Kapronczay Károly szerk.: Orvostörténeti Közlemények 200-201. (Budapest, 2007)

TANULMÁNYOK — ARTICLES - FORRAI, Judit: History of a Special Healing Method for Motor-disordered Children: Conductive Education - A mozgásszervi betegségben szenvedő gyermekek egyik sajátos gyógymódja, a konduktív nevelés története

In August 1954 Pető had a coronary thrombosis. He was ill for a long time but he still wanted to know about everything that was happening in the Institute. His colleagues, Ilona Székely and Mária Hári, directed the Institute under his guidance. Bárczi wanted to separate the Institute from the College of Special Education, probably partly because of the uncertainty of Pető's recovery and partly because of the conflicts with the Ministry of Health. Pető's opponents centred around Simonovits, the Deputy Minister, and they did not even accept Pető's results. "The Institute is a dark place, full of failures and quackery"

66 At the same time the newly established Orthopaedic Clinic would have been grateful to expand and get a new institute. Therefore Bárczi wanted to attach Pető's Institute to the Orthopaedic Clinic. Pető had a bad quarrel with Bárczi and left the College of Special Education. The director of the College portrayed Pető in the following way: "A selfless working style and incredible endurance is characteristic of him, but at the same time he is brusque and very difficult to get on with. He cannot easily accept criticism, but he himself is a severe critic, he often hits the nail on the head, but is frequently aggressive. " In the Institute the work consisted of two streams: educating the patients and training the conductors, those people who were directly in contact with the patients in their education. Education and training was held at the same time, since the education was the training itself. A great body of manuscript was collected from the tasks that were written down. But the scientific background and the conditions for training had to be established. Pető used all his strength and connections to belong to the Ministry of Culture and Education instead of the Ministry of Health, as he was not respected there: that's why the method's name was changed from movement therapy to become conductive education. Simonovits caused the treatment of Heine-Medin patients to be discontinued. In 1963 it was finally incorporated in law that the Institute belonged to the Ministry of Culture. "An Educational and Training Institute for motor-disabled people should be established under the direct control and guidance of the Minister of Culture and Education in order to assure education and upbringing with special (conductive) methods for motor disabled people who are hindered in their movements as a result of damage to the central nervous system, and to provide training for the educators who would accomplish the work. "

61 The law precisely outlined the Institute's tasks: • To train conductors to educate motor disabled people • To restore motor disabled persons by using conductive education, • To bring up children under school age (6), providing them kindergarten occupation • To accommodate school-age children and adults, and to teach them and give them vocational training • Scientific research connected to the use of conductive education. Hári, Mária: O.e. 98. Hungarian Gazette (Magyar Közlöny) No 89. 21st December 1963: The Hungarian Workers' and Peasants' Government decree 21.12.1963/36.