Miscellaneous

We can’t thank all our entrants enough for sharing their delicious homemade soups with us. We can’t help but feel healthy after all that chicken soup! And, of course, a very special thank you to our amazing judges, Sam Gallant of WTMD, Tom Lovejoy, executive chef for Eddie’s of Roland Park, Tony Gambino of Ciao […]

As Thanksgiving Approaches, Advice on Gluttony From Maimonides

Commentary: Pediatricians called to address racism, intolerance to achieve health equity Jacqueline R. Dougé, M.D., M.P.H., FAAP, Julie M. Linton, M.D., FAAP and Julia R. Köhler, M.D., FAAP As pediatricians, we champion the need to address social determinants of health, such as poverty and food insecurity, in an effort to achieve health equity. We emphasize screening for toxic stress. In our conversations about equity, […]

We were thrilled to welcome Dr. Leana Wen, Baltimore’s health commissioner on Sunday August 7th for Medicine’s Next Frontier: The Power of Public Health. Dr. Wen’s strong, fact-based presentation was enlightening for the whole audience, medical practitioners and lay leaders alike.  The proof of her effectiveness was the large number of questions she received from […]

Gertrude Elion was born January 23, 1918 in New York City. In school, she enjoyed and excelled in all of her classes, but when it came time to choose a major for college, a family experience led her choice. In 1937, Gertrude graduated from Hunter College with a degree in chemistry. Upon graduation, Elion began […]

Sophie Rabinoff was born in Mogileff, Russia in 1889. Less than a year after her birth, her family immigrated to the United States, settling in New York City. Rabinoff attended Hunter College, going on to study at the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania, from which she graduated in 1913.   Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania, […]

Many thank yous to a Museum visitor who pointed out something quite important about women’s lives—and especially the lives of career nurses–in generations past. Women who single-mindedly dedicated themselves to their careers had to forgo marriage and family. “They gave their lives to their profession,” this visitor reminded me. They should be named and remembered. […]

When we first conceived the Beyond Chicken Soup project, one of the goals we discussed among ourselves was the potential to inspire young audiences to explore medicine as a career. I admit to some skepticism: didn’t Jewish kids get enough of this kind of “inspiration” from their parents? But I wasn’t considering all of our […]

RUTH FINKELSTEIN Ruth Finkelstein grew up with her parents and four siblings in New York City and attended the Jacobi School, a private Jewish school for girls. From a young age, her father wanted her to be a doctor, and Ruth agreed. She attended Johns Hopkins University for undergraduate, earning her bachelor’s degree in 1930. […]

GERTY CORI Gerty Cori was born into a Jewish family in Prague on August 15, 1896. Encouraged as a child to study medicine, she attended the German University of Prague, and was one of very few female students in attendance. She graduated in 1920 with her M. D. degree. Gerty married a classmate, Carl Cori, […]

ELIZABETH D. A. MAGNUS COHEN Elizabeth D.A. Magnus Cohen was born in New York City in 1820. Later, she married Dr. Aaron Cohen and had five children. Her youngest son died from the measles, which inspired her to pursue medicine. When her husband left New York and went to New Orleans to study surgery, Cohen […]

BESSIE MOSES Bessie Moses was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1893 to a family of German-Jewish descent. She attended Goucher College and graduated in 1915, and then attended graduate school at Johns Hopkins University. After one year of medical school, Moses left to pursue teaching, encouraged solely by her father. She taught biology and zoology, […]

  Call for Selfies! Physicians, Nurses, Pharmacists, EMTs, Health Technicians, we want you! Beyond Chicken Soup: Jews and Medicine in America looks at the intersection of medicine and culture through a Jewish lens, but we want to show the whole picture, so we’re looking for EVERYONE (yes, even you!). Pictures can be professional or completely informal. So, […]

LILLIAN WALD Lillian Wald was born on March 10, 1867 in Cincinnati, Ohio, into a German-Jewish family. In 1878, her family moved to Rochester, New York, where she soon attended New York Hospital’s School of Nursing. She graduated in 1891, and began medical school at the Woman’s Medical College. In 1893, Wald left medical school […]

ROSALIND FRANKLIN Rosalind Franklin was born July 25, 1920 in London into a Jewish family. She was the second of the five children, and the eldest daughter. She excelled greatly in school, and was fluent in German and French. In 1938, she won a college scholarship, which she gave to a refugee student in need. […]

Excerpted from My Son (or Daughter) the Doctor: Jewish Physicians in American Popular Culture By Ted Merwin, associate professor of Judaic Studies at Dickinson College   One of the most popular vaudeville skits of all time, first performed in the 1920s, takes place in a doctor’s office and is set at the time of the […]

Excerpted from Chicken Soup: Women and the Making of the Modern Jewish Home and Nation By Cara Rock-Singer Hadassah used its founding holiday to bring all of Palestine together in the cause of healthy living: Purim became Health Day, an annual celebration featuring events and exhibitions held at schoolhouses, synagogues, and other venues across the […]

Excerpted from Strangers and Healers: The Jewish Immigrant Body and Health Care’s Role in the American Assimilation Experience by Alan M. Kraut, professor of history at American University   Beginning in the 1850s, a physician was often the first American with whom immigrants made eye contact—even before gaining admission to the U.S. Immigration depots were […]