Penfigo Adventist Hospital

Penfigo Adventist Hospital (Hospital Adventista do Penfigo or HAP) is a medical missionary institution of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Brazil and is part of the Adventist Health International Network.

Penfigo Adventist Hospital operates with two units in the West Central Brazil Union Mission (União Centro-Oeste Brasileira or UCOB) territory. Its headquarters is located at 5885 Avenida Gunter Hans at Zip Code 79076-900 in the Jardim Penfigo neighborhood in the city of Campo Grande, the capital of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. The Penfigo Adventist Hospital Unit II is at 2590 Barão do Rio Branco Street downtown area of the city of Campo Grande.

The HAP is considered one of the largest private hospitals in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. It is recognized for its philanthropic service to the community, and it has become a national standard in the treatment of patients with pemphigus.¹ Today, the hospital has 75 beds² and offers services in the specialties of angiology, head and neck surgery, cardiovascular surgery, general surgery, general practitioner, dermatology, gastroenterology, gynecology and obstetrics, nephrology, neurosurgery, neurology, nutrition, ophthalmology, orthopedics, otolaryngology, pediatrics, proctology, psychology, and urology.³

Developments that Led to the Institution’s Establishment

At the time when Adventism reached what is currently the territory of Mato Grosso do Sul, there was no border with the state of Mato Grosso, and both formed a single federative unit of Brazil.⁴ The Adventist message arrived in that tropical climate region around 1921, when Mato Grosso Mission (presently the South Mato Grosso Conference) was established, and it is based in Campo Grande.⁵ From that year until 1927, about 35 people were baptized by Pastor Max Rohde, the then-leader in that mission field.⁶ During the following years, there were several other developments of the SDA Church in the region, such as the establishment of the Adventist Educational Network coordinated by Professor Iolanda Karrú and Pastor Alfredo Meier.⁷

The medical-missionary work in Mato Grosso do Sul also emerged at that time, and it had a somewhat unusual beginning. In 1930, Pastor Alfredo Barbosa de Souza worked in the city of Corumbá in the countryside of the state within the border with Bolivia. While he and his family lived there, his wife Áurea was affected by the pemphigus, then known as “the wildfire.”⁸ The Pênfigo [Pemphigus] is a serious but not contagious disease, and it is characterized by the outbreak of blisters on the chest, face, and scalp. Over time, the disease spreads throughout the body causing widespread peeling and later death.⁹

The physicians of Corumbá prescribed ointments and vitamin D for Áurea. However, during the course of the disease, the blisters, then diagnosed as eczema, spread through her abdomen and back. The torment caused by the disease creates the constant feeling of burning and, because they could not find a dermatologist in that region, the couple had to look for help in the capital of Campo Grande. From then on, Alfredo and Áurea experienced a real struggle in their attempt to uncover the diagnosis and a treatment that could ease the pain. In their search for a natural treatment, they left their four children with friends in the city where they lived and left for the “Aguas Calientes” [“Hot Waters”] in the city of Robore, Bolivia. When they arrived there, they had to sleep under the open sky and suffered prejudice from people who, without accurate knowledge, feared the transmission of the disease.¹⁰

Although Áurea submitted herself into a new treatment in Bolivia, the pain did not reduce. Her fever increased, her feet swelled, and the persistence of symptoms proved that the methods used until that moment did not bring positive effects. For months, that couple took constant trips, facing uncomfortable accommodations and uncertainties regarding the many medical diagnoses that often diverged from each other. Many other treatments were prescribed without any result. After months of painful suffering, they went to the Adhemar de Barros Hospital located in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. When they got there, Áurea was seen by a doctor who, when evaluating her condition, told Alfredo that his wife had the worst type of pemphigus and that, due to the disease progress, estimated that she would survive for only two more months.¹¹

As time went by, Aurea's situation worsened more and more. The blisters, which then covered her from head to toe, ruptured and coagulated, bringing even more pain and suffering. Facing this situation, Alfredo knelt down and prayed once again for divine strength and guidance. He said: “O God! Our human wisdom and strength are weakened. Guide us through this dark valley so we can dedicate the rest of our lives to You.” Aurea’s clinical condition pointed to the need of immediate hospitalization. However, since she did not live in the city of São Paulo, she could not use their hospital facilities. Thus, she stayed for a few days in the Brazil College (presently Brazil Adventist University, São Paulo campus). Later on, the couple moved in with friends who lived in the region. Thus, they stayed with them until Alfredo was granted a loan to buy a house in the city.¹²

After obtaining the financial resources, Alfredo left his wife in the care of friends and returned to Corumbá with the purpose of gathering up the family’s belongings and bringing their children to São Paulo to reduce the emotional distress Áurea was facing. On the way back, a scene caught his attention: He saw a lady with a somewhat different skin color getting into a car. Intrigued, Alfredo went to ask what was going on. The lady’s husband explained that she was going through a pemphigus treatment and that it was showing positive results. The medicine had been developed by Isidoro Jamar, an Argentine pharmacist who lived in Sidrolândia, a neighboring city of Campo Grande.¹³ Alfredo immediately went to meet Jamar and buy that medicine. After purchasing it, he returned to São Paulo to begin Áurea’s treatment.¹⁴

Back in São Paulo, Alfredo applied the ointment on his wife. It was composed of pitch, soit had a strong and unpleasant smell. However, that first application had a different result than expected. Áurea said: “This is the end! [...] It feels as if a torch of fire is all over my body! I cannot stand any more!” The pain caused muscle spasms so intense that she threw herself on the bed and then on the floor as a reaction to the agony caused by the medicine. Despite this, they decided to continue with the treatment and, as other applications were completed, Áurea started to improve. The recovery was quick, and she was soon able to do housework again. Similar to what happened to the woman Alfredo met during his trip, Áurea also had a change on her skin color due to the side effect of the pitch in the ointment. The discovery of the treatment changed the couple’s plans. After three weeks of treatment, Alfredo then returned to Corumbá, then picked up his children and brought them there so they could be closer to their mother. Alfredo was later on called to serve the Adventist missionary work in Campo Grande.¹⁵

The drama experienced by Pastor Alfredo and his family gave birth to a new phase of missionary work in their lives. In Campo Grande, Alfredo rented a room in the house belonging to the local couple Bernardo and Ida Baís Rodrigues. When walking around the city, the pastor found a girl sitting hunched in pain. She was named Corina, and her body was covered with pemphigus bubbles. Alfredo knew that his hosts Bernardo and Ida had a plot of land near the local cemetery. That land belonged to Ida’s sister named Lídia. With Lídia’s permission, the Baís couple sheltered Corina in a small building on that land. When the people of the city became aware that Pastor Alfredo was helping the girl, “a farmer donated milk, the bakery sent bread, and a movement of support spread throughout the community that started donating food and clothes to meet Corina’s needs.”¹⁶

Shortly afterwards, one of the members of the Campo Grande SDA Church discovered a woman named Ana, another pemphigus victim who was lying on the side of the road. She had been abandoned by her husband and friends. “There were flies, insects, and bedbugs in all the open wounds. The undesirable smell caused nausea, even a hundred feet away.” They began the same treatment on Ana, and as soon as she was placed in the hot eucalyptus bath as part of the therapies, several worms left her body. At that time, Ida and Bernardo began intensively helping Alfredo take care of those two patients. After becoming involved in the care process, the couple understood the need for the Church to find a suitable place to continue helping victims of pemphigus, and thus began a systematic assistance work destined to these people.¹⁷

Upon understanding the situation, Mrs. Ida Baís Rodrigues was willing to donate part of the farm (about 40 hectares) for the construction of a hospital. Meanwhile, word of what the Adventists in that city were doing for pemphigus patients spread throughout the region. And as time went by, more expressions of goodwill appeared and even more volunteers and donations came from many different places. These donations made possible to provide shelter and treatment for those suffering from “wildfire.”¹⁸

Foundation of the Institution

The first facilities for the pemphigus treatment institution were built in March 1949. These were thatched huts used as an improvised way to help treat the disease.¹⁹ At that time, Pastor Durval Stockler de Lima assumed the leadership of the Mato Grosso Mission (nowadays the South Mato Grosso Conference), and he understood the medical missionary potential of the work initiated by Pastor Alfredo. Still in 1949, the small unit started to be administered by the South Brazil Union Conference (today the Central Brazil Union Conference).²⁰ The hospital was officially established in 1950 under the name “Penfigo Adventist Hospital,”²¹ and it started operating on the donated land by Ida Baís that was close to the highway that connects the cities of Campo Grande and Sidrolândia.²²

The area donated by Ida Baís was very important for the hospital’s beginning. At that time, the Municipal Health Department of Campo Grande did not allow the hospital to operate in the downtown region since it was believed that pemphigus was extremely contagious. For this reason, it was recommended to the Mission leaders that the hospital should be located far from downtown. Years later, though, it was proven that the disease was not contagious.²³ Also due of the lack of accurate knowledge about the disease, the treatment of patients was considered disqualifying and unfair.²⁴ Moreover, when the hospital started operating, few people had sufficient resources to pay for services. Noticing this, Pastor Durval and Rubens Segre went to Pharmacist Isidoro Jamar (the medicine’s creator) to ask for the ointment’s formula. After the pastors explained their reasons for getting the formula and the healing motivations behind the Adventist faith, Isidoro agreed to provide the formula for the ointment that cured “wildfire.” Later, that ointment started to be called “Jamarsan” in honor of its creator.²⁵

In April 25, 1951, Physician Edgar Bentes Rodrigues, who also graduated in theology, was called by the South Brazil Union Conference to be the first medical director of the HAP. His mission was to have the work done at the hospital for those affected by pemphigus legalized and to be performed regularly. Working towards that objective, in 1952, the HAP was built and inaugurated the first building of the institution still offering only very basic facilities. This first building initially had 15 beds with Edgar Bentes Rodrigues as medical director and Hugo Gegembauer as administrative director.²⁶ That building was about 15 kilometers from the downtown region of Campo Grande and later came to be used to accommodate the HAP’s clinical analysis laboratory. Since its inauguration, the Hospital already had to house more people than its capacity in their attempts to meet the demand of the people in need in that region.²⁷

In partnership with the Penfigo Adventist Hospital, the Figueira Adventist Clinic [Clínica Adventista da Figueira] was also created, and it was inaugurated in April 1951.²⁸ This clinic operated on Constituição Street in Campo Grande, offering natural treatments for physical and psychological illnesses according to Adventist health principles. It also contained the HAP’s office.²⁹ Some more expensive medicines that were used by the Hospital were bought with the profits that came from the Figueira Clinic. No longer after this, the Clinic opened the Iguaçu Waterfalls sauna [Sauna Cataratas do Iguaçu], the first of its kind in the city of Campo Grande.³⁰

History of the Institution

In 1953, the institution became known as Penfigo Adventist Hospital ³¹, and in the following year (1954), 15 new beds were added to the hospital which originally had only 30 beds.³² From 1951 to 1959, a total of 478 cases of pemphigus were treated in the Hospital. Of these, 167 cases were declared healed and 108 people were greatly assisted until the disease became stagnated. The remaining 203 patients had a longer treatment than expected since the stage of the disease was too far advanced. The number of deaths recorded during this period was 13 confirmed cases.³³ With these results, the fame of Penfigo Adventist Hospital spread throughout Brazil, and patients began to come from long distances (including from outside of Brazil) to receive treatment to treat the disease.³⁴

Despite all the efforts that had already been made during the first years of its activities, the Hospital still had somewhat unsanitary facilities, and its location was surrounded by a dusty and bumpy road. The Hospital area was big, but the area had not improved. The grass was high, and there was trash and many venomous animals in the surrounding area. In fact, at that time, even large cities suffered from constant power rationing. On those occasions, when a patient would feel ill at night, it was necessary to assist them by using candlelight or lanterns. There was no telephone, and it was not even possible to make a direct call. All that could be done was to ask the operator to complete the desired call although the waiting time could reach up to 10 hours.³⁵

Still in the early 1960s, the hospital had no cafeteria, and the men’s ward was actually a three-walled shed with no tiled floor and no plaster. There was also no toilet facility nor any glass in the windows. The patients helped each other during baths by using mugs, and the water was heated in a large oil drum. These same patients used to swing twigs in order to keep any insects away. There was no bedding in the male ward, and the mattresses were old. Tree logs were used as pillows under each mattress to keep their heads higher. That is why one of the memorable donations this institution received was from local couple Paulo and Gisá Amaral who provided bales of fabric so bed and bath clothing for patients could be made. Around that time, Physician Günter Hans was called to serve at the Hospital.³⁶

From the beginning of the 1960s, the hospital began to develop in several areas. It was during this period that intern asphalt, drinking water, power, telephone, vehicles, ambulances, vegetable garden, orchard, and dairy cattle were provided.³⁷ Because of the delicate situation, hospital management requested donations on behalf of the patients and the health unit itself. On this occasion, a dentist named Kalil Rahe, who was also a violinist in the Paraná Symphonic Orchestra, decided to help the Penfigo Adventist Hospital by providing a classical music concert. Tickets would be sold, and all profits made would go to the hospital. This event was conducted by maestros Emygdio Vidal and João Ribeiro. Along with Rahe, two other physicians-- João Pereira da Rosa and Coriolano Baís--and their offices helped promote the event. The profits raised by that concert enabled the renovation of the two women’s wards.³⁸

In 1961, the second campaign for the renovation and construction of the Hospital took place. The Paraná Symphonic Orchestra once again held a beneficent concert, and it was conducted by Maestro Frederico Liebermann. Another part of the campaign was the setting up of a presentation stand at the Parque de Exposições Laucídio Coelho [Exhibition Park Laucidio Coelho] in Campo Grande. As the renovations or constructions were being completed, small inaugurations were done that counted on the presence of donors as guests at dinners and other charitable gatherings.³⁹

In 1962, Doctor Günter Hans (then the hospital’s medical director) answered a call to take care of a patient that was suffering from an allergy. This patient was a German friar named Hermano, director of the São Francisco Parish friars. Talking to Hans, the religious man said that he had already heard of the hospital and its campaigns for the sick, and he was aware that, until then, the charity campaigns had not resolved all the institution’s needs. Aware of this fact, the friar also said to Hans: “Within a month, the Consul of Germany is coming to visit us; perhaps you can make a request for help on behalf of the hospital as it’s a philanthropic institution; even if it is a small amount, it will be another source of help.”⁴⁰

When the Consul of Germany arrived in Campo Grande, Dr. Hans and Friar Hermano met him at the airport. Days later, the Consul visited the hospital and was amazed by the fact that, even with so little time in service and with such financial difficulties, everything was being very well managed. After a while, the Consul sent a letter to Dr. Hans about the Penfigo Adventist Hospital project, and he attached a survey about all the construction material, medical equipment, from the infirmary to the operating rooms, that were needed. Everything was immediately arranged, and budgets were sent based on direct negotiation with factories presenting photos and slides. After that contact, several months passed before the Consul gave a positive answer.⁴¹

The donation received provided enough resources to complete the construction of the entire hospital complex, and the resources still allowed the unit there to be equipped with the best devices available at that time. Because of the significant amount of these donations, all the furniture for the rooms, including beds as well as the kitchen equipment for the preparation and serving of food to patients, was also purchased. Furniture for the administrative wing, dental equipment, as well as laundry and X-rays machines were also purchased. Other important wings were completed, such as the sterilization sector and four rooms for employees. In the same period, a van was donated to the hospital, and the hospital continued to receive more help. Still in the 1960s, a school and a chapel were built with the goal of offering integral attention to patients and training for health professionals.⁴²

Over the years, the pemphigus treatment evolved, and it began to be performed with the introduction of corticotherapy. Even with the adoption of new treatments, the management of the Hospital has been continuously looking for ways to improve the medicine developed by Isidoro Jamar. During a dermatology congress in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Doctor Hans met Doctor Alcides da Silva Jardim, the director of the Chemistry Laboratory at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. During this occasion, Hans introduced the “Jamarsan” to Silva Jardim and told him about the effects of the ointment on patients. The professor was interested in the medicine and said he would study a way to remove the pitch from the formula without losing its effectiveness. Doctor Silva Jardim’s research resulted in an ointment whose use became a pleasant lubricant.⁴³ Through the research efforts, a better formula was indeed discovered.⁴⁴ This new formula thereafter used by the Hospital was presented and recommended for use during a symposium held in Rio de Janeiro in December 1962.⁴⁵

As time went on, the Hospital developed not only in the scientific areas, but also in infrastructure. On December 18, 1966, a new structure was built with 60 beds and four apartments.⁴⁶ On April 25, 1971, the Hospital’s Dermatological Research Center was inaugurated, and it operated in partnership with the State University of Mato Grosso. Its objective was to study more deeply the causes of pemphigus in addition to other skin diseases,⁴⁷ and it had the participation of students from the Medicine College of the Public University of Mato Grosso. The Dermatological Research Center was of great importance because since the 1960s, the Hospital had not only treated pemphigus, but also other skin diseases.⁴⁸

Around 1973, the institution changed its name again and became known in the region as Penfigo Adventist Hospital.⁴⁹ About two years later (1975), the Hospital administration began to think about expanding the unit to a general hospital with 96 beds.⁵⁰ The goal was for the institution to offer general and surgical practices. The HAP went through a new renovation, and a new wing with 16 apartments and one surgical center was built.⁵¹

Among the patients of Penfigo Adventist Hospital had been native Indians from the North and Midwest regions of Brazil. They were taken to the Hospital by the Brazil National Indian Foundation [Fundação Nacional do Índio do Brasil ] or FUNAI] for treatment. And for the work performed for this population, in April 19, 1978 - when the Indian Day is celebrated in Brazil - the Penfigo Adventist Hospital and the Adventist Church were honored by the Brazil Countryside Ministry [Ministério do Interior do Brazil or MINTER] and by FUNAI with an award and the Indigenist Merit Medal [Medalha do Mérito Indigenista]. On this occasion, the Church was represented by Pastor Itanel Ferraz, who received recognition from Minister Rangel Reis and General Ismarth de Oliveira, then the president of the organization, for the work done by Penfigo Adventist Hospital.⁵²

In October 1981, a new phase in the institution’s history began. From that year on, the Hospital began to provide more medical specialties in addition to the treatment of pemphigus and other skin diseases already being offered.⁵³ In the following year, on May 20, 1982, the new building for the general hospital was inaugurated. This new institution was named the Campo Grande Adventist Hospital. This hospital nowadays offers more than 20 medical specialties including providing general and surgical care. In the first building, one wing contained the Health Lifestyle Center (Centro de Estilo de Vida em Saúde or CVS that was not yet opened), and other was for dermatological patient care, primarily for those who had pemphigus foliaceus. At this location, pemphigus patients were still treated philanthropically, free of charge.⁵⁴

In 1987, the Health Lifestyle Center was opened, and it is still operating today. The goal of this institution is to use natural medicines as treatment, following the model of the River Plate Sanitarium in Argentina. In the following year (1988), the hospital had its name changed once again, then being known as Penfigo Adventist Hospital.⁵⁵ In 1992, the Hospital complex on Avenida Günter Hans already had three different buildings: Penfigo Adventist Hospital, dedicated exclusively to the treatment of pemphigus; the Campo Grande Adventist Hospital, which offered assistance in other medical specialties; and the Health Lifestyle Center. At the beginning of 1990s, that institution had a total of 100 beds to attend its patients.⁵⁶

In partnership with its focus on health care, the HAP also maintained its missionary vocation. An example of this took place at the end of 1993 when the church that functions at the institution was constituted a pastoral district. That year, the Hospital district contributed with 215 baptisms to fulfill its missionary mission.⁵⁷ In the 2000s, the HAP celebrated several achievements, one of which was the acquisition of another unit. Until July 2007, the hospital had two areas: their headquarters on the exit to Sidrolândia; and a medical clinic on 1098 Padre João Crippa Street in the city center of Campo Grande. In August of that same year, in order to have a closer relationship with the population of Campo Grande, HAP acquired the Maternity Hospital Pro Matre [Hospital Maternidade Pro Matre] located at 2590 Barão do Rio Branco Street. Thus, Pro Matre became the Penfigo Adventist Hospital Unit II and, with this acquisition, HAP started offering obstetric and vascular care besides gynecological and plastic surgeries.⁵⁸

Today, HAP remains engaged in research related to pemphigus foliaceus, which was initially the reason of its foundation. Several hypotheses regarding the development of this disease have also been studied in the United States with the HAP's participation through the Pemphigus Foliaceus Cooperative Study Group [Grupo Cooperativo de Estudos do Penfigo Foliaceo]. Thus, the treatments offered to patients at the Hospital are expected to continue to evolve. The mission of the Penfigo Adventist Hospital, as it was at the beginning and remains so up to now, is to promote physical, mental, and spiritual health following the example of Jesus, who is the Doctor of all doctors. The hospital’s values are love for God and others, considering patients as the center of attention, respecting biblical principles and professional ethics, providing the highest quality services. Its vision is to achieve excellence in prevention and cure, and the promotion of integral health.⁵⁹

The HAP also maintains an agreement with the Government of Mato Grosso do Sul and the City of Campo Grande through the Brazilian Unified Health System [Sistema Único de Saúde or SUS]. This agreement allows the population to access elective surgeries that are funded by the SUS.⁶⁰ In addition to treatment in its health units, HAP also promotes social actions with the participation of employees and volunteers of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. In this context, the Hospital has been conducting Health Fairs⁶¹ and getting directly involved in other missionary activities of the SDA Church, with attention focused on the general well-being of people from the city and the region where it is located.⁶²

Historical Role of the Institution

Penfigo Adventist Hospital is today a medical benchmark in the city where it is located and also throughout the country. This recognition is due to the fact that the HAP offers quality treatment to its patients and because it has specialized in the treatment of patients with pemphigus foliaceous (something unusual for most hospitals). In addition, the HAP offers this treatment philanthropically--at no cost to patients--and encourages health promotional activities for the general population. These and other actions have been important to HAP’s assistance to the surrounding community.⁶³

Moreover, by providing these services, the HAP not only seeks to treat diseases, but to promote a healthy lifestyle based on God’s instructions, and does so through all its structure, human resources, and medical experience. Across three fronts – specialized philanthropic treatment, general treatments, and the Health Lifestyle Center – the HAP continues to seek to accomplish its purpose in the most dedicated way possible, which is to carry out medical-missionary work in accordance to the vision and mission of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.⁶⁴

Outlook

Considering the trajectory of the Hospital, which began from its foundation in a bold manner initially in rudimentary facilities, to its most recent achievements, the HAP has become a benchmark as an Adventist health institution in Brazil. It is recognized that this happened from the sum of its efforts, including the pioneering work of those who first faced the rare pemphigus disease – whose diagnosis and solution were nearly unknown in the 1940s – and also the commitment of all the brave workers who later dedicated their services to the institution.⁶⁵

However, this successful journey, while evoking the recognition of the efforts already completed, also inspires confidence in the God who directed all those things. In addition, this beautiful trajectory also challenges the HAP, as a Seventh-day Adventist confessional institution, to continue fulfilling its mission, always keeping in mind that its primary goal is to promote the eternal Gospel through the medical services offered.⁶⁶

Organization’s Name Llist⁶⁷

Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital] (1950-1952); Hospital Mato-Grossense do Pênfigo [Mato Grosso Penfigo Hospital] (1953-1972); Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital] (1973-1981); Hospital Adventista de Campo Grande [Campo Grande Adventist Hospital] (1982-1987); Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital] (1988-present).

List of Leaders⁶⁸

Medical Directors: Edgar B. Rodrigues (1952-1960); Hans Günter (1961-1973); Alfredo Marquart Jr. (1974-1976); W. da S. Lessa (1977); Rene Gross (1978-1979); J. C. F. Xavier (1980-1981); João Kiefer Filho (1982-1983); Hélnio Judson Nogueira (1988-2000); Daniel de Faria (2001-2002); Odinilson A. Fonseca (2003-2008); Marcio Cley Fernandes dos Reis (2009-2014); William Joubert dos Santos (2015-2016); Gerson Trevilato (2017-present).

Managing Directors: Hugo Gegembauer (1952-1955); I. P. Loyola (1956-1960); L. T. Nunes (1961); Hans Günter (1965-1971); A. B. Rosa (1972-1977); Rubens Crivellaro (1978-1981); Rony H. Lopes (1982-1983); João Lotze (1988); Elizabeth Santelli dos Santos (1989-1993); Iva B. de Souza (1994-2002); Demir Dener di Berardino (2003); Paulo Candido dos Reis (2004-2005); Joselmo Pablo Mews (2006-2008); Eloi Marcondes de L. Cezar (2009-2012); Pierre Manoel Damasio (2013-2017); Sergio Fernandes dos Reis (2020-present).⁶⁹

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Valle, Arthur de Souza. “Inaugurado o Centro de Pesquisas Dermatológicas” [“Dermatological Research Center Inaugurated”]. Revista Adventista 66, no. 8 (August 1971).

Valle, Artur de Souza. “Realizado o 1º Encontro Nacional do Pênfigo” [“First National Pemphigus Meeting held”]. Revista Adventista 65, no. 3 (March 1970).

Valle, Arthur S. “FUNAI Homenageia Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo” [“FUNAI Honors Penfigo Adventist Hospital”]. Revista Adventista 73, no. 6 (June 1978).

Notes

1. “Pemphigus are relatively rare diseases characterized by the development of blisters on the skin and sometimes also in the mucous membranes (such as mouth, throat, eyes, nose and genital region of men and women). [...] Pemphigus foliaceous [...] is the most common type in Brazil than in other countries, occurring mostly in rural areas, where it is also called ‘wildfire.’” Brazilian Society of Dermatology, “Pênfigo – O que é?” [“Pemphigus – What is it?”], accessed May 13, 2020, https://bit.ly/3fNGHWI .↩

2. Seventh-day Adventist Online Yearbook, “Penfigo Adventist Hospital,” accessed May 14, 2020, https://bit.ly/2AlyWHg.↩

3. Penfigo Adventist Hospital, “Especialidades” [“Specialties”] accessed May 13, 2020, https://bit.ly/35YWjC8.↩

4. From G1, “Divisão do estado de Mato Grosso completa 30 anos” [“The division of the State of Mato Grosso Completes 30 Years”], G1, October 11, 2007, accessed March 9, 2020, https://glo.bo/2wHqQan .↩

5. “Mato Grosso Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1979), 277.↩

6. “Mato Grosso Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1922), 129; “Matto Grosso Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1930), 236.↩

7. Alberto Fabrício B. N. e Silva, “Histórico da Igreja Adventista do 7º Dia Central de Campo Grande, MS” [“Campo Grande Central Seventh-Day Adventist Church Report, MS”], Monograph, Brazil College, 2002, 8.↩

8. Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital], “História” [“History”], accessed January 11, 2019, https://bit.ly/2WJHHUZ.↩

9. Sonia F. Albuquerque Lima, “100 Anos em Memórias: Adventistas do Sétimo Dia em Mato Grosso do Sul” [100 Years of History: Seventh-day Adventists in Mato Grosso do Sul], Campo Grande, MS: Alvorada Printing and Publishing, 2015, 46.↩

10. Ibid.↩

11. Ibid.↩

12. Don R. Christman, “O Tempo Não Para” [Time Does Not Stop]. “Alfredo, Áurea e o fogo-selvagem” [Alfredo, Áurea and the Wildfire], Tatuí, SP: Brazil Publishing House, 1987, 97, 87.↩

13. Ibid., 87, 103-108.↩

14. Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital], “História” [“History”], accessed January 11, 2019, https://bit.ly/2WJHHUZ .↩

15. Don R. Christman, O Tempo Não Apagou. Alfredo, Áurea e o Fogo-Selvagem [The Time Did not Extinguish. Alfredo, Áurea and The Wildfire], Tatuí, SP: Brazil Publishing House, 1987, 116, 117.↩

16. Ibid., 125, 128, 129.↩

17. Ibid., 129-131.↩

18. Ibid., 131, 132.↩

19. Christman, “O Tempo Não Para” [Time Does Not Stop], 130.↩

20. Lygia Hans, “Günter Hans: Um Verdadeiro Médico Missionário” [Günter Hans: A True Missionary Physician], São Paulo, SP: Novo Dia [New Day], 2014, 62.↩

21. “Penfigo Adventist Hospital,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1953), 296.↩

22. Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital], “História” [“History”], accessed January 11, 2019, https://bit.ly/2WJHHUZ .↩

23. Ibid.↩

24. Sociedade Brasileira de Dermatologia [Brazilian Society of Dermatology] (SBD), “Pênfigo: O que é?” [“Pemphigus: What is it?”], accessed March 2, 2020, https://bit.ly/2TmglBT .↩

25. Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital], “História” [“History”], accessed March 2, 2019, https://bit.ly/2WJHHUZ .↩

26. “Penfigo Adventist Hospital,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1953), 296; Artur de Souza Valle, “Realizado o 1º Encontro Nacional do Pênfigo” [“First National Pemphigus Meeting held”], Revista Adventista 65, no. 3 (March 1970): 19.↩

27. Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital], “Missão, Visão e Valores” [“Mission, Vision and Values”], accessed January 11, 2019, https://bit.ly/2IxOj0j .↩

28. Edgar Rodrigues, “Clínica da Figueira” [“Figueira Clinic”], Revista Adventista 54, no. 10 (October 1959): 25, 26.↩

29. “Clínica da Figueira” [“Figueira Clinic”], Revista Adventista, (March 1960): 31.↩

30. Hans, “Günter Hans: Um Verdadeiro Médico Missionário” [Günter Hans: A True Missionary Physician], 62, 64.↩

31. “Penfigo Adventist Hospital,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1954), 307.↩

32. Artur de Souza Valle, “Realizado o 1º Encontro National do Pênfigo” [“First National Pemphigus Meeting held”], Revista Adventista 65, no. 3 (March 1970): 19.↩

33. Christman, O Tempo Não Apagou. Alfredo, Áurea e o Fogo-Selvagem [The Time Did not Extinguish. Alfredo, Áurea and The Wildfire], 139, 140.↩

34. Hans, “Günter Hans: Um Verdadeiro Médico Missionário” [Günter Hans: A True Missionary Physician], 57; Gunter Hans, “Hospital Mato-Grossense do Pênfigo - Obra Missionária Por Excelência” [“Penfigo Adventist Hospital - Excellence in the Missionary Work”], Revista Adventista 59, no. 1 (January 1964): 2.↩

35. Hans, “Günter Hans: Um Verdadeiro Médico Missionário” [Günter Hans: A True Missionary Physician], 54-57, 62.↩

36. Ibid., 59, 60, 66.↩

37. Sonia F. Albuquerque Lima, “100 Anos em Memórias: Adventistas do Sétimo Dia em Mato Grosso do Sul” [100 Years of History: Seventh-day Adventists in Mato Grosso do Sul], Campo Grande, MS: Alvorada Printing and Publishing, 2015, 54.↩

38. Hans, “Günter Hans: Um Verdadeiro Médico Missionário” [Günter Hans: A True Missionary Physician], 58, 59.↩

39. Ibid., 65, 66.↩

40. Lima, “100 Anos em Memórias: Adventistas do Sétimo Dia em Mato Grosso do Sul” [100 Years of History: Seventh-day Adventists in Mato Grosso do Sul], 68.↩

41. Ibid., 69.↩

42. Hans, Günter Hans: A True Missionary Doctor [Günter Hans: A True Missionary Physician], 76; Ronaldo C. Bottsford, “Régio Presente” [“Royal Presence”], Revista Adventista 57, no. 3 (March 1962): 22.↩

43. Hans, Günter Hans: Um Verdadeiro Médico Missionário [Günter Hans: A True Missionary Physician], 82.↩

44. Christman, O Tempo Não Apagou. Alfredo, Áurea e o Fogo-Selvagem [The Time Did not Extinguish. Alfredo, Áurea and The Wildfire], 140, 141.↩

45. Gunter Hans, “Hospital Mato-Grossense do Pênfigo - Obra Missionária Por Excelência” [“Penfigo Adventist Hospital - Excellence in the Missionary Work”], Revista Adventista 59, no. 1 (January 1964): 2.↩

46. Charlise Alves, “Curando há sete décadas” [“Healing for seven decades”], Revista Adventista, July 23, 2019, accessed March 23, 2020, https://bit.ly/2xmUthb .↩

47. Arthur de Souza Valle, “Inaugurado o Centro de Pesquisas Dermatológicas” [“Dermatological Research Center Inaugurated”], Revista Adventista 66, no. 8 (August 1971): 20, 21.↩

48. Ivan Schmidt, “Um Hospital Que Apaga o Fogo” [“A Hospital That Extinguishes the Fire”], Revista Adventista [Adventist Review], 66, no. 6 (June 1972): 22, 23.↩

49. “Penfigo Adventist Hospital,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1973-1947), 386.↩

50. E. Köhler, “Hospital do Pênfigo” [“Pemphigus Hospital”], Revista Adventista 70, no. 6 (July 1975): 21, 22.↩

51. Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital], “História” [“History”], accessed September 25, 2019, https://bit.ly/2WJHHUZ .↩

52. Arthur S. Valle, “FUNAI Homenageia Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo” [“FUNAI Honors Penfigo Adventist Hospital”], Revista Adventista 73, no. 6 (June 1978): 25, 26.↩

53. “Hospital Adventista: Nova Fase” [“Adventist Hospital: New Phase”], Revista Adventista, December 1981, 19, 20.↩

54. Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital], “História” [“History”], accessed March 23, 2020, https://bit.ly/2WJHHUZ.↩

55. “Penfigo Adventist Hospital,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1989), 476.↩

56. Joaquim X. de Macedo and Hélnio J. Nogueira, “Salvos do fogo” [“Saved from the fire”], Revista Adventista 88, no. 8 (August 1992): 14, 15.↩

57. “Resultado das atividades da MSM é satisfatório” [“The outcome of the MSM’s activities is satisfactory”], Revista Adventista, March 1994, 17.↩

58. Keila Flores, “Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo compra o Hospital Pro Matre” [“Penfigo Adventist Hospital buys the Pro Matre Hospital”], Revista Adventista 102, no. 1193 (October 2007): 37.↩

59. Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital], “Missão, Visão e Valores” [“Mission, Vision and Values”], accessed September 25, 2019, https://bit.ly/2IxOj0j.↩

60. Glaucea Vaccari, “Parceria entre Prefeitura e Hospital do Pênfigo vai tirar 60 crianças de fila por cirurgia” [“Partnership between the City Hall and Penfigo Hospital will remove 60 children from the waiting line for surgery”] Correio do Estado [State Mail News], January 23, 2020, accessed May 13, 2020, https://bit.ly/2T4SBSn; J. Gonçalves, “Em parceria com Hospital do Pênfigo, Caravana da Saúde realiza cirurgias eletivas em Campo Grande” [“In partnership with Penfigo Hospital, Health Caravan performs elective surgeries in Campo Grande”], Secretaria de Estado da Saúde [Health State Department], September 14, 2016, accessed May 13, 2020 https://bit.ly/2WWATSj.↩

61. “The Health Fair is a one, two or more days event, open to the public of all ethnicities and beliefs, without cost or profit. It is usually organized in public places such as gyms, schools, parks, squares and shopping malls. The community is invited to participate and receive the benefits of the tests and instructions”, Luiz Fernando Sella and Daniela Tiemi Kanno, Manual da Feira de Saúde [Health Fair Manual] (South American Division 2015), 15.↩

62. “Nova Andradina recebe Feira da Saúde do Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo” [“Nova Andradina hosts the Penfigo Adventist Hospital Health Fair”], Nova Andradina City Hall, October 23, 2017, accessed May 13, 2020, https://bit.ly/3bxHc3Q.↩

63. Charlise Alves, “Referência nacional” [“National Benchmark”], Revista Adventista, October 20, 2017, accessed March 23, 2020, https://bit.ly/33Hrscm.↩

64. Hospital Adventista do Pênfigo [Penfigo Adventist Hospital], “Missão, Visão e Valores” [“Mission, Vision and Values”], accessed September 25, 2019 https://bit.ly/2IxOj0j.↩

65. Ibid.↩

66. Ibid.↩

67. “Penfigo Adventist Hospital,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, DC: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1953), 296; Seventh-day Adventist Online Yearbook, “Penfigo Adventist Hospital,” accessed March 17, 2020, https://bit.ly/3d8cVec.↩

68. Ibid. For more detailed information about all the medical and administrative officers of Penfigo Adventist Hospital, see the SDA Yearbooks from 1953 to 2018.↩

69. More information about the Penfigo Adventist Hospital can be found on their website at http://penfigo.org.br/ and on social networks at Facebook: @hospitaladventistadopenfigohap and Instagram: @hospitaladventistadopenfigo.↩