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This oral history interview was conducted with Dr. Courtney M. Townsend Jr on January 20, 2022 by Taylor Patterson as part of the Dr. David Sabiston Oral History Project.

Duration: 00:31:58

During the interview, Townsend discusses his background; his decision to become a surgeon; his education and training; his time in the Navy, becoming the Editor-In-Chief for the "Textbook of Surgery" after Dr. David Sabiston, as well as his experiences in that role; Sabiston's influence on the field of surgery; how Townsend shaped surgical resident education at his institution; the importance of developing a workforce that looks like the population being served; and his memories of Sabiston and his wife Agnes (Aggie) Barden Sabiston. Digital files include transcript (DOCX), interview (M4A), and consent form (PDF).

This oral history interview was conducted in two parts with Kevin W. Sowers on January 22, 2018 by Joseph O'Connell.
Duration:

• Part 1: 42:17
• Part 2: 43:46

Elizabeth "Chi" Pulley speaks about how her parents, Dr. Susan and Dr. John E. Dees, first met; her parents living with Dr. Barnes Woodhall; the difference in payment for Dr. John E. Dees and Dr. Susan Dees; other women on the Duke faculty; the distinction between Dr. Susan Dees at work and Mrs. Susan Dees at home; patient loyalty to Dr. Susan Dees; Pulley's perceptions of her mother; other mothers not working; going with her mother to Duke Hospital; Pulley playing in the hospital; the maid at home; the maid giving Pulley her nickname, "Chi"; Pulley's perception of Dr. Susan Dees's treatment at Duke; Dr. Susan Dees beginning a school for children in the hospital; Dr. Rebecca Buckley; Dr. Susan Dees's multiple retirements; Dr. Bailey Webb; Dr. Susan Dees's training residents; Dr. Susan Dees as an individual; Dr. John Dees; and Dr. Susan Dees's enthusiasm.

Mrs. Tyor discusses coming to Duke; the dietetics program at Duke; being a relative of Dr. Deryl Hart; Elsie Martin, chief of dietetics program at Duke; the atmosphere at Duke; the Duke School of Medicine class of 1946; Dr. Malcolm P. Tyor; closeness of class of 1946; marriages to dieticians, student nurses, and student technicians in class of 1946; Dr. Eugene Stead's social events with house staff; the VA Hospital; Dr. Stead's thriftiness; Dr. Stead testing the knowledge of others; professional courtesy of the medical profession before insurance companies' involvement; the connectedness of the Duke network; the return of Tyors to Duke from Jacksonville, Fla., in 1955; women not working due to having families; Jean Estes (wife of Dr. E. Harvey Estes); having a large family; the community of Duke faculty families on Anderson Street; Dr. Walter Kempner; the diet kitchen; working as a student dietician; the kitchen in Duke Hospital North; teaching students dietetics; the creation of a male nutritionist program; entertaining as the wife of division chief; going to conferences as wife of division chief; the expectations of being a wife of a division chief; the competitive nature of wives in Duke hierarchy; the role of wives as supporters to faculty husbands; Ethel Wyngaarden; Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans; Purple Jesus [alcoholic beverage]; the town-gown atmosphere of Durham; Dr. William Anlyan's influence on Duke; Joseph Greenfield; and the feeling of closeness at Duke.

This oral history interview was conducted with Dr. John Palmer Grant on July 12, 1994 by Dr. James Gifford. It is included in the Dr. David Sabiston Oral History Project.

Duration: 00:38:00

During the interview, Grant discusses his background; how he became a surgeon; how he came to Duke; his involvement with nutritional support of surgical and medical patients; his involvement with the Surgical Nutrition Research Laboratory, starting intravenous feeding at Duke, and how the laboratory is funded; research pertaining the laboratory on overeating, weight loss surgery, and the effects of arginine supplementation and glutamine supplementation to intravenous feeding; Dr. David Sabiston's reputation and the Department of Surgery at Duke. Includes 1 master audiocassette tape, 1 use audiocassette tape, and 1 transcript.

Nevidjon discusses her background; desire to become a nurse; career choices for women in the seventies; choosing to be a nurse instead of a doctor; diploma programs versus college-based programs; deciding on Duke School of Nursing; curriculum at Duke; schedule of Duke classes; curriculum changes in her second year; visionary nature of school of nursing faculty at the time; specific women in the faculty at the time; expectation of faculty that students would attain an advanced degree; male students in graduate program as opposed to undergraduate; males on the nursing service; Wilma Minniear; nursing service's view of school of nursing graduates; working as a ward clerk the summer of sophomore year and as a professional nursing assistant (PNA) the summer of junior year; advantages of getting to know the staff in these positions and then come on staff after graduation; relationship with physicians; tight-knit nature of unit; activism of her class; black studies class; master's program at University of North Carolina; psychiatric nursing; move to Switzerland; working as oncology nurse in Switzerland; advantages of oncology nursing; becoming an administrator; Morris Building; nature of nurse management role upon her return to Duke; difference in Duke and West Coast healthcare; dysfunctional nature of nursing upon her return; changes due to external regulatory environment; chief operating officer role; Mike Israel; Ralph Snyderman; Duke Medical Center becoming a health system; political flak due to acquisition of Durham Regional Hospital; difficulty of integrating two hospitals; being female in upper management at Duke Medical Center; breaking barriers as nurse in advanced leadership position; possibility of nurses unionizing; assessment of current status of nursing school; variety of opportunities within nursing; thoughts about Duke.

This oral history interview was conducted with Dr. Robert H. Jones on July 14, 1994 by Dr. James Gifford. It is included in the Dr. David Sabiston Oral History Project.

Duration: 00:45:00

Dr. Robert H. Jones discusses his career, his research interests, working with Sabiston in the lab at Johns Hopkins and how he was the motivation for Jones to come to Duke for his surgical residency, working for and with Sabiston at Duke, how Sabiston influenced the Department of Surgery, Sabiston's personal leadership style and work with residents, other memories of Sabiston, the origins and development of the Surgical Radioisotope Laboratory, the current cutting edge in the field, and where he sees the field going. Includes a master and use audio cassette tape.

This oral history interview was conducted with Dr. Robert H. Jones on April 26, 2007 by Jessica Roseberry. It is included in the Dr. David Sabiston Oral History Project.

Duration: 00:50:45

Dr. Robert H. Jones discusses his background, education, and his decision to become a heart surgeon; how working with Sabiston while in medical school at Johns Hopkins brought him to Duke for his surgical residency; his interest in research and matching it with clinical data, which is at the root of his interest in the Duke Cardiovascular Databank; his work as a cardiovascular surgeon, how it culminated in the Duke Cardiovascular Databank, and information about the Duke Cardiovascular Databank. Includes a master and use CD.

This oral history interviews was conducted with Dr. Walter G. Wolfe on July 14, 1994 by Dr. James F. Gifford.

Duration: 00:40:00

During the interview, Wolfe discusses his career, work of the Pulmonary Physiology Laboratory of which Wolfe was the director, the structure of the Department of Surgery, and the evolution of the Department of Surgery.

This oral history interview was conducted with Dr. Wolfe G. Wolfe on June 5, 2019 by Susannah Roberson as part of the Dr. David Sabiston Oral History Project. Also present for the interview were Jackie Wolfe, Ethel Atkins, and Zane Atkins.

Duration: 01:03:11

During the interview, Wolfe discusses his early life; education; why he decided to go to medical school and become a surgeon; why he stayed at Duke for his residency and stay after the completion of his surgical training; his different roles during his long career at Duke including becoming the Program Director of the Thoracic Residency Program at Duke and the Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Durham Veteran's Administration Medical Center; what Sabiston was like as a boss; Sabiston's administration style; what it was like to be a surgery resident at Duke and what made the program under Sabiston so successful; Wolfe bringing in the first female resident, Kim Grady, to the Thoracic Residency Program he oversaw; Sabiston's national reputation; how Sabiston influenced Wolfe's research experience during his residency; Sabiston's rules; and other memories of Sabiston. Digital files include transcript (DOCX), interview (MP3), and consent form (PDF).

This oral history interview was conducted with Dr. Hilliard Seigler on July 18, 1994 by Dr. James Gifford
Duration: 00:30:00
Hilliard Seigler discusses the Melanoma Immunology Laboratory. Includes a master audiocassette tape, a use audiocassette tape, and trasnscript.

This oral history interview was conducted with Dr. Hilliard Seigler on February 27, 2018 by Dr. Justin Barr as part of the Dr. David Sabiston Oral History Project.
Duration: 01:45:25
Hilliard Seigler reflects on his time at Duke in the Department of Surgery. Includes a master CD and transcript.

This oral history interview was conducted with Dr. Ralph Randal (Randy) Bollinger on July 21, 1994 by Dr. James Gifford. It is included in the Dr. David Sabiston Oral History Project.

Duration: 00:32:00

Bollinger discusses his background, particularly as it pertains to his career in surgery, his research interests, and how he came to Duke; his experiences completing his internship and residency at Duke; the research he did in the Air Force; what differentiates the Duke Surgery Program from other programs; how the standards of the residency program affect marriages, relationships, and person lives; his research laboratory at Duke and how that research relates to his clinical work; and Sabiston's role as Chairman and leader.

This oral history interview was conducted with Dr. Ralph Randal (Randy) Bollinger on November 28, 1995 by Dr. James Gifford. It is included in the Dr. David Sabiston Oral History Project.

Duration: 00:45:00

Bollinger discusses the years he spend as a Surgery Resident at Duke under Sabiston; explains what the term "general surgery" means; why general and thoracic surgery were combined and separated later; the difference between academic surgery and private practice; why the number of procedures students are involved in have increased; changes to the surgery residency program over the years and the overall structure of this residency program; the long work hours of residency; the definition of the administrative category of a Division, the research activities a Division undertakes, and how all of this is handled on an administrative level; how the use of research laboratories has grown in the field of surgery and changed over time; and how patients have changed in general surgery over his career.