Biography – Dott. Haki Bllaca

Born on 5 May 1934 into a family long settled in the city of Gjirokastër.
He completed his eight-year schooling at the “24 Maji” school in Durrës, where the family had moved for economic reasons, and in the same city he also finished his secondary education at the “16 Shtatori” high school. He always stood out for his excellent results in his studies and in activities inside and outside school. He was class monitor in the third and fourth years of high school and a member of the school’s youth organisation; an outstanding athlete and footballer, a distinguished and methodical student and a tireless reader, he had a passion for painting and loved music.
Thanks to these outstanding qualities he was chosen to continue his university studies abroad, in Bulgaria, where from 1954 to 1960 he completed his higher studies in Dentistry at the Medical Academy of Sofia. After graduating, he attended a six-month qualification course in prosthodontics and orthodontics, and in mid-1960 he returned home and began working as a dentist, first in Sarandë and then, from 1963, in Durrës.
He worked as a dentist in the children’s department, which he later headed for a long period.
“Planned dental treatment for the children of Durrës” is the field to which Dr. Haki gave so much, with his constant zeal, integrity and perseverance.
In 1975 he specialised for one year in Orthodontics at the Faculty of Medicine in Tirana, and from then on his particular contribution was the correction of dento-maxillofacial anomalies in the children of the district.
Bronchial asthma appeared early in his life and stayed with him throughout, but Dr. Haki always defied it with courage, enthusiasm and tireless work.
He was active in many public roles. For more than ten years he was Chairman of the Trade Union of the Durrës Dental Clinic, and he took part as a delegate in the district and national congresses of the organisation held in Tirana.
What distinguished him even more, however, was his participation in all the scientific activities that began to be organised in Albania from 1967, in Shkodër, at the first national scientific session, following several initiatives at the Faculty of Dentistry in Tirana.
His scientific papers took him everywhere: to Tirana, Shkodër, Elbasan, Gjirokastër, and everywhere his scientific argument was deep, eloquent and clear. The topics he presented stood out for their variety, richness, quality and great contribution, and were published in the dental press.

His early work focused on occupational dental diseases at the Durrës Food Enterprise, where, as co-author with Dr. Pirro Qerimi, also a Sofia graduate, he drew wide attention and received special recognition from the Directorate of the Ministry of Health. This was followed by “The spread of dental caries among the children of Durrës”, then “Dento-maxillofacial anomalies” and later “The state of the dental system in skulls and skeletons found during archaeological excavations in the city of Durrës”.
These topics were published for the first time and had a particular resonance in dental science circles. He became one of the first initiators, at national level, of the creation and organisation of the “Planned dental service” for children, and his extensive practical and scientific experience, shared with other heads of district services such as Dr. Ibrahim Dibra (Tirana), Dr. Jorgo Bukas (Gjirokastër), Dr. Pjeter Pepa (Shkodër) and others, spread everywhere, with the Directorate also engaging him in extending this service across the country.
He took part and presented a paper at the “First Scientific Session” held in Shkodër in September 1967.
“Prophylaxis and dental pathology during embryonic development and after birth” is the first study he published, in “Buletini Stomatologjik” (Dental Bulletin), 1974, no. 2, pp. 9-1, to be followed by many other educational and scientific studies and publications.
He took part in the “First National Dental Seminar” held in Elbasan on 25-26 May 1976, with a paper published in “Buletini Stomatologjik”, 1976, no. 1, pp. 75-79.
Together with Dr. Pirro Qerimi, the study “On the frequency of caries and periodontopathies at the Durrës Food Enterprise” was published in “Buletini Stomatologjik”, 1977, no. 1, pp. 29-37.
In the prestigious journal of the time, “Buletini i Universitetit Shtetëror” (State University Bulletin), 1977, no. 2, pp. 97-100, he published the article “Partial dentures on cross-bars”.
“Some data on gingivopathies in various anomalies of the teeth and jaws during their treatment” is the article he prepared together with the Department of Orthodontics at the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry Branch (Dr. Dh. Lira, Dr. Haki Bllaca, Dr. E. Papajorgji and Dr. M. Thanati), published in “Punime Stomatologjike” (Dental Works), vol. II, Tirana, 1978, pp. 111-115.
“A rare case of partial anodontia in both dentitions associated with polydactyly” is the article published in “Buletini i Universitetit Shtetëror”, Tirana, 1978, no. 3, pp. 131-136.

“A study of the frequency, intensity and predisposition to caries in the Durrës district” was published in “Buletini Stomatologjik”, 1980, no. 1, pp. 1-18.
For his particular scientific and social contribution he was awarded labour medals several times.
A cheerful and courageous man, despite the serious illness that was always with him, he was known for the warmth he inspired in all social and scientific circles during the many activities
organised at district and national level. He always helped young people, colleagues and friends with everything he knew and had gathered in his great professional experience.
Kind, sincere, always optimistic and cheerful, a man with many friends and well-wishers already in Bulgaria, and even more so in his work as a distinguished dentist in Albania, he stood out for his exceptional organisational skills.
He was the promoter and driving force of all the scientific and professional activities that the Dental Service of the Durrës district organised over a long period, as well as of many other national activities organised by the Ministry of Health.
He remains one of the distinguished specialists in paediatric dentistry, a kind and noble man who sadly passed away too early, leaving many projects and studies unfinished, but also leaving a son worthy of his father, his great wish in the last moments of his life: Florin, today a well-known dentist and surgeon in the Durrës district and visiting lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry Branch, Tirana.
He died on 2 April 1995 at the age of 60, leaving a great name as an ideal parent and a good man, but above all as a “worthy stone” in the pantheon of the great figures of Albanian dentistry among the graduates of the Bulgarian school of Sofia.

Pjeter PEPA
Doctor of Medical Sciences
Orthodontist