WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. -- Every year on March 30th, the United States celebrates Doctors’ Day to recognize the many achievements that our physicians have made in caring for patients around the world.
The first observance occurred in 1933, in Winder, Georgia, when Dr. Charles B. Almond’s wife, Eudora Brown Almond, created a day to honor physicians. She led the recognition of doctors in her community by mailing them greeting cards and placing red carnations on the graves of deceased doctors. The red carnation to this day is still used as the symbolic flower for National Doctors’ Day
History reports that she chose the date for Doctors’ Day based on the remarkable innovation of the first use of ether anesthetic during surgery on March 30, 1842. On that day, Dr. Crawford W. Long administered ether anesthesia to a patient prior to surgically removing a tumor. This allowed the patient to undergo the surgery while sleeping and to feel no pain.
Fifty-seven years later, in 1991, the United States Senate and House of Representatives passed the resolution to recognize Doctors’ Day. Then-President George W. Bush signed the resolution into law on October 30, 1990, to be observed on March 30, 1991, to celebrate the sacrifices and contributions made by our nation’s doctors.
The 509th Medical Group at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, is currently home to 13 physicians who provide primary care and specialty services for more than 11,000 patients. They are trained in general medicine, family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics and psychiatry.
Physicians take the Hippocratic Oath, swearing to uphold ethical standards and to “first do no harm.” Our Air Force physicians are charged with providing trusted care to our active duty service members, their families and retirees.
National Doctors’ Day is a time for the Whiteman community to say thank you and recognize the diversity of dedicated active duty physicians who are a critical component of our healthcare team.
We asked several of the 509th Medical Group physicians how they came to be military doctors, what they love about Air Force medicine and what their future goals are. Here were their responses:
Capt. Jacob Shepherd – Family Medicine Physician, Primary Care Clinic
“My father is a family medicine physician and I had the opportunity to work in his practice growing up doing medical billing and medical assistant work. After high school, I got to do some oversees medical missions, and this confirmed my desire to be a physician. I attended medical school at Saba University School of Medicine, then family medicine residency at the University of Kansas City program at Truman Medical Center. I chose the Air Force because I wanted to have the opportunity to serve our military and their families. I am honored to have the opportunity to serve my country. I joined the military through the Financial Assistance Program, which covered my training costs and also included an annual grant and a monthly stipend. One of my rewarding moments since arriving to Whiteman Air Force Base was when my team was able to treat an active duty member with severe pneumonia here in the clinic by utilizing our nurses and techs to administer IV antibiotics that kept him from being hospitalized.”
Maj. Kallyn Harencak – Flight Commander and Internist, Aerospace Medicine Flight
“I grew up in the Air Force and wasn’t ready to leave the nest… After my first year at the United States Air Force Academy, I enrolled in the summer glider program where you learn the basics of flight… and I was awful at it! I’m a terrible pilot. So I went with my back-up plan to go to medical school. I graduated from Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and then completed a residency in Internal Medicine at Wright Patterson AFB. I love our patient population and think we are afforded opportunities none of our civilian counterparts get. No one else gets to practice medicine in the back of a C-17. No one else gets to spend the morning in clinic and the afternoon at 18,000 feet!”
Lt. Col. Mary Anne Kiel – Chief of Medical Staff and Pediatrician
“I am the daughter of a retired Air Force medic and first sergeant. I feel extremely fortunate that the Air Force helped fund my undergraduate education. I went to medical school because I loved the volunteer work that I did in a hospital in college. I was later awarded an Air Force Health Professions Scholarship to attend medical school. I feel I have a responsibility to give back to the institution that supported me growing up and in my education. I became a pediatrician because I wanted to make a difference in children’s lives, to help make them healthy and successful in their journey toward adulthood. Kids are so imaginative and fun! In the Air Force, taking care of kids means taking care of their parents who work hard to carry out the mission. If their children are healthy and safe, then parents have the peace of mind and focus required to do their jobs. Now my job as the chief of medical staff is to support all our providers in giving the best care to our patients. Our staff is passionate about health, and we want our patients to know how much we care about them and how hard we work to meet their needs.”