Many words and concepts defined Hernán Doval. Some of them come quickly. He was intelligent, cultured, tenacious, and hardworking. While admirable, these were not the qualities that made him irreplaceable. Hernán was that, but he added some key characteristics that are harder to see: he was a loyal, committed, honest, and humble person.
It can be said that it is natural and healthy to change over the years. Therefore, it is difficult to establish loyalty as a virtue. What would be virtuous about being loyal if it were possible to change? But loyalty is not stubbornness. Doval's loyalty was always an act of will that transcended external changes. He was always loyal to a commitment that involved choosing again and again, even in the face of difficulties, to recognize the importance of constant engagement with others in order to build something meaningful. His loyalty was an act of authenticity, of free choice, not of the inertia of past decisions. An avowed admirer of Rudolf Virchow, it is hard not to think of Hernán when reading the great German pathologist and politician: "Medicine is a social science, and politics is nothing but medicine on a grand scale. The physicians are the natural attorneys of the poor, and the social problems should largely be solved by them." Like Virchow, Doval was a man of integrity and his character as a physician was always inseparable from his political and social creed. He practiced medicine without seeking a central role. He had a way of being among others, never above or behind them. Another rare quality.
We do not say goodbye to a person like Hernán. He will be remembered. He will remain present in the memory of those of us who knew him, in the generations of colleagues he inspired, and in the ideas and values he defended. Hernán's legacy is his permanence, his immortality and his transcendence in the consciousness of all those who loved him.
Alejandro Macchia,
Gianni Tognoni