The Jacobs Institute of Women's Health

Abstract

T he brochure describing The Jacobs Institute of Women's Health proclaims that it is an new approach to women's Why is it exciting and what about it is new? A brief history of the founding and mission of The Jacobs Institute provides the answers. The Jacobs Institute of Women's Health was founded by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), with a gift provided to the College by the late J. Bay Jacobs, MD. Dr. Jacobs was born in New York City in 1898 and received his undergraduate degree from Columbia University. His MD degree was earned at Georgetown University, and to that University he devoted a lifetime of concern. Dr. Jacobs entered practice in Washington, DC, in the mid-1920s, developing a busy private practice and serving simultaneously as the chief of a busy home delivery service in the alleys and on the half-streets of the District of Columbia. He was on-call 24 hours a day to supervise teams of medical students and nurses through the late 1920s and 1930s and into World War II, all without pay. His scientific interests were typical of his d a y h e designed and patented an instrument to measure the inclination of the pelvis, and he designed a metal manikin, forceps, and scales for use in x-ray pelvimetry. Teaching was another forte, particularly to medical students. Among the wishes that Dr. Jacobs expressed for disposition of his home and property was that they be used to establish a national center for women's health. After his death and the sale of the property in 1988, numerous suggestions were forthcoming about expanding the involvement of the ACOG in areas of social concern in women's health. Through its public information programs, patient education materials, policy statements, and advocacy before the federal and state governments, ACOG had attempted to respond to many of the pressing social and ethical issues in women's health. Here was an opportunity to do much more. Specific suggestions included creating an independent organization that could build on the collaborative relationships among providers of women's health care and could sponsor consensus conferences on the medical, social, and ethical problems surrounding women's health with published reports and proceedings. Acting on recommendations from its Committee on Long Range Planning, the ACOG Executive Board decided to commit the income earned on the Jacobs gift for the exclusive use of the new organization for a minimum period of 5 years. © 1990 by The Jacobs Institute of Women's Health 1049-3867/90/$3.50