Over the years the biggest change was in the emergency rooms. Much of what is done there used to be done in the doctor's office. -Paul M. DeLuca, MD

We have seen medicine change very drastically not only in Broome County but nationally. The terms keep changing for the disease entities and the procedures keep changing so that the clinical aspects of medicine have changed. Politically they have changed drastically. Now there is always some other body coming between you and your patients. - Beverly Hosten, MD
-- from Reflections on Medicine in Broome County

          For more than two centuries the medical professionals who have served Binghamton and Broome County have tended to the well-being of the populace while striving to keep themselves in the forefront of medical arts. The first physicians to settle in the county came during the 1790s. A medical society was formed in July of 1806 but was not officially incorporated until 1951, by which time all of medicine was undergoing constant and dazzling change.
           Physicians are among the busiest of individuals, but a few of them have taken the time to conduct a kind of historical Grand Rounds, checking up on their profession and reviewing the history of medicine in Broome County. In 1951, Dr. William Hobbs wrote about the first 150 years in a pamphlet that later appeared in the New York State Journal of Medicine. Now the following half-century has been chronicled by Dr. Frances J. Gilroy in "Reflections on Medicine in Broome County". The book was written for the bicentennial of the Broome County Medical Society (BCMS) and underwritten by Excellus BlueCross BlueShield.
           Dr. Gilroy is an ophthalmologist and former president of the BCMS and former chairman of United Health Services. His historical account goes well beyond the activities of the medical society to become a history of the community and its health conditions. In the early 1950s a major concern was poliomyelitis. In 1955 - a year after the Salk vaccine was introduced - Broome County still had over 100 new cases of polio. In 1957, 30,000 Salk Shots were administered in the county, free of charge. "Reflections" is filled with such facts and figures.
           The story of Broome County medicine has a large "cast of characters", from Dr. Nathan Smith Davis, in 1854 one of the founders of the American Medical Association, and Dr. Mary Ross, who came to Binghamton in 1909 when there was a negative attitude about female physicians and in 1955 was named national Medical Woman of the Year.
           As much as doctors and other health professionals worked to combat disease and injury, they also have been wrestling with matters of health insurance, malpractice coverage, group practice, health maintenance organizations and the medical infrastructure in the county. The Medical Office Systems of the Southern Tier (MOSST), designed to centralize and computerize the billing systems under BCMS auspices was a failure and ended in chapter 7 bankruptcy and doctors chipped in to get the Medical Society again in the black.
           There have been crises that touched the entire community and health care system. In March, 1962 seven newborn babies died in the nursery of Binghamton General Hospital. The cause of death was traced (by an unplanned discovery) to salt that had been accidentally substituted for sugar in the babies' formula. Medical staffs were mobilized, outside experts were brought in to administer peritoneal dialysis on the surviving babies. The incident attracted national media coverage and brought many changes in the operation of hospital neonatal units.
           The medical profession in Broome County has responded to the needs of those unable to pay for a doctor's care through the Community Free Clinic, founded in 1997 by Dr. Garabed Fattal. In its first ten years the clinic had some 30,000 visits and provided health care worth about $400,000 a year.
           "Reflections on Medicine in Broome County" concludes with the text of interviews with nearly forty individuals active in the county's health system. They cover many specializations and contrasting attitudes, commenting on both the strengths and weaknesses of the available personnel and facilities. As Dr. Michael Friedland, former dean of Binghamton's SUNY Clinical Campus, points out, "even New York must be experiencing the shortage of physicians at least in certain specialties as the docs are aging out."
          The book is not available through the usual on-line sources. It is for sale at Riverow Bookshop in Owego and at the gift shops in Binghamton-area hospitals. It can also be purchased directly from the Broome County Medical Society (607/772-8493).
           Dr. Francis Gilroy joins Bill Jaker with further reflections on his profession and how it serves his community. To join in with questions, comments or experiences of your own with the medical system, call during the live 1:00 PM broadcast to 1-888/359-9764 or post a question to WSKG.Radio@Gmail.com.

NEXT TIME: Ever since Charles Darwin propounded his Theory of Evolution it has been both lauded and criticized, advanced and misunderstood. One of the acclaimed programs of evolutionary study is called EvoS, developed by David Sloan Wilson, Distinguished Professor of Biology and Anthropology at Binghamton University. His new book is "Evolution for Everyone: How Darwin's Theory Can Change the Way We Think About Our Lives". Prof. Wilson comes to OFF THE PAGE on Tuesday, July 10th to move beyond the controversies and share with listeners the basic principles that Darwin set forth.

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