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1968: Third, fourth and fifth Black students enter WUSM

Washington University School of Medicine entering class of 1968

The third, fourth and fifth Black medical students enter the School of Medicine. Patrick Obaiya transfers, Julian Mosley graduates in 1972 and Karen Scruggs graduates in 1973.  “Statistics show that medical graduates tend to practice in the area in which they go to school and train. … I wanted to practice here because one of […]

ca 1965: Board of Trustees officially integrates Barnes Hospital

The Barnes Hospital Board of Trustees officially integrates the hospital. Its resolution explains: “RESOLVED, it is the policy of Barnes Hospital to operate without racial discrimination. This policy applies to persons served by Barnes, to its staff, and to membership on its governing board. Operating without discrimination means that: (1) No person is excluded from […]

“In 1964, Barnes Hospital was recently integrated, and I was an intern, working with Dr. [Eugene] Bricker. He had a patient — a white man — who was scheduled for an operation. The patient said, ‘I’m not willing to be in this room with that person,’ pointing at the African American man in the other bed. ‘I’m not used to sharing a room with a Negro.’

“Dr. Bricker said, ‘You know, you’re absolutely right. You need a new room; in fact, you need a new hospital, and a new surgeon. I’ll call your referring doctor and tell him.’ He might as well have said that over the loudspeaker. It was astonishing because in those days there were testy moments. But Dr. Bricker was God, and as soon as he said that, integration was accomplished.”

— Bernard Jaffe, MD

1960s: Charles Carroll becomes leader, teacher for trainees

Charles Carroll

Charles Carroll, an Emergency Room orderly at Jewish Hospital, develops skills far beyond his job description. Generations of medical students and trainees learn from him. “As the years went by, my colleagues and I came to rely on Mr. Carroll. He could read X-rays way beyond our skills. It became a bellwether of evaluation for […]

1964: Civil Rights Act becomes law

President Lyndon Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act into law. In 1965, he signs the Voting Rights Act and the Medicare and Medicaid Act, providing health insurance for the elderly and those of limited income.

1962: James L. Sweatt III, MD: First Black WUSM graduate

James L. Sweatt III, MD

James L. Sweatt III, MD, is the first Black person to graduate from the School of Medicine. He becomes a thoracic surgeon. In the December 2015 issue of Washington Magazine, Sweatt reflects on the admissions process:  “I had the impression for years that it was routine for all the professors of the departments in the […]

Early 1960s: Medical students fed up with segregation

On one Christmas Eve, a group of medical students, fed up with segregation at Barnes Hospital, move beds around so that one ward “was like piano keys: Black, white, Black, white,” recalled Gerald Medoff, MD.

1960s: Medical education remains segregated nationwide

Medical education is still segregated nationwide. Fewer than three percent of entering medical students are Black, and most of those are in two schools: Howard University College of Medicine and Meharry Medical College.

1958: Jane Ervin: First Black nurse at SLCH

Jane Ervin becomes the first Black nurse at Children’s Hospital, working there for five years. Her husband, John B. Ervin, is the first Black dean on the Danforth Campus at Washington University.