Professor Aquilino Polaino-Lorente, Chair of Psychopathology at the Complutense University of Madrid for three decades, has died. A physician, psychiatrist, professor, researcher, and above all, a man deeply concerned with human beings.

His death leaves a void in Spanish psychiatry and among those of us who had the opportunity to know him, listen to him, and learn from him. But he also leaves something more important: a testament to his life.

Aquilino Polaino was a man of deep Christian convictions, a member of Opus Dei, and a defender of the family, life, and human dignity. He was never afraid to express his opinions, even when they might be considered politically incorrect or provoke misunderstanding and harsh criticism.

He wasn’t trying to please. He was trying, according to his own understanding of the profession and life, to serve the truth and help people .

The person above all else

He practiced psychiatry for almost fifty years and was Professor of Psychopathology at the Complutense University of Madrid for thirty. His academic and scientific career was extraordinarily extensive. But those who knew him also remember the approachable professor, the doctor concerned for his patients, and the mentor who never reduced a person to their illness.

One of the phrases that best explains his way of understanding medicine was uttered when talking about a patient he was treating whose personal situation was especially difficult.

He wondered how he should treat her and an idea arose within him: “Imagine that this woman is Jesus Christ. How would you treat her? “

That question changed his attitude towards her.

This is not a minor anecdote. It is, probably, one of the best keys to understanding Aquilino Polaino: to see in each person a dignity that transcends their circumstances . ( Omnes )

For him, helping a person was not just about applying medical knowledge. It was also about listening to them, understanding them, accompanying them, and treating them with a dignity that, from his faith, found its ultimate foundation in God.

The family, a school of humanity

Another of Polaino’s major concerns was his family.

For decades, from his clinical experience, he observed how family relationships profoundly influenced personality development and psychological health. In his later years, he particularly emphasized the importance of family bonds, the parent-child relationship, and the need to recover an education based also on responsibility, effort, and virtues. ( Omnes )

For him, taking care of the family was also taking care of the health of society .

He did not conceive of the family simply as another social institution, but as the place where a person learns to love, to be loved, to take on responsibilities and to face life’s difficulties.

That is why he was particularly concerned about a society that, in his opinion, was weakening family ties and leaving many young people without sufficient personal resources to cope with difficulties. ( Omnes )

A man who stood up for what he believed in

Polaino also participated in public debates on issues related to family, life, and bioethics. He was a member of the Pontifical Academy for Life and developed a significant part of his thinking around the dignity of human life.

In 2005, he appeared before the Spanish Senate in a debate that sparked considerable controversy. Some of his statements were harshly criticized, and that episode profoundly affected his presence in the public sphere.

It is not necessary to share all his positions to recognize something that was part of his character: he was not willing to give up his convictions to avoid controversy .

That attitude caused him trouble, but it also explains the consistency with which he lived.

Strength in the face of pain

Personally, there is another dimension of Aquilino Polaino that I would like to highlight.

She was probably one of the most austere and pain-resistant people I have ever known.

I saw him teach in packed auditoriums while suffering almost unbearable pain. And yet, there he was: explaining, reasoning, teaching.

He was very demanding of himself and, at the same time, extraordinarily affectionate with others.

That combination is hard to find: being tough on yourself and understanding towards others .

He worked with strength and a critical spirit practically until the end. Even in his final years, he continued to reflect and speak publicly about the individual, the family, freedom, and the problems of society. ( Omnes )

A life understood as service

Perhaps this is the word that best summarizes his life: service .

Service to medicine.

Service to the university.

Service to your patients.

Service to its students.

Service to the family.

And, from their faith, they serve God through service to others.

His professional experience led him to understand that behind every patient was a unique individual. And behind that individual, for him, was also God.

That’s why that question — “How would you treat this person if he were Jesus Christ?” — takes on a special significance.

It wasn’t simply a way of practicing psychiatry.

It was a way of life.

His legacy

Aquilino Polaino leaves behind an extensive body of scientific and academic work. But perhaps his most important legacy lies not only in his books, articles, or lectures.

It’s in the people he helped.

In his students.

In their patients.

In those who learned from him to see human beings in a different way.

And in those of us who discovered that putting the person at the center cannot just be a nice phrase: it has to become a way of acting .

This idea connects deeply with something I’ve been advocating for some time at Marketing and Services : when we talk about putting people at the center, we’re not talking about a communication strategy. We’re talking about a way of understanding business, service, and society.

Aquilino Polaino took it much further: putting the person at the center meant for him serving them and recognizing in them a dignity that deserves to be respected and cared for.

Today, as I say goodbye to him, I want to hold onto that image.

The one about the teacher who continued teaching despite the pain.

The doctor who saw a person in his patient before a diagnosis.

The story of the man who defended his convictions, even though some of them brought him misunderstanding.

The one about the Christian who tried to discover God in the people he served.

And the one from the friend and teacher who reminds us of something we should never forget:

Caring for the person is caring for the family.

Taking care of the family is taking care of society.

And serving others is also a way to get closer to God.

Rest in peace, Professor Polaino.

Thank you for your life, for your example, and for your attitude of service.

I met Aquilino many years ago in Seville. We subsequently crossed paths on numerous occasions at various universities, at the regular meetings of AEDOS (the Spanish Laboratory of Modern Social Doctrine of the Church), where he actively participated with presentations and contributions to discussions. I also had the opportunity to walk with him and chat about all sorts of things. These reflections have been influenced by those conversations.

But I don’t want to finish without asking for prayers for Aquilino, since he also did so for other deceased people and had great faith in the prayers we Catholics offer, especially when someone in the family dies.