Describes McNeal's medical training, years in Chicago, and activities after moving to Alabama in 1946.

1. DR. ALICE MCNEAL:
Alabama’s First Female Anesthesiologist
A.J. Wright, M.L.S.
David H. Chestnut, M.D., Section on Anesthesia History
UAB Anesthesiology

2. Mary Botsford, M.D.
• 1865-1939
• Began practice 1897
• UCSF 1910-1934

3. Isabella Herb, M.D.
• 1869-1943
• Chicago, 1908-?
• Began practice 1893
• Detoured to pathology
for 3 years
• Returned to
anesthesia

4. Caroline B. Palmer, M.D
• UCSF1934-39

5. Dorothy Wood, M.D.
• Stanford, 1921-1939

6. Virginia Apgar, M.D.
• 1909-1974
• Columbia U., 1938-
1949

8. Women MD Anesthetists
[Source: Calmes SH, 1989]
1920
California-11
Illinois-4
New York-4
1940
California-55
Illinois-27
New York-26

9. Alice McNeal, M.D. [1897-1964]
• Born 26 Dec. 1897
• Hinsdale, Illinois
• Only child
• Charles Samuel
McNeal
• Carrie May Johnston
McNeal

10. • McNeal in 1921, at the time she
received her Rush MC certificate
• She received her M.D. the following
year, one of 5 women among 129 total
graduates
• Source: Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s
Medical Center Archives [Chicago]

11. • Ca. 1922
• Graduated MC Phi
Beta Kappa and AOA
• Woman on right may
be her mother
• Photo taken in back
yard of family home?

12. Alice McNeal, M.D. [1897-1964]
• Internship, Women’s Hospital,
Philadelphia, 1921-1922
• Internship, Durand Hospital, Chicago,
1922-1923
• Presbyterian Hospital, Chicago, 1925-
1946

13. Alice McNeal, M.D. [1897-1964]
• Instructor in Anesthesia
• Anesthesia Residency, Presbyterian, 1926
• Anesthesia Residency, Hartford Hospital
under Ralph Tovell, M.D., 1938-1939
• ABA Certification, 1941

14. Ralph Tovell, M.D.
1901-1967
*Early anesthesia resident at Mayo
*Worked under John Lundy at Mayo,
1929-1936
*Became Director of Anesthesia at
Hartford Hospital, 1936

15. Anesthesia Staff, Presbyterian Hosp., 1936

16. • Nora Brandenburgh, M.D.
• Alice McNeal, M.D.
• Mary Lyons, M.D.
• Isabella Herb, M.D.
• Spring 1936
• Source: Bulletin,
Presbyterian Hospital,
April 1936

17. Time WWII quote
• “Though 3,000 of the 8,000 U.S. women doctors could
probably qualify for service, most of them are content to
work at home. What gets their dander up is to see an
outstanding woman specialist hampered on account of
her sex. Such a physician is Dr. Alice McNeal,
anesthetist of Presbyterian Hospital, Chicago. The
operating team to which she belongs went to General
Hospital Unit 13 at Camp Robinson, Little Rock, Ark.
Forty Chicago doctors went, but Dr. McNeal was left
behind.”
• Time 41: 46, April 26, 1943

18. Jefferson Tower, UAB
http://www.geocities.com/bham_design/uab2.jpg

19. Roy R. Kracke, M.D.
1897-1950
• b. Hartselle, Alabama
• Pathologist
• Edited Textbook of Clinical Pathology
[1938]
• Left Emory for UAB
• Became Dean, Medical College of
Alabama, Aug. 1, 1944

20. McNeal’s Arrival in Birmingham
• Arrived in the city Saturday evening, May
4, 1946
• Chief of Anesthesia Div., Dept. of Surgery
• By summer, 1948 she was unhappy and
planning to return to Chicago
• Medical college offered her a department
and pay increase
• Dept. created August 1, 1948

21. McNeal’s Acceptance Letter
To Dean Kracke, April 3, 1946
• “It will be important if we are going to
judge what is being accomplished to have
extensive and accurate records.”
• “I hope you have a stray cadaver in the
anatomy laboratory on which I can
practice some blocks as it has been
several years since I have had an
opportunity to use my training.”

22. Anesthesiology in 1947
Source: McCuskey CF. JAMA 135: 261, 1947
• 337 diplomats of Am. Board of Anes.
• 2400 members of ASA
• 102 hospitals with residency programs
• 366 residents
• 6,280 hospitals in the U.S.

23. Louise Branscomb, M.D. [1901-1999]
http://www.awhf.org/branscomb.html
• Johns Hopkins U.
SOM
• Birmingham 1931-
1975
• Practiced ob-gyn
• Papers, diaries, etc.:
Branscomb
Collection, Duke

24. ASSA Founded March 8, 1948
• Hiram Elliott, M.D.
• Alfred Habeeb, M.D.
• Alice McNeal, M.D.
• E. Bryce Robinson, Jr., M.D.
• At Dr. Robinson’s home in Birmingham

25. Alfred Habeeb, M.D.
Profiles of Dr. Habeeb:
• McDonald WH.
A long way from Bishmizzin.
J Med Assoc State Ala
52(9):8-15, March 1983
• "A Room for Freddy" in
Smith, Anita. Lloyd
Noland, M.D.: The Boss.
Fairfield, Ala.: Lloyd
Noland foundation, 1986, pp
373-382

26. Alfred Habeeb, M.D.
• Born 1911
• Anesthesia residency,
1940
• Employee’s Hospital,
TCI
[Lloyd Noland
Hospital]

27. Anesthesiology 11: 96, 1950

28. • Dr. McNeal presents
Patricia F. Norman, M.D.,
with Chief Resident’s
Chair, 1959
• Tradition continued in our
department into early
1990s

31. • 1961: stepped down as Chair
• 1962: retired from department
• Died December 31, 1964
• As she requested, she was cremated and
her ashes scattered in Europe by her
friends, Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Volker
• She has a tombstone in Elmwood
Cemetery

32. Accomplishments I
• Experienced anesthesiologist who
founded a dept. in difficult situation of
brand-new medical school
• Founded hospital’s School for Nurse
Anesthetists
• Obtained ABA certification for residency
program [Feb. 1949]
• Founding member of ASSA

33. Accomplishments II
• Trained a large number of residents, dental
students and nurse anesthetists
• Pioneered anesthesia’s contributions to chest
surgery and extracorporeal techniques at the
hospital early-mid 1950s
• Guided over 9700 anesthetics in 1950 alone
• First female anesthesiologist in Alabama
• First female Chair of an academic anesthesia
department in the United States

34. Birmingham News obituary
• “Dr. McNeal was noted for freely sharing her
vast store of knowledge with others. An
outstanding example was a nine-week trip to
Munich, Germany, in 1949 in cooperation with
the IRO. While there she lectured to about 150
doctors who had survived German concentration
and slave labor camps….the doctors heard Dr.
McNeal tell them of anesthesiology, a field of
medicine of which they knew practically nothing.”

35. Munich Trip 1949
• Kept a diary; donated by Dr. Jim Jones
• Includes notes about surgical cases
• “Friday July 29th
…Party for graduating
class”
• “Friday, Aug 5th
Am. Express work on aft.
Lecture 2-3:30”
• “Sunday-Konigsee Obsersee Chiemsee
for dinner”

36. Charles (Scotty) A. McCallum, Jr.,
D.M.D., M.D.
• Became Acting President,
UAB, 1986
• President, 1987-1993
• “…a great teacher…well-liked
and worked hard.”
• “She loved to dance.”
• Source: Interview, 1992

37. S. Richardson Hill, Jr., MD
• Dean, Medical College of
Alabama, Sept. 1962
• Vice-President for Health
Affairs, Nov. 1968
• UAB President [2nd
], Feb.
1977-Sept. 1986
• “I liked her very much and
thoroughly enjoyed her company.”
• “…my wife was also very fond of
her, and occasionally on special
occasions they exchanged
presents. At one time Alice gave
my wife a beautiful pocketbook
which she had made.”
• Source: letter from Dr. Hill, June
22, 1993

38. Jim Jones, M.D.
• Faculty member, 1958-1960
• Donated Dr. McNeal’s
professional books to
departmental library
• Sources: Written tribute,
12/1971; interview, 3/1996
• “She dearly loved fine
conversation, classical music and
well-written books…and good
scotch!”
• “Alice in an interview shortly
before her demise, denied being a
pioneer but did admit to being
perhaps a veteran in the field of
anesthesiology.”

39. Alice McNeal, M.D. [1897-1964]