Dr. Samuel L. Katz is the Wilburt Cornell Davison Professor and Chairman Emeritus of Pediatrics at Duke University Medical Center. This collections contains 2 oral history interviews conducted at separate times. Interviews were conducted on May 10, 2007 by Jessica Roseberry and October 23, 2009 by Jake Sganga and Breann Tisano. In the 2007 interview, Katz discusses his career at Duke; his work pertaining to vaccines; and women in the field of pediatrics, including specific women in Duke's Department of Pediatrics under his tenure. In the 2009 interview, Katz discusses his medical career, his early involvement with creating the measles vaccine that structured his career around pediatric vaccinations, and his advocacy for vaccine public policy.
Samuel Katz, MD, born in 1927 and raised in Manchester, New Hampshire, is a pediatrician and virologist with a career devoted to infectious disease research with a focus on vaccine research and development. Katz joined Duke University School of Medicine faculty as chair of pediatrics in 1968 and lead the department until 1990. While at Duke, his research focused on vaccine policy development and pediatric HIV/AIDS care. Prior to joining the Duke University School of Medicine, Katz was instrumental in the development of the measles vaccine. The collection includes correspondence, subject files, conference materials, audiovisual materials, and other records documenting Katz's career. Major subjects include pediatrics, vaccines, and the Duke University Department of Pediatrics. Materials range in date from 1969 to 2011.