Oral history of Louise Cavagnaro

Model
Audio

Abstract

Louise Cavagnaro, originally from Portland, Oregon, was a major figure in the history of the Johns Hopkins Hospital for the last half of the twentieth century. She served as an operating nurse in combat zones during World War II and the director of nursing in Hiroshima with the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission, after which she earned an M.A. in Hospital Administration from Columbia University and came to work at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1953. She filled many roles during her time teaching and administrating in the Hospital, as well as the School of Nursing. Most notably, it was Cavagnaro who led the charge to desegregate the Hospital and its affiliate institutions, about which she wrote a book in 1992 titled "A History of Segregation and Desegregation at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions." In this oral history, Cavagnaro describes the challenges of being a female in the male-dominated medical milieu of the 1950s, the Johns Hopkins Hospital and how it has changed over time, and the racial politics of the Hospital. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Oral history of Myron Weisfeldt

Model
Audio

Abstract

Dr. Myron "Mike" Weisfeldt attended Johns Hopkins as an undergraduate from 1960-1962, completing an accelerated medical school program. He then attended the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, earning his M.D. in 1965. Weisfeldt went on to work as a physician at the hospital, an Assistant Professor of Medicine and, later, the Director of the Cardiology division at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Dr. Weisfeldt was the William Osler Professor of Medicine and Chairman of the Department of Medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine from 2001 to 2014. He was also Physician-in-Chief of the Johns Hopkins Hospital. In 1990, he served as President of the American Heart Association. In this interview, Weisfeldt discusses his time as a student, faculty member, administrator, and physician at Hopkins. This oral history is part of the Hopkins Retrospective oral histories series.

Oral history of Kelly Gebo

Model
Audio

Abstract

Kelly Gebo earned her B.S. (1992), M.D. (1995) and MPH from Johns Hopkins, completed her medical residency at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, and is currently the first vice provost for education at Johns Hopkins. She is also a professor in both the School of Medicine and the School of Public Health, as well as the director of the undergraduate program in Public Health Studies in the School of Arts and Sciences. She was an American Council on Education fellow at the University of Pennsylvania's provosts's office in 2013 and 2014. In this oral history, Gebo describes her early life and undergraduate experience at Hopkins in the late 1980s, her experiences with athletics, Spring Fair, and Blue Key, as well as her medical education, career, and teaching. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Oral history of Victor McKusick

Model
Audio

Abstract

Victor A. McKusick was born in 1921 in Parkman, Maine. Dr. McKusick attended Tufts University from 1940 to 1942. However, because of World War II, Johns Hopkins Medical School had a lack of students and so suspended the requirement of a baccalaureate degree in order to apply for admission to the medical school. McKusick applied for admission to Johns Hopkins Medical School in his sixth semester of undergraduate studies and was accepted, graduating in 1946. Dr. McKusick is known for his work as the University Professor of Medical Genetics and the Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins Hospital as well as for his work as the chief editor of Mendelian Inheritance of Man (MIM). In this history, Dr. McKusick discusses his time at and contributions to Johns Hopkins University. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Oral history of Richard Ross

Model
Audio

Abstract

Richard S. Ross was born in Richmond, Indiana. He began attending Harvard in 1942 and was able to enter Harvard Medical School shortly thereafter because of the accelerated program that had been made available as a result of World War II. He graduated cum laude and went on to take an internship on the Osler Medical Service at Johns Hopkins. After spending time in the Army Medical Corps and Harvard, Ross returned to Hopkins to take a position as a chief medical resident. Ross's expertise was in the field of cardiology, as he developed coronary cineangiography and was also asked to give an opinion on former President Richard Nixon's cardiovascular health prior to the Watergate hearings. In this history, Dr. Ross discusses his love for the Hopkins School of Medicine and his thoughts on the program's progress. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral history.

Oral history of Levi Watkins

Model
Audio

Abstract

Levi Watkins, Jr. was born in Parsons, Kansas. He completed his undergraduate work at Tennessee State University, where he majored in biology. He went on to become the first African American to be admitted to the Vanderbilt School of Medicine. Despite facing enormous prejudice, Watkins graduated in 1970. He completed his medical internship at Johns Hopkins, where he was the first black intern. He then went to study at Harvard Medical School's Department of Physiology. There, he completed revolutionary research on congestive heart failure. In 1975, Watkins returned to Hopkins and became Hopkins' first black chief resident in heart surgery. Watkins notably performed the first implantation of an automatic heart defibrillator. In this history, Watkins discusses his experiences as an African-American in the medical field in the middle of the 20th century as well as his career and education. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.

Oral history of Eric Noji

Model
Audio

Abstract

Eric Noji earned his undergraduate degree from Stanford University in 1977, having majored in biochemistry, philosophy, and classics. He went on to receive his MD from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry and his MPH in Epidemiology from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. After spending time working as a US Park Police Ranger and marine wildlife biologist, he became an Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at Johns Hopkins Hospital and a Medical Epidemiologist at the CDC, among other positions. Dr. Noji is a prominent physician in the humanitarian community, and has been awarded such honors as his election to the Institute of Medicine of the US National Academies of Science as well as his induction into the Ordre des Palmes Académiques at the rank of Chevalier. In this history, Dr. Noji discusses his education and medical career as well as his time at Johns Hopkins. This oral history is part of the Mame Warren oral histories series.