Cristian Dragomir was a leading Romanian academic surgeon who helped transform surgical services in his country after the fall of the dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu. Born on 28 April 1940 in the Romanian city of Bârlad in the province of Moldavia, Dragomir grew up in a war torn country which, following the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, soon became a communist state run in a highly individualistic and unconventional manner by Ceaușescu. Cristian Dragomir’s primary and secondary education were undertaken in Bârlad, culminating in his wish to study medicine. He became a medical student in the nearby Moldavian city of Iași, the second city of Romania, famed for its culture, beautiful churches, gardens and universities. He entered the faculty of medicine at the Grigore T Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy and qualified in 1962. He decided upon a career in surgery, gaining his MD with a thesis entitled ‘Extra-articular osteosynthesis of the femoral neck’. He then extended his expertise in oncological surgery of the oesophagus, liver and pancreas, as well as in plastic and reconstructive surgery, and carried out 25,000 operations during his career. He held the title of professor of surgery and subsequently, between 2006 and 2008, was appointed as rector of his university in Iași. Sadly, along with rest of his country, his career suffered from the ravages of Ceaușescu’s unique interpretation of communism, which led to the nationwide destruction of buildings and society. Churches and ancient buildings were demolished to make way for modernistic buildings, one of which, in Bucharest, is the largest seat of government in the world. Associated with these changes was a collapse in functioning society across the nation, including medical services, compounded by widespread starvation resulting from agricultural failure. Eventually, in December 1989, there was an uprising against the regime. Ceaușescu and his wife Elena escaped by helicopter from the roof of their citadel in Bucharest, only to be arrested on 25 December, tried by an army court martial and executed by firing squad. In Iași Cristian was left with a devastated surgical service in his hospitals; little could be done because food and sanitation services were virtually non-existent. One of the most serious consequences was that promising surgical trainees were not receiving any significant training. Cristian turned to the British Council for advice, which in turn contacted Manchester University for help. As a result, John Bancewicz, senior lecturer in surgery at Hope Hospital, Salford, was asked by the British Council to visit Romania and report on the situation, particularly in Iași and Moldavia. What Bancewicz found was seriously disturbing: surgical treatments in the main hospitals were virtually at a standstill, and services such as running water and sanitation were intermittent. Food supply was marginal and, worst still, he confirmed the absence of significant opportunities for training the next generation of surgeons. Bancewicz recalls that, after visits to hospitals in several different cities, he found the task he had been set was very depressing: initially he did not see that anything could be done to help. However, his view changed when he visited Iași and met Cristian Dragomir. After looking round the hospitals, Cristian commented: ‘We have had lots of visitors since the fall of the Iron Curtain but nothing has changed, is there anything you can do to help?’ Bancewicz suggested some exchange visits and specific help for trainee surgeons. Cristian immediately arranged a meeting in the hospital library with colleagues and trainees to action the proposals. The result was that he and some of his colleagues visited Manchester and Hope Hospital, and simultaneously a group of seven Manchester surgeons, together with an anaesthetist, travelled to Iași to cement professional contacts. These visits were effective in revitalising surgical services. At the same time the visitors were shown the beauty of this area of northern Romania. The contacts developed rapidly through the overseas doctors’ training scheme and a laparoscopic surgery course was run at Cristian’s request. It was a source of great satisfaction to witness the development of academic surgery amongst the trainee surgeons who it was noted became Internet savvy much quicker than their British counterparts. The trainees have now risen to positions of authority in Romanian surgery and have become professors and deans, overseeing the rebuilding of hospitals and university departments in the medical school. Of particular pride to Cristian was the development of the university’s simulation centre, which bears his name. Cristian Dragomir published widely. In 2015 he produced a book *Bolnavul chirurgical grav* (*Critically ill surgical patient*, Bucharest, Medicala), which drew heavily on the Royal College of Surgeons of England’s CCrISP courses, which he much admired. He was a member of the Romanian Academy of Medical Sciences, the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine and the International Society of Surgery. It is not surprising in view of the above history that he highly valued his fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, which he received in 2000. Cristian Dragomir died on 8 February 2022. He was 81.