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Sophiya HackimovaHonored Scientist of Tajikistan, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor
Date of Birth: 20.12.1924
Country:  Tajikistan |
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Biography of Sofya (Sadi Niso) Hakimova
Sofya (Sadi Niso) Hakimova, an eminent scientist of Tajikistan, a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, a doctor of medical sciences, and a professor, is recognized worldwide for her groundbreaking work in the field of obstetrics, gynecology, and related sciences. She was born on December 20, 1924, in the city of Konibodom, Sughd region, Tajikistan. Her father, Hafiz Hakimov (1896-1984), and mother, Oyshakhon Hakimova (1910-1936), played a significant role in her upbringing. She is married to Khikmat Yuldashev (born in 1911) and has a son, Sidhakim Ikramov (born in 1943), and a daughter, Dilbar Hakimova (born in 1957).
Early Life and Education
After completing primary school in 1933 and two preparatory courses at the medical school in Konibodom in 1935, Sofya enrolled in the Stalinabad Medical School (now Dushanbe). From 1939 to 1943, she studied at the Tajik State Medical Institute. After obtaining her medical degree, she worked as a surgical resident at the Kulob Regional Hospital in 1943. She then became the deputy head of the Kurgan-Tyube Regional Health Department (1944-1945) and also served as a surgical resident at the regional hospital. Until 1946, Sofya Hakimova supervised the Kurgan-Tyube Regional Health Department and the surgical department of the regional hospital.
Academic Career
From 1946 to 1958, she worked as an assistant at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Tajik State Medical Institute. In 1950, she underwent training as a postgraduate at the Institute of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR and successfully defended her candidate dissertation, becoming the first Tajik woman to earn a candidate degree in medical sciences at the age of 25. In the following year, while serving as an assistant at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Tajik State Medical Institute and the chief specialist obstetrician-gynecologist of the Stalinabad City Health Department, Sofya was enrolled as a doctoral student at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the 1st Moscow Medical Institute.
By the spring of 1957, Sofya Hakimova completed her doctoral dissertation on the topic "Some Features of Neurohormonal Regulation of Uterine Contractility in Normal and Pathology." Her research revealed a previously unknown relationship between the body and cervix of the uterus, which determines the outcome of pregnancy and childbirth. In 1958, she was appointed as the head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Tajik State Medical Institute, a position she held until 1980. In the same year, she was elected as the chairperson of the Republican Scientific Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Tajikistan. Under Sofya Hakimova's leadership, who received the title of professor in 1964, the department transformed into a research institute. The department clinic, Maternity Hospital No. 1, became a pilgrimage site for patients from all over Tajikistan and neighboring republics. From 1963 to 1965, she served as the chief obstetrician-gynecologist of the Ministry of Health of the Tajik SSR.
During those years, healthcare in Tajikistan, a republic with traditionally high birth rates, faced significant challenges. There were only eight women's consultations in cities (none in rural areas) and only three standard maternity hospitals for the entire republic - two in Dushanbe and one in Khujand. Sofya Hakimova actively worked to address this dire situation by advocating for the establishment of well-equipped women's consultations in cities and districts, allocating the ground floors of residential buildings for the organization of women's consultations and milk kitchens, and the construction of standard maternity hospitals. In June 1971, the State Committee of the Council of Ministers of the USSR for Science and Technology supported Hakimova's proposal to create the "Pathology of Women, Congenital and Hereditary Diseases of Children" Laboratory in the republic. This laboratory became the cradle of Tajik medical genetics as a scientific field and a practical branch of medicine, laying a solid foundation for the establishment of the Tajik Research Institute of Maternal and Child Health Protection in 1980 (now the Research Institute of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Pediatrics).
Neonatology in Tajikistan took its first steps in development at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Tajik State Medical Institute. The first candidate and doctoral dissertations in neonatology were completed under Professor Hakimova's supervision. She guided the preparation of nine doctors and 30 candidates of medical sciences, with the majority of Tajik obstetricians and gynecologists being her students and protégés who later headed the department and the research institute. In 1980, Sofya Hakimova was appointed as the director of the newly established Tajik Research Institute of Maternal and Child Health Protection. During the initial period of leading the institute, she faced numerous obstacles, including a lack of understanding from authorities (the Ministry of Health of the republic practically denied the clinical institute a proper clinical base and a sufficient number of clinical staff), intrigue, and opposition from some colleagues who were openly undermining her position and seeking her dismissal. However, being a fighter by nature, Sofya Hakimova persevered through all challenges.
Significant improvements occurred in 1985 with the visit of the then Minister of Health of the USSR, S.P. Burenkov, to the republic. The Republican Maternity Hospital was dissolved, and its functions were transferred to the Research Institute of Maternal and Child Health Protection, with the building of the maternity hospital being transformed into a fully-fledged clinical institute. However, Sofya Hakimova still had to endure numerous attacks from influential figures in the leadership of the republican and union healthcare systems. Yet, she never gave in to her detractors; instead, many of them were eventually removed from their important positions.
In the early 1990s, on the eve of the bloodshed in her homeland, Sofya Hakimova completed the construction of a six-story obstetrics building for the institute, where the first newborn was delivered in April 1992. Shortly before the collapse of the Soviet Union, she managed to secure a significant amount of funding, which was used to acquire state-of-the-art imported equipment. However, when war and the accompanying chaos made it impossible to continue normal work, Sofya Hakimova submitted her resignation as a protest.
Currently, Sofya Hakimova is a renowned Tajik scientist, dedicated to the comprehensive synthesis of knowledge and experience in the field of obstetrics, gynecology, and related sciences. She has authored numerous scientific publications, including 10 monographs (5 in manuscripts), 4 methodological recommendations, and over 100 other scientific works published both domestically and internationally. Some of her significant works include "Fundamentals of Endocrinological Gynecology" (co-authored with K.N. Zhmakina, Moscow, 1966), "The Role of Estrogens in DNA Synthesis and Mitotic Activity of Endometrial Epithelium" (Dushanbe, 1970), "Die Rolle der Hormone in der Genese der Fibromyome der Gebarmutter" (Zentralblatt f. Gynaekologie, 1968, H. 47, 1588-1603), "Zur Frage Localbedingter Besonderheiten in Stoffwechsel und in der Exkretion Steroid-Hormonen bei Frauen unter der Klimatisch-geographischen Bedingungen der Republik Tadshikistan" (Endokrinologie, 1968, B.53, H.5-6, s. 355-364). She has also made five discoveries and has five inventions.
For many years, Sofya Hakimova has actively participated in public activities. She served as the chairperson of the Republican Scientific Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (1958-1993), a member of the board of the All-Union Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (1958-1991), the All-Union Scientific Society of Medical Geneticists (1985-1991), the Committee on Anemia and Hemoglobinopathies of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR (1981-1991), a member of the Committee of Soviet Women (1970-1974), a member of the Presidium of the Tajik Society of Friendship and Cultural Connections with Foreign Countries (1958-1978), and a member of the editorial board of the journal "Obstetrics and Gynecology" (1970-1990).
Sofya Hakimova has been honored with the title of Honored Scientist of the Tajik SSR (1968) and has been awarded the Order of Lenin (1960), the Order of the Badge of Honor (1964), the Order of Friendship of Peoples (1985), as well as medals and other distinctions. She is the first and only female medical scientist from Central Asia to be elected as a corresponding member of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR (since 1992, the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences).
In her spare time, Sofya Hakimova enjoys classical literature, music, and the traditional Tajik vocal arts. She lives and works in Dushanbe.
