Timeline

Ideological Period (1961-1965)

NOTE: Some items may be copyright protected. Please review our Terms of Use.


1961	Dr. Charles Hudson, in the Journal of the American Medical Association, calls for a "mid-level" provider from the ranks of former military corpsmen. World Health Organization (WHO) begins introducing and promoting health care workers in developing countries (e.g., Me'decin Africain, Dresser, Assistant Medical Officer, and Rural Health Technician).	Dr. Charles Hudson

1962	Dr. Henry McIntosh, cardiologist at Duke University, trains local fireman in emergency procedures for the community; in exchange, off-duty firemen staff the cardiac catheterization laboratory; former Navy hospital corpsmen are hired for similar roles and are classified as physician's assistants by Duke's payroll department.	Dr. Henry MacIntosh

1964	Dr. Eugene Stead, Jr., disillusioned by organized nursing rejection of the nurse clinician program, decides that ex-military corpsmen with their previous training and experience would be suitable candidates for his two-year experimental program that he describes in a letter to one of his Duke colleagues, Dr. Charles H. Frenzel. Dr. Richard A. Smith is assigned to Pacific Northwest by Surgeon General William Stewart to develop physician assistant training program. He develops the MEDEX (Med-icine Ex-tension) model with a strong emphasis on the deployment of students and graduates into medically underserved communities.	MEDEX Pamphlet Duke PA Students with Kathleen Andreoli, RN Dr. Henry Silver Barefoot Doctors

1965	Academic Committee chaired by Dr. Andrew Wallace approves Dr. Stead's proposed PA curriculum and the National Heart Institute funds Dr. Herbert Saltsman's grant to train hyperbaric chamber operators and physician's assistant. This clears the way for the first four physician assistant (PA) students, all ex-Navy hospital corpsmen, to begin training at the Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC. Reader's Digest article about jobs in health care industry mentions the development of the PA program at Duke University causing a flood of inquires from ex-military corpsmen. Dr. Henry Silver and nurse educator Loretta Ford establish pediatric nurse practitioner program at the University of Colorado - a forerunner of the Child Health Associate Program established in 1968 focused on primary medical care for children. Barefoot Doctors introduced into China after Cultural Revolution to provide basic medical services to rural populations.