On February 18, 2022, the Iran 1400 Project spoke with historian Dr. Willem Floor about his book: History of Hospitals in Iran 550-1950. Dr. Floor’s book documents the evolution of hospitals in Iran and notes the influence of Iran’s government and foreign powers on the healthcare system. During his presentation, he discussed hospital developments in several different periods, from the early Abbasid period to the modern day. In addition to the presentation of his book, this episode includes a Q&A session with Dr. Floor. During the session, he commented on a variety of topics, from how the evolution of hospitals in Iran relates to its relationship with the West, to their effects (or lack thereof) on the spread of Christianity and secularization, to the impact of the black death in Iran.
Dr. Willem Floor was employed by the World Bank as an energy specialist from 1983 until his retirement in 2002. Since then, he has dedicated his time to the study of the social and political history of Iran, publishing dozens of books on a wide variety of topics.
