On the «hitherto untried process of giving doctors adequate training» in preventive medicine and public health (original) (raw)
It was Alan Gregg who described supporting departments of preventive medicine and public health in American medical schools as a “hitherto untried process”. This was in October 1938 in response to being asked by a new foundation for his advice on what role they could play in American medicine. Gregg, who had been with the Rockefeller Foundation since 1919, was then Director of its Medical Sciences Division. Gregg obtained his medical degree from Harvard in 1916. His first assignment with the Foundation was to work against hookworm in Brazil; in 1922 he was offered a position in the new division of medical education (see below). From 1922 until 1931, he was involved in numerous medical education surveys in Europe. Although Gregg’s response might be interpreted as implying that the Foundation had been indifferent to this issue, this was not the case. However, in comparison to the support provided by the Foundation and other Rockefeller philanthropies to other aspects of medical education and public health, the teaching of preventive medicine and public health to medical students was a very minor priority. Why this was the case is explored in this paper.
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