Biographical Sketches of the First Editorial Board and Those Who Have Edited Pediatrics

Abstract

The first editorial board included nationally known pediatricians, many of them pediatric department chairmen. Most were involved in research activities that enabled them to critically review articles in their particular field of interest, but because of their knowledge and experience as clinicians, they also were able to evaluate articles in general pediatrics. Interestingly, several of these early leaders recognized the importance of psychosocial issues in the health care of children, leading to studies on early childhood development and behavior that evolved into a discipline that is an important part of pediatric practice today. What follows are short biographical sketches of the members who were appointed to the first editorial board in 1948. All but two were recipients of the annual John Howland Award, the most prestigious honor awarded by the American Pediatric Society (APS). This impressive list gave the journal immediate credibility and established it as the leading pediatric journal in the country. ### Anderson Aldrich Dr Aldrich was a member of the editorial board from 1948 until his death the following year. He was director of the Rochester, MN, Child Health Institute, a community project that was established to study growth and development of infants and children living in a normal environment over an extended period. Dr Aldrich also was noted for his studies of the psychosocial aspects of the practice of pediatrics. ### Allan M. Butler Dr Butler was a member of the editorial board from 1948 to 1952, during his 30-year tenure as a faculty member at Harvard University Medical School, chief of Children's Services at Massachusetts General Hospital and consultant to National Institutes of Health. His professional interests were broad: biological chemistry, parenteral fluids, renal disease, hypertension, community pediatrics, nephrology, and perinatal pediatrics. After his retirement from Harvard University in 1960, he directed the Health Insurance Plan for the United Auto Workers and …