Dr. JIM SURRELL

The medical specialty of pediatrics is defined as offering medical care to infants and children. Because it is less than 200 years old, pediatrics is a relatively young medical specialty, when compared to the history of many other medical specialties. Prior to the development of pediatrics, the medical needs of infants and children were primarily provided by families, friends, and midwives. During that time, hundreds of years ago, physicians were not deeply involved in providing health care to the pediatric population. However, medical progress beginning in the 19th century resulted in the development of physicians who specifically addressed the medical problems of infancy and childhood, and the specialty of pediatric medicine was born.

By the late 1700s and early 1800s, the need to provide medical care to children became more apparent, and the specialty of pediatrics started to evolve, particularly in Germany and France. It is believed that the very first pediatric specialty organization was the Society for Infant Therapeutics, and this medical organization was created in Germany in 1883.

The founder of pediatrics in America is considered to be Dr. Abraham Jacobi. He was a German pediatrician, who arrived in New York in 1853 and established pediatric care at the New York Medical College in 1861. He then began the publication of several pediatric journals, and developed children’s departments in several New York hospitals. Dr. Jacobi was a prolific writer, and he taught extensively about providing health care to children. Other significant pioneers in the specialty of Pediatrics include Dr. Luther Emmett Holt in New York, Dr. J. Forsyth Meigs in Philadelphia, and Dr. William McKim Marriott in St. Louis. They all rapidly expanded the specialty of Pediatrics through their writings and teachings. The first separate pediatrics hospital was founded in Philadelphia in 1855. The American Academy of Pediatrics was established in 1930 and the American Board of Pediatrics in 1933.

Further significant contributions to the specialty of Pediatrics were made in Texas. Pediatrics became a distinct specialty in Dallas with the arrival of Dr. Hugh Leslie Moore in 1908. Dr. Moore had begun a general practice in Van Alstyne, Texas, but his interest in pediatrics led him to England and Germany to study this new specialty of Pediatrics. Upon his return, he settled in Dallas as the first pediatrician in the State of Texas and joined the staff of the Texas Baptist Memorial Sanitarium. Dr. Moore was tireless in his efforts to meet the needs of children, and he was the dominant force in pediatrics in Dallas for more than 40 years. He served as the Chief of Pediatrics at the Baylor University Hospital in Texas until 1947. He was named the Chief of Pediatrics at the Texas Bradford Hospital in 1929. He also served at the Texas Children’s Hospital and Freeman Clinic in the 1940s. Dr. Moore also contributed to medical education as the Chief of Pediatrics at the Baylor University College of Medicine. He was very generous to his fellow physicians, and he would frequently provide free office space to new pediatricians until their practices were established.

Today, excellent pediatric health care is provided to our infants and children by Pediatricians, Family Practice Physicians, Nurse Practitioners, Physician Assistants, Hospital and Office Nurses, and others. We are truly blessed to have these many highly talented and caring health care professionals providing this great pediatric care for our youth here in the USA.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Dr. Jim Surrell is the author of the best-selling SOS (Stop Only Sugar) Diet book and his new Joke Book, entitled “Laughter Is Good Medicine”. Dr. Jim’s website is sosdietbook.com.