Biography charles drew richard
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This barrier-breaking African American doctor and surgeon earned the title “father of the blood bank” for his lifesaving innovations in the use and preservation of blood plasma.
A native of Washington, D.C., Charles Richard Drew (–) was a gifted ung athlete who earned a bachelor’s grad at Amherst College in Massachusetts, where he was 1 of only 13 African Americans in a student population of From Amherst he enrolled at McGill University in Montreal, receiving his medical and surgical degrees in
While doing his residency at Montreal Hospital (–), Drew became interested in the science and medicine of blood transfusions. In he joined the faculty of the Howard University College of medicin and then the surgical staff at Freedmen’s Hospital, which was affiliated with Howard. In he was recommended for a Rockefeller fellowship to undertake specialty surgical training at Presbyterian Hospital in New York and pursue his doctorate in medical science at Columbia University. There h
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February is Black History Month. Visit the National Archives website for more information on our resources related to African American History.
Charles Richard Drew (June 3, –April 1, ) was an American surgeon, educator, and pioneering medical researcher on blood transfusions. He discovered that plasma had a longer shelf life than blood and could be separated to be used in transfusions. His work not only saved thousands during World War II, it also laid the groundwork for long-term blood preservation and storage techniques that have saved countless lives since.
Born in Washington, DC, in , Drew attended Dunbar High School, where he was a good student and outstanding athlete, excelling in football, basketball, baseball, and track. He received an athletics scholarship to Amherst College in Massachusetts, where he played football and was on the track and field team.
For two years after undergraduate school, while saving for medical school, Drew was a professor of
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Charles R. Drew
American surgeon and medical researcher (–)
This article is about the medical researcher. For other people, see Charles Drew (disambiguation).
Charles Richard Drew (June 3, – April 1, ) was an American surgeon and medical researcher. He researched in the field of blood transfusions, developing improved techniques for blood storage, and applied his expert knowledge to developing large-scale blood banks early in World War II. This allowed medics to save thousands of Allied forces' lives during the war.[1] As the most prominent African American in the field, Drew protested against the practice of racial segregation in the donation of blood, as it lacked scientific foundation, and resigned his position with the American Red Cross, which maintained the policy until [2]
Early life and education
Drew was born in into an African-American middle-class family in Washington, D.C.[3] His father, Richard, was a carpet layer[4]