tech imaging diagnostics department, two CT scanners, an MRI machine, and the most advanced hybrid interventional and electrophysiological laboratories.
Among the world’s top 50 cardiovascular centres
The centre includes ten new outpatient rooms supporting ambulatory care and a dedicated eight-bed unit for heart transplant recipients and patients needing circulatory support. Classrooms and research offices are also part of the building.
Merkely highlighted that the Városmajor clinic has ranked among the world’s top 50 cardiovascular centres for years, placing 35th in the US News rankings. With the expansion, it could become not only the largest in the region but also Europe’s largest heart transplant centre.
Government Commissioner for Artificial Intelligence László Palkovics said the building is world-class and designed to harness diagnostic data for patient benefit through AI and data-driven medicine.
He described the new centre as the “physical embodiment of SE’s artificial intelligence vision and the future of medicine.”
Gábor Orbán, president of the National Health and Medical Training Foundation, called Semmelweis University “the super-hospital itself.” He said the latest investment, world-class equipment, and medical expertise housed in the new building will make it possible to care for even more patients.
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“This development equips the clinic to function as a “European super-centre.” The new facility houses a high-tech imaging diagnostics department, two CT scanners, an MRI machine, and the most advanced hybrid interventional and electrophysiological laboratories…”
Sadly, none of this will lead to the heart health of Hungarians, but, what it will do is profit by managing their demise.
Unfortunately, what would vastly improve the health of Hungarians is something from which they cannot profit – teaching people, especially over age 40, to stay away from processed foods with added sugars and chemicals, daily exercise, attending church regularly, gardening, athletics, abstaining from smoking, drugs, and frequent alcohol.
I know all about this stuff because my country has this exact ‘medical care’ system – leave people ignorant, feed people poison, and then profit from their demise with high-tech systems.
It’s another reason why, if I were Hungarian, I would be Mi Hazank Mozgolom – because they talk about these things all the time.