Charles Everett Koop

Charles Everett Koop was born in Brooklyn, New York on October 14, 1916. He obtained his B.A. degree from Dartmouth College in 1937 and his M.D. degree from Cornell Medical School in 1941. After interning at the Pennsylvania Hospital, Dr. Koop pursued postgraduate training at the University Of Pennsylvania School Of Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital and the Graduate School of Medicine at U. of Pennsylvania, where he obtained a D.Sc. Degree in 1947.

At U. of Penn., Dr. Koop was appointed professor of pediatric surgery in 1959 and then also received a professorship in the department of pediatrics. From 1948 to 1981, Dr. Koop was also Surgeon-in-Chief at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia where he was a pioneer in pediatric surgery. He structured an internationally renowned department that established the first neonatal intensive care nursery and was a founder of the American Academy of Pediatric Surgeons.

In February 1981, President Reagan appointed Dr. Koop as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health. On January 1982, when he was sworn in by the Senate as U.S. Surgeon General, AIDS was a deadly enigma. At the direct request of President Reagan in 1986, Dr. Koop prepared the first national report on AIDS. This explicit, nonjudgmental and monumental document contributed significantly to providing the first accurate and comprehensive information on AIDS. In 1988, Dr. Koop wrote "Understanding AIDS," a Public Heath Service brochure based on CDC guidelines, which was sent to all 107 million households in the U.S. It was the largest mailing ever by the federal government.

“Dr. Koop’s treatment of HIV / AIDS as a public health issue rather than a moral issue was a major breakthrough. The report and mailing educated the public on the magnitude of the epidemic, which garnered support for new research and methods of treatment,” said Monica Ord, SVP of corporate development and communications for Viral Genetics, Inc.

In October 1989, he resigned from office, but his highly regarded leadership on public health topics such as tobacco, organ transplantation, AIDS and the rights of the disabled left the Office of Surgeon General more esteemed than ever before. He has relentlessly continued to educate the public about health issues through his many writings and media appearances. Dr. Koop now serves as Senior Scholar of the C. Everett Koop Institute at Dartmouth Medical School and is a member of the governing boards of several nationally recognized health-related organizations.

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