Regina Benjamin: Difference between revisions
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== Education == |
== Education == |
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Dr. Benjamin attended [[Xavier University of Louisiana]] in New Orleans |
Dr. Benjamin attended [[Xavier University of Louisiana]] in New Orleans where she was initiated into Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She is also a member of the second class of the [[Morehouse School of Medicine]].<ref name="benjaminbio"/> She received her M.D. degree from the [[University of Alabama at Birmingham]] and completed her residency in family practice at the [[Medical Center of Central Georgia]].<ref name="benjaminbio"/> After entering solo practice in Bayou La Batre, Dr. Benjamin spent several years moonlighting in emergency rooms and nursing homes to keep her practice open. After receiving an MBA from the [[Freeman School of Business]] at [[Tulane University]], she converted her office to a rural health clinic.<ref name="Genius-2009-07-13">{{cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title= Obama Taps 'Genius' Doctor, Katrina Victim for Surgeon General | date= 2009-07-13 | publisher=[[FOX News Network]] | url = http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/07/13/obama-taps-alabama-doctor-surgeon-general/ | work = article | pages = | accessdate = 2009-07-13}}</ref> |
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== Professional Activities == |
== Professional Activities == |
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Revision as of 04:02, 23 July 2009
Regina Benjamin | |
|---|---|
 Regina Benjamin on July 13, 2009 | |
| Surgeon General-designate of the United States | |
| Assuming office TBD* | |
| President | Barack Obama |
| Succeeding | Richard Carmona |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 26, 1956 Mobile, Alabama |
| Occupation | Physician |
| *Pending Senate confirmation | |
Regina Marcia Benjamin[1] (born on October 26, 1956 in Mobile, Alabama[2]) is an American physician, who runs a nonprofit medical clinic in Bayou La Batre, Alabama, in the United States.
Dr. Benjamin notably became the first African American woman on the American Medical Association's board of trustees when she was elected to the post in 1995.
On July 13, 2009 President Barack Obama announced the choice of Benjamin for the position of Surgeon General of the United States.[3][4] Benjamin will be the President's second choice for Surgeon General, after his first choice, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, declined the nomination.[5] If confirmed, Benjamin will become the third African American and the third non-acting[6] woman to hold the position.
Education
Dr. Benjamin attended Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans where she was initiated into Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She is also a member of the second class of the Morehouse School of Medicine.[1] She received her M.D. degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and completed her residency in family practice at the Medical Center of Central Georgia.[1] After entering solo practice in Bayou La Batre, Dr. Benjamin spent several years moonlighting in emergency rooms and nursing homes to keep her practice open. After receiving an MBA from the Freeman School of Business at Tulane University, she converted her office to a rural health clinic.[7]
Professional Activities
Regina Benjamin is former associate dean for rural health at the University of South Alabama's College of Medicine in Mobile, where she administers the Alabama AHEC program and previously directed its Telemedicine Program. She serves as the current president of the Medical Association of the State of Alabama. In 1995 she was elected to the American Medical Association's board of trustees, making her the first physician under age 40 and the first African-American woman to be elected. She also served on the Florida A & M University Board of Trustees after being appointed by Florida Governor Jeb Bush.[8]
Benjamin is a diplomate of the American Board of Family Practice and a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians. She was a Kellogg National Fellow and also a Rockefeller Next Generation Leader. She has served on a variety of boards and committees, including the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, Catholic Health East, Medical Association of the State of Alabama, Alabama Board of Medical Examiners, Alabama State Committee of Public Health, Mobile County Medical Society, Alabama Rural Health Association, Leadership Alabama, Mobile Area Red Cross, Mercy Medical, Mobile Chamber of Commerce, United Way of Mobile, Physicians for Human Rights [9] and Deep South Girl Scout Council.[10]
She was appointed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala to the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act Committee and to the Council of Graduate Medical Education, and she is also a member of the "Step 3 Committee."[10] In Alabama, she formerly served as vice president of the Governor's Commission on Aging, and also formerly as a member of the Governor's Health Care Reform Task Force and the Governor's Task Force on Children's Health.[10]
Benjamin's clinic was destroyed in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina and in 2006 by a fire on New Year's Day, one day before the scheduled reopening. She made headlines when she rebuilt the clinic a second time.[7]
Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic
Dr. Benjamin is founder and CEO of the Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic in Bayou La Batre, Alabama. Bayou La Batre is a small shrimping village along the gulf coast. Dr. Benjamin was the subject of a Reader's Digest article that chronicled her efforts to rebuild the clinic after Hurricane Katrina.[11]
Surgeon General of the United States
On July 13, 2009, Benjamin was nominated by President Barack Obama to hold the position of Surgeon General of the United States.[12] Benjamin accepted the President's nomination, and made clear of her dissatisfaction with the current health care system, in terms of both accessibilty, as well as cost.[1]
Also in accepting her nomination, Benjamin described her own hardships faced by disease and illness in her own family. She noted her brother, who died of HIV, as well as her father, who died of high blood pressure and diabetes, and her mother who died of lung cancer. All of which, she implied, were "preventable diseases."[13]
Her political support for abortion rights has been cited as a possible source of controversy, since Benjamin, who is a devout Roman Catholic, has also received an award from the Holy See, a strong opponent of such procedures.[14]
Awards
In 1998 she was the United States recipient of the Nelson Mandela Award for Health and Human Rights.[7]
Dr. Benjamin was named by Time Magazine as one of the "Nation's 50 Future Leaders Age 40 and Under." She has been featured in a New York Times article, "Angel in a White Coat," and was chosen "Person of the Week" by ABC's World News Tonight with Peter Jennings, "Woman of the Year" by CBS This Morning, and "Woman of the Year" by People Magazine. She was also featured on the December 1999 cover of Clarity Magazine and received the 2000 National Caring Award, which was inspired by Mother Teresa.[10]
In 2006, she was awarded the papal cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice by Pope Benedict XVI.[15]
In 2008, Benjamin was named one of America's Best Leaders by U.S. News & World Report.[16]
In September, she was one of 25 recipients of the $500,000 “genius awards,” awarded by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.[17]
References
- ^ a b c d e Woman in the News | Regina Marcia Benjamin A Doctor From the Bayou
- ^ Regina Benjamin Picked as Surgeon General
- ^ Alabama Doctor Tapped for Surgeon General
- ^ Obama picks Regina Benjamin as surgeon general
- ^ Obama chooses Alabama doctor as next surgeon general
- ^ Benjamin will be the third woman after former Surgeon Generals Antonia Coello Novello and Joycelyn Elders, or the fourth woman after Audrey F. Manley, who served as acting Surgeon General in 1993.
- ^ a b c "Obama Taps 'Genius' Doctor, Katrina Victim for Surgeon General". article. FOX News Network. 2009-07-13. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Dr. Regina Benjamin's Background - FOX10tv.com
- ^ Physicians for Human Rights 2002 Annual Report
- ^ a b c d Regina M. Benjamin, MD - Bayou Clinic Homepage
- ^ http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/dr-regina-benjamin----a-healing-force/article19591.html
- ^ The Doctor Is (Finally) In: Obama To Name Regina Benjamin
- ^ Regina Benjamin, Obama's Pick For Surgeon General
- ^ Obama's surgeon general pick: a Catholic who backs abortion rights
- ^ "Obama Taps Ala. Doctor For Surgeon General". Retrieved 2009-07-13.
- ^ "America's Best Leaders - Regina Benjamin". Retrieved 2009-07-13.
- ^ Obama Names Regina Benjamin as Surgeon General
External links
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