[Abolishment of the office of the Ottoman head physician]

The office of the Ottoman head physician which had been an important organisation for 400 years, was abolished by a decree given by Sultan Abdülmecid on 17 April 1850. This article discusses the factors leading to this abolishment. Some researchers say that the foundation of the Council of Health Affairs (Meclisi Umuru Tibbikye) in the Medical school (Mektebi Tibbiye) just before the decree, might be one of the reasons. Here it is concluded that this factor was not responsible for the decree because the duty of presiding management and chairmanship of the council was already assigned to the Head Physician. There was also another council which had been founded ten years before the decree and it was equipped with the same functions. When the point whether the decree was due to the Head Physician Salih Efendi is studies, we see that didn't have any influence on the said decision, although Salih Efendi had been appointed by Sultan Abdülmecid as the Head Physician and as the Minister of the Medical School both of his duties were withdrawn from him. But later he was again appointed as the Head Physician by the same Sultlan. Another reason was said to be the transfer of the Head physician's duties to the Minister of the Medical School (Tibbiye Nezareti). But the Ministry of the Medical School existed since 1827 and according to the Sultan's order its only duty was stated as providing the discipline of the School. Another reason said to be responsible for the abolition of the Head Physician's office was the several attempts to poison Sultan Abdülmecid. But this also is not enough to explain the problem. Another possibility regarding this subject is the possibility of giving personal opportunities to the Doekyard's Supervisor Ziver Efendi, who after the abolition was appointed as the minister of the Medical School. Thus Ziver Efendi was to be promoted to one of the highest ranks of the state and there was to be great increase in his salary, even having studied all the sources available which might contribute to the solution of the question, it is still not enough to solve the problem satisfactorily.