Anesthesia History Association Research Articles

2023 Anesthesia History Association Annual Spring Meeting

Article| April 2023 2023 Anesthesia History Association Annual Spring Meeting ASA Monitor April 2023, Vol. 87, e3. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.ASM.0000925040.05684.a3 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Cite Icon Cite Get Permissions Search Site Citation 2023 Anesthesia History Association Annual Spring Meeting. ASA Monitor 2023; 87:e3 doi: https://doi.org/10.1097/01.ASM.0000925040.05684.a3 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll PublicationsASA Monitor Search Advanced Search Topics: oklahoma, recreation, tourism We welcome you to the 2023 Anesthesia History Association Annual Spring Meeting, to be held in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, from Thursday, April 20 through Saturday, April 22! This year's event is sure to be a great one with a variety of speakers and activities. In addition to learning about the history of anesthesia, you will also be exposed to some of the history of the state of Oklahoma. Register now at ahahq.com/2023-annual-meeting to secure your spot! We look forward to seeing you there. Hotel accommodations information Colcord Hotel (colcordhotel.com) 15 North Robinson Avenue Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73102 (405) 601-4300 Book your reservations now (asamonitor.pub/3GQnhPc). You do not currently have access to this content.

2023 Anesthesia History Association Annual Spring Meeting

Article| March 2023 2023 Anesthesia History Association Annual Spring Meeting ASA Monitor March 2023, Vol. 87, 34. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.ASM.0000922048.86953.da Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Cite Icon Cite Get Permissions Search Site Citation 2023 Anesthesia History Association Annual Spring Meeting. ASA Monitor 2023; 87:34 doi: https://doi.org/10.1097/01.ASM.0000922048.86953.da Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll PublicationsASA Monitor Search Advanced Search Topics: oklahoma, recreation, tourism We welcome you to the 2023 Anesthesia History Association Annual Spring Meeting, to be held in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, from Thursday, April 20 through Saturday, April 22! This year's event is sure to be a great one with a variety of speakers and activities. In addition to learning about the history of anesthesia, you will also be exposed to some of the history of the state of Oklahoma. Register now at ahahq.com/2023-annual-meeting to secure your spot! We look forward to seeing you there. Hotel accommodations information Colcord Hotel (colcordhotel.com) 15 North Robinson Avenue Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73102 (405) 601-4300 Book your reservations now (asamonitor.pub/3GQnhPc). You do not currently have access to this content.

Anesthesia History Association (AHA) Seeks Nominations for David M. Little Jr. Prizes

Anesthesia History Association (AHA) Seeks Nominations for David M. Little Jr. Prizes

AHA Now Accepting Submissions for the 2022 C. Ronald Stephen, MD, Anesthesia History Essay Contest

Article| May 2021 AHA Now Accepting Submissions for the 2022 C. Ronald Stephen, MD, Anesthesia History Essay Contest Alberto J. de Armendi, MD, PhD, MBA Alberto J. de Armendi, MD, PhD, MBA Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar ASA Monitor May 2021, Vol. 85, 23. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.ASM.0000751500.04577.e3 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Share Icon Share Twitter LinkedIn Cite Icon Cite Get Permissions Search Site Citation Alberto J. de Armendi; AHA Now Accepting Submissions for the 2022 C. Ronald Stephen, MD, Anesthesia History Essay Contest. ASA Monitor 2021; 85:23 doi: https://doi.org/10.1097/01.ASM.0000751500.04577.e3 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search nav search search input Search input auto suggest search filter All ContentAll PublicationsASA Monitor Search Advanced Search Topics: awards and prizes, care of intensive care unit patient, internship and residency, leadership, oklahoma, schools, medical, spinal cord stimulators, students, medical In 1905, George Santayana famously said, “Those who do not study history are condemned to repeat it.” Beyond this rather narrow motivation, members of the Anesthesia History Association (AHA) would add that every anesthesiologist has an obligation to understand the history of the progress of anesthesia practice and technology as part of our claim to be “professionals.” One of the most accomplished and revered professionals in the history of anesthesiology was Dr. C. Ronald Stephen. Who was Dr. Stephen? One of the great pioneers of anesthesia history, Dr. Stephen's contributions are too numerous to list here, except to say that he was not only a foremost clinician, investigator, and tireless mentor, but also an early leader in the effort to preserve and teach the history of anesthesia. The AHA received its name in January 1983 after a group of... © 2021 American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), All Rights Reserved.2021 You do not currently have access to this content.

Anesthesia History Association (AHA) Seeks Nominations for David M. Little Jr, Prizes

Anesthesiology 2020| August 2020 Anesthesia History Association (AHA) Seeks Nominations for David M. Little Jr, Prizes ASA Monitor August 2020, Vol. 84, 35. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.M99.0000695204.18216.cc Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Cite Icon Cite Get Permissions Search Site Citation Anesthesia History Association (AHA) Seeks Nominations for David M. Little Jr, Prizes. ASA Monitor 2020; 84:35 doi: https://doi.org/10.1097/01.M99.0000695204.18216.cc Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll PublicationsASA Monitor Search Advanced Search Topics: awards and prizes Every year, the AHA awards the David M. Little Jr, Prize for the best work of anesthesia history published the previous year in English in each of three categories: The prize is named after Dr. David M. Little Jr. (1920-1981), a long-serving Chair of Anesthesia at Hartford Hospital, Hartford, Connecticut. For many years, Dr. Little wrote the “Classical File” series of history columns for the Survey of Anesthesiology. Winners are announced each October by the AHA during the ANESTHESIOLOGY annual meeting. The 2020 awards are for works published in 2019. The deadline for this year's nominations is September 1, 2020, and all nominations should be sent electronically to Corry “Jeb” Kucik, MD, FASA, at jkmd97@gmail.com. You do not currently have access to this content.

The Guthrie Boulder: A Forgotten Monument to Anesthesia in Chicago.

The Guthrie Boulder: A Forgotten Monument to Anesthesia in Chicago.

Proposed Curriculum to Teach History of Regional Anesthesia

s from the Anesthesia History Association 2016 Annual Spring Meeting Proposed Curriculum to Teach History of Regional Anesthesia James Savage, BA⁎, David Arcella, MD, Gustavo Angaramo, MD, Manisha S. Desai, MD a 4 year medical student, Department of Anesthesiology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA b CA-3 Resident, Department of Anesthesiology, Department of Anesthesiology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA c Clinical Associate Professor of Anesthesiology & Surgery, Department of Anesthesiology, University ofMassachusettsMedical School,Worcester, MA d Associate Professor of Anesthesiology, Department of Anesthesiology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA Background: The study of the history of medicine has been an underemphasized component of the medical school curriculum for several reasons such as a lack of clinical impact, the emergence of new disciplines like medical ethics, as well as a lack of research grants and funding. A similar attitude continues in graduate medical education where the curriculum is primarily filled with material related to basic and applied sciences. The deficiency of questions related to history in certifying examinations could be considered a fatal blow. In this study, we surveyed US residency programs in anesthesiology about the teaching of history of regional anesthesia, and we propose a curriculum for such education. Methods: An online commercially available instrument [Survey Monkey] was used for this study. 2352-4529/© 2016 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of Anesthesia History Association. Results: Of 18 responding programs, 17 offered an ‘Acute Pain’ rotation to their residents, 14 offered didactic sessions related to history of regional anesthesia. The settings of such teaching sessions included intraoperative, classroom, grand rounds, and journal club sessions. This suggests an interest in teaching the history of regional anesthesia, but a formal curriculum has not been described in published literature. We propose a curriculum related to a variety of topics that would provide useful information and enrich the educational experience of anesthesia residents. Summary: We hope that this briefly formatted review gives residents and prospective fellows in regional anesthesia an intriguing and inspiring overview of the unique history of regional anesthesia. We aim to offer additional subsets of topics to fortify our curriculum in history of anesthesia.

Horace Wells’ “Humbug Affair” Occurred at Massachusetts General Hospital? Humbug!

ATTENTION: Any readers out there who have ever listened to historical lectures about Horace Wells’ nitrous oxide demonstration or about William Morton’s ether demonstration. Please page through this month’s issue of Anesthesiology for a fascinating article titled “Horace Wells’ Demonstration of Nitrous Oxide in Boston” by Rajesh P. Haridas, F.A.N.Z.C.A.1Many of us refer to October 16, 1846 as “Ether Day”—the day that dentist and medical student William T. G. Morton gave the first public demonstration of diethyl ether for surgical anesthesia. Some of us even recall that Morton tried to disguise his ether’s odor by adulterating it with essential oil of orange and by renaming his proprietary slurry “Letheon.” Convinced that Morton’s mixture had successfully anesthetized his patient on that fateful 16th of October, surgeon John Collins Warren announced to spectators in the surgical amphitheater that, “Gentlemen, this is no humbug.”2Most authorities assume that Dr. Warren’s choice of “humbug” was a reference to that less-than-successful attempt back in January of 1845 when dentist Horace Wells tried to demonstrate nitrous oxide anesthesia in front of some of Harvard’s medical students. Dr. Wells admitted later that he must have mistakenly “withdrawn much too soon” the bag of nitrous oxide gas from a medical student who needed anesthesia for a dental extraction. Because that patient “experienced some pain… several [spectators] expressed their opinion that it was a humbug affair….”3So how have so many historians and lecturers managed to “get it wrong”—to misinform the rest of us with the wrong location and/or the wrong date for Horace Wells’ demonstration of nitrous oxide anesthesia in Boston? Boldfaced below are examples of common mistakes made by well-intended authors of historical articles.Confirmation bias. Basic human nature encourages readers and researchers to look for facts that support their preconceived hypotheses. If Morton’s demonstration at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) was not a “Humbug Affair,” then why not also situate Wells’ earlier nitrous oxide event as a “Humbug Affair” … at MGH?Confusion of an event’s date with a publication date. As Dr. Haridas has suggested, after Wells’ January 20, 1845 advertisement (in the newspaper Boston Bee) was cited as a reference, some historians may have mistakenly begun accepting that date as when Horace Wells conducted his demonstration.1 Blithely assigning that same date to the “Humbug Affair,” subsequent publications were guilty of repetition of unchallenged nonprimary sources. This is the academic equivalent of social gossip.Fortunately, historical research is democratic. In other words, all of Anesthesiology’s readers can attempt to research and write about the history of anesthesia. However, not all of us can be as successful as author Rajesh Haridas. Does he work as an academic anesthesiologist in a sprawling American city? No—Dr. Haridas toils away as a private consultant anesthetist in a small town in Australia. Yet this brilliant historical researcher has garnered “winning” and “honorable mention” David M. Little Prizes in 2011 and 2012, respectively, from the Anesthesia History Association. Yes, historical research may be open to all, but few are as accomplished as Dr. Haridas. Please be sure to read his article on Horace Wells in this issue.1As for this reviewer, just one question remains. If an Australian is teaching me about America’s anesthesia history, should I now reciprocate by feverishly ferreting out historical details about the history of anesthesia “down under?”

An Interview with A.H. “Buddy” Giesecke Jr, MD

A. H. “Buddy” Giesecke Jr, MD, is an important figure in the history of the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Management at the University Southwestern Medical Center and at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas (Figure 1). He studied anesthesiology and later practiced there, where he worked closely with other renowned anesthesiologists, including M.T. “Pepper” Jenkins. Dr. Giesecke’s articles on endotracheal intubation in obstetrics and the interaction between succinylcholine and magnesium produced change in the practice of anesthesia. In his later years, he became interested in the history of anesthesia and was very active in the Anesthesia History Association. His passion for the specialty was evident in the way he spoke about anesthesia. Hear his words, and perhaps even his voice, in the interview below. school, I did my internship at William Beaumont Army Hospital in El Paso. I went into the army because the pay was better, and we were extremely poor. I went through medical school on $200 a month.

Thoughts on the Bulletin

In this issue of the Bulletin, Mulita and colleagues1 present a 10-year analysis of publication trends for articles about anesthesia history. They conclude that the publication of history articles is “low” at 1.25% of all articles. Even this frequency is inflated. Subtracting the “Cover Notes” of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care and the “Reflections” in Anesthesiology leaves a more indicative estimate of about 0.7%. To be sure, there are legitimate concerns about this article: the absence of factoring in the number of submissions; the lack of comparison to other specialties; and the role of authors’ perceptions of the ability to get published. But these concerns do not outweigh the need to discuss the conclusions. How legitimate is the value judgment that mainstream journals publish too few history articles? That depends on the mission. While missions of journals vary, the British Medical Journal provides a good summary: “Our mission is to lead the debate on health and to engage, inform, and stimulate doctors, researchers, and other health professionals in ways that will improve outcomes for patients. We aim to help doctors to make better decisions.”2 All the while, among other matters, editors must keep an eye on the influential impact factor, which reflects the number of citations of the journal’s articles. The American football coach Bill Parcells quipped, “You are what your record says you are,” in response to teams claiming that they were better than their won-lost records indicated. According to Parcells, the number of history articles published is the correct number of articles for those journals. I agree. The characteristics of published history articles reflect in large part the cachectic academic discipline of anesthesia history in the United States. Reversing this state requires a robust academic home. Without a home, young academics struggle to develop careers, senior academics do not receive proper credit within the anesthesiology community, and the anesthesia history community withers. Successful academic homes have meaningful journals. A respected Bulletin of Anesthesia History will provide a home for aspiring authors to hone their skills and gain academic credibility. It will spur interest in history, which will increase publications in mainstream journals. The right Bulletin will undergird a credible, self-sustaining academic discipline. The progenitor of the Bulletin, the Anesthesia History Association Newsletter, was started in 1982 by the first editor, Selma H. Calmes, MD. Dr. Calmes was followed by C. Ron Stephen, MD, and who later passed the pen to my immediate predecessor, Doris K. Cope, MD. These editors (with unflagging support from many others, including Roderick K. Calverley, MD, and A. J. Wright, MLS) brought the Bulletin from a “cut-and-paste” kitchen-table newsletter to being recognized within the history community as the United States journal for anesthesia history. The next step is to move that recognition into the mainstream academic community. To do so requires investments that are neither simple nor risk-free. So I am asking readers to weigh in. What should the Bulletin be? Whom should it serve? Most importantly, do we want to take that next step? I invite your thoughts.

Untapped Sources for Anesthesia History**A version ofthis material waspresented at the Anesthesia History Association annual meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, in April, 2007.

Untapped Sources for Anesthesia History**A version ofthis material waspresented at the Anesthesia History Association annual meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, in April, 2007.

The Anesthesia History Association’s 2008 Spring Meeting May 8-10, 2008, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Anesthesia History Association’s 2008 Spring Meeting May 8-10, 2008, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Introduction of Ether in Paris Revisited**A version of this material was presented by the first author at the annual meeting of the Anesthesia History Association, Nashville, Tennessee, May, 2007.

Modern accounts of the introduction of ether anesthesia in France are mainly based on a letter written in February 1947 to the editor of the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal by Francis Willis Fisher, a young Boston surgeon at that time a student in Paris. Fisher's letter hints that his efforts were the main impetus to the acceptance of ether by the French academic surgeons. The authors have reviewed the contemporary medical literature, especially the numerous French journals, relative to that event. Their review suggests that Fisher was largely ignored by the French surgeons and by his young competitors then studying in Paris. He seems to have exaggerated his role in the acceptance of ether anesthesia in France. The reviewed literature also provides some additional details and some corrections to Fisher's account. Modern accounts of the introduction of ether in France have relied heavily on a letter sent in February 1847 to the editor of the Boston Medical & Surgical Journal by Francis W. Fisher, a young Boston physician then studying in Paris. Fisher's report is often vague, occasionally incorrect, and probably exaggerates his role in the acceptance of anesthesia in Paris. This review attempts to complement and correct Fisher's account.

The Founding of the Anesthesia History Association and, What Next?

The Founding of the Anesthesia History Association and, What Next?

Silver Anniversary 25th Annual Meeting: Medicine and the Civil War in Middle Tennessee

The spring meeting of the Anesthesia History Association was held May 3-5, 2007, in Nashville and was hosted by the Vanderbilt School of Medicine’s Department of Anesthesiology. Dr. Bradley Smith of Vanderbilt was the Program Director. Additional sponsors were the Tennessee Society of Anesthesiologists, Tennessee Association of Nurse Anesthetists and the Middle Tennessee School of Nurse Anesthesia. The conference site was the Scarritt/ Bennett Center, originally a college to train women missionaries. It came to Nashville in 1928. Its mission since 1988 is to foster cross-cultural understanding and spiritual renewal through conference-hosting and retreats. Its lovely 10-acre campus, with graceful buildings made of Tennessee stone and in collegiate gothic style, made a unique setting for our meeting. In keeping with our Southern location, the meeting’s theme was “Medicine and the Civil War in Middle Tennessee.” The first day, many toured Battle of Nashville historic sites; Dr. Smith gave a lecture, “An Introduction to Anesthesia History,” for those who stayed in town. The banquet that night was in a wood-paneled room (like an English manor house might have) decorated with memorabilia from the many foreign countries where graduating missionaries had served. Dr. Andrew Gaffney, Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs at Vanderbilt and the first physician in space, gave a dynamic video presentation of his time in space. The second day began with a review of the AHA’s history, and then there was a panel on the Civil War in Middle Tennessee. Two physicians on the Vanderbilt faculty gave wonderful presentations on medical care in the Union and Confederate armies. Two outstanding local historians spoke on the Civil War battles in the Nashville area. Next, the resident finalists in

AHA and HAS Meet at Mayo Clinic

The Department of Anesthesiology at the famous and historic Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, hosted the summer meeting of the Anesthesia History Association, in conjunction with the History of Anaesthesia Society (UK), June 22-24, 2006. The meeting’s theme was using history to teach professionalism; teaching professionalism is a new AGME requirement. Dr. Doug Bacon, head of the Section on History in the Department of Anesthesiology at Mayo Clinic, organized the meeting. Plenary sessions covered important people and events in Mayo Clinic history. Topics included Dr. W.W. Mayo (father of the Mayo brothers Will and Charlie) and the beginning of the clinic, the history of the anesthesiology department and Dr. Will Mayo. This last talk was given at a luncheon at Dr. Will’s lovely house, now called the Foundation House. The home is now used for various meetings. One plenary session, “Mississippi and the Mayo Brothers” by retired Mayo ophthalmologist and retinal surgeon, Dr. Dennis Robertson, was a particular hit. The Mississippi River is about 40 miles east of Rochester. The Mayo brothers each had their own steamboat and often enjoyed cruising on the river with their guests. Dr. Robertson reviewed the history of musical entertainments on steamboats and discussed how Dixieland jazz evolved in this setting. His talk had several interesting audio clips, and he also played his banjo. He has been a jazz musician for many years and still plays in a Dixieland band. A lunch-time session by Dale Smith, Ph.D., (chair of history at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethseda) and Dr. Bacon, suggested ways to use history to teach professionalism. The final plenary session reviewed the history of pain medicine at the Mayo Clinic. The first and third prize winners of the 2005 AHA Resident Essay Contest (both from Baylor College of Medicine) presented toxicity untangled” (Adolph Giesecke, Dallas). Raphael Ortega’s (Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston) paper reported on current efforts to restore the Ether Monument in Boston. Two papers on the clinic’s first nurse anesthetists were presented by present Mayo Clinic CRNAs. Posters on CRNA history were also available for viewing on day two of the meeting. An exhibit in the History of Medicine Library recognized previous Mayo Clinic Librarian Tom Keys, who wrote the first definitive book on the history of anesthesia (The History of Surgical Anesthesia, 1945). This was prepared by Librarian Hilary Lane and Selma Calmes, who also gave a paper on how the book came to be written. Tours of the Mayo Clinic were available. The downtown campus, where we met, is huge, beautiful and bustling with patients. The historic Plummer Building, where the history of medicine library is

The C. Ronald Stephen Resident Essay Award

The Anesthesia History Association (AHA) strongly encourages academic study in the history of anesthesiology, pain medicine and critical care by presenting a yearly award to residents and fellows in training through an essay competition. This award, in recognition of the life time achievements of C. Ronald Stephen through leadership roles in the AHA, Wood Library-Museum, the Bulletin of Anesthesia History has exhibiting constant, kind and gentle mentoring, will be named in his honor. The support of each successive generation of medical historians is among the most important of the missions of the Anesthesia History Association. Family and friends are creating an endowment for this award to become perpetual. The total endowment goal is $15,000 which will directly provide the prize money for the competitors. Other administrative overhead costs are absorbed by the AHA. To date, we have received $4,875. Gifts will be tax exempt upon completion of the renewal process for AHA nonprofit tax status which is anticipated in the next 90 days. Any gifts will be held until that status is completed so donors can receive appropriate tax credits. Please send your designated gift towards this endowment to the Anesthesia History Association, 200 Delafield Road, Suite 2070, Pittsburgh, PA 15215. The relatively small investment in our trainees now will pay huge rewards in the future! C. Ronald Stephen Festive 90th Birthday Gala

Ralph M. Waters, M.D., and Professionalism in Anesthesiology: A Celebration of 75 Years.

Department of Anesthesiology, University of Florida College of Medicine, Gainesville, Florida. caton@anest2.anest.ufl.eduRalph M. Waters, M.D., and Professionalism in Anesthesiology: A Celebration of 75 Years. NA Madison, Wisconsin. June 6–8, 2002.On June 6–8, 2002, more than 150 people gathered from all parts of the world to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the arrival of Ralph M. Waters, M.D., in Madison, Wisconsin. The meeting, jointly sponsored by the Anesthesia History Association, the History of Anaesthesia Society of Great Britain, and the Wood Library-Museum and the Department of Anesthesiology of the University of Wisconsin, honored a man recognized worldwide as one who introduced professionalism into the practice of anesthesia.Waters began his career in medicine before World War I as a general practitioner, specializing in anesthesia and obstetrics. Finding the time constraints of such a combination difficult, he abandoned obstetrics in favor of anesthesia. In a paper published in 1918, Waters described the abysmal state of anesthesia practice that he encountered:“A few more or less full time surgeons … employed nurses to administer ether in the mornings at hospitals and act as office nurses in the afternoons. A majority of us … depended upon each other to act as anesthetists as occasions demanded.” He proceeded to call for improvements in training and practice of anesthesiology. Contemporaries of Waters also recognized the problem, as described in a paper delivered by A. J. Wright, 1but it was Waters who showed the way to improvement.In 1927, at the prompting of Erwin W. Schmidt, Professor of Surgery, the University of Wisconsin recruited Waters to Madison. There, Waters established a training program that influenced anesthesia practice throughout the world. Symposium papers by Sir Keith Sykes, M.B., Thomas B. Boulton, M.D., Anthony Aldrete, M.D., Carlos Parsloe, M.D., and many others described Waters’ impact on research, teaching, and practice in various countries. Particularly moving were presentations by former residents of Waters: Lucien Morris, M.D., John Steinhaus, M.D., Ph.D., Jone J. Wu, M.D., and Thorsten Gordh, M.D. (the last two by videotape, as infirmities and distance prevented them from attending). Papers by other participants described Waters’ original research in carbon dioxide adsorption, his studies of the pharmacology of new anesthetic agents such as cyclopropane, and his work to develop anesthesia societies for the encouragement of research and dissemination of information.Distributed to each participant of the symposium was a collection of Waters’ papers, edited by David Lai, M.D. These publications illustrate the breadth of Waters’ research interests. They also define the conditions that Waters’ thought necessary to establish anesthesiology as a profession. For example, Waters never wavered from the idea that anesthesia is the practice of medicine, and that its practitioners must be thoroughly trained—not simply in technical matters but also in principles of physiology, pharmacology, and physics. He made it clear that achieving the status of a professional meant dedication to the education of others, to the support of research, and to the establishment and enforcement of high ethical and technical standards of practice. Various presentations at the symposium described how Waters accomplished this formidable task by personal example, diplomacy, persistence, dedication to public service, and by training a cadre of professionals who themselves would establish programs modeled after the one that he developed in Madison, Wisconsin.Fittingly, this symposium began with an announcement by the University of Wisconsin of the establishment of the Ralph M. Waters’ Chair of Anesthesiology. Preservation of the memory of Ralph Waters and celebration of his work to inculcate professionalism into the practice of anesthesiology is important in these days when so many political, social, and economic forces work to undermine these high standards.

Report on the Ralph Waters 75th Anniversary Meeting

A meeting celebrating the 75th anniversary of the beginning of academic anesthesia was held in Madison, Wisconsin, June 6-8, 2002. The meeting marked the arrival of Dr. Ralph Waters in February, 1927, at the University of Wisconsin as chair of the division of anesthesia. The Waters department went on to train the leaders of our specialty and still plays an important role today through descendents of the original Waters trainees. Meeting sponsors were the Wood Library-Museum of Anesthesiology, the Anesthesia History Association, the History of Anaesthesia Society (Great Britain), the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Society of Anesthesiologists. Aqualumni (those trained by Ralph Waters) who attended were Drs. Lucien Morris of Bainbridge Island, WA; Carlos Parlsoe of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Merel Harmel of Chapel Hill, NC. Videotaped messages were received from Aqualumni Drs. Jone Wu of China and Torsten Gordh of Sweden. The remaining Aqualumna, Dr. Rosalie Wilhelm of Oakland, CA, was unable to attend. Other attendees included large contingents from Great Britain and the Wisconsin Society University of Wisconsin (UW) Medical School began by announcing the new Ralph M. Waters Chair which was awarded to current UW department chair, Dr. Susan L. Goelzer. This new chair designation had been voted on by the Regents of the University that very day. Dr. Robert Joy, Professor Emeritus and founding chairman of the Department of Medical History at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, was the opendelphia presented some current issues of professionalism (the meeting’s subtitle was “Professionalism in Anesthesiology, A Celebration of 75 Years). More papers followed in the afternoon. The Friday night banquet included two of the Waters’ children and their families. On Saturday, Sir Keith Sykes presented the effect of Waters on British anesthesia. The Saturday lunch program was dramatic, featuring videos from international

Anesthesia History Association 2001 Resident Essay Contest Award Winners

Anesthesia History Association 2001 Resident Essay Contest Award Winners