The Montreal Neurological Institute: Training of the
First African-American Neurosurgeons
Department of Neurosurgery, University of Minnesota Medical School,
Minneapolis, MN
Introduction:
Since
its inception in 1934 by the legendary Dr. Wilder G. Penfield, the Montreal
Neurological Institute (MNI) has provided world-renowned instruction in
neurosurgery and related neurosciences, training many of the most prominent
figures in the history of neurosurgery (1). Less well-known is the role of the MNI in training the first
African-American board-certified neurosurgeons (2, 3). This important yet relatively unknown
contribution of the MNI to the field of neurosurgery is detailed in this
report.
Methods:
A comprehensive
review of pertinent modern and historical records spanning the past century was
performed.
Results:
From
1947 through 1965, the MNI trained the first African-American board-certified
neurosurgeon, and three of the first four. The first, Clarence S. Greene, Sr., M.D., F.A.C.S., trained
at MNI from 1947-1949. The next,
Jesse B. Barber, Jr., M.D., F.A.C.S., trained at MNI from 1958-1961. Like Dr. Greene, Dr. Barber received
his M.D. from the Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, D.C.,
was on the general surgery faculty at Howard (certified by the American Board
of Surgery) before training at MNI under Dr. Penfield, and returned to Howard
following his training (2, 3). The
third, Lloyd A. Dayes, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.C.S., matriculated at MNI in 1960 after receiving his
M.D. from the Loma Linda University School of Medicine in southern California,
and trained from 1961-1965 under Dr. Theodore B. Rasmussen, after which he
returned to Loma Linda (1). Drs.
Greene, Barber and Dayes were certified by the American Board of Neurological
Surgery in 1953, 1963, and 1967 respectively as the first, third and fourth
African-American neurosurgeons (2).
Conclusions:
The
willingness of the world-renowned Montreal Neurological Institute to train the
first African-American neurosurgeons during a time of intense racial
segregation in the United States played a major role in enabling subsequent
African-Americans to enter and enhance the field of neurosurgery.
Keywords:
Montreal Neurological Institute, Clarence S. Greene
Sr., Jesse B. Barber Jr., Lloyd A. Dayes
Objectives:
1.
Understand the role of the Montreal Neurological Institute in training
the first African-American board-certified neurosurgeons
2. Know
the time period during which the first African-Americans were certified by the
American Board of Neurological Surgery
3. Be
familiar with the names of the first African-Americans to be board-certified as
neurosurgeons
References:
1.
Feindel W. Neurosurgery
at the Montreal Neurological Institute and McGill University hospitals.
Neurosurgery. 1996;39:830-839.
2.
Cobb WM, Epps Jr. CH,
Kosiba MM. Certification pioneers. In: Organ CM, Kosiba MM eds. A Century of
Black Surgeons: The U.S. Experience.
Vol. II. Oklahoma: Transcript Press, 1987;483-528.
3.
Leffall Jr. LD, Syphax
BM. The Howard University department of surgery and Freedmen’s hospital. In:
Organ CM, Kosiba MM eds. A Century of Black Surgeons: The U.S. Experience. Vol. I. Oklahoma: Transcript Press, 1987;1-62.