CELEBRATE THE ART OF HEALING
Medical Alumni Weekend
A 19th century home medicine chest from The Physician's Art. Alumni will be the first to
see The Physician's Art exhibit during Medical Alumni Weekend. Celebrate the art of
healing Medical Alumni Weekend November 5-7, 1999
On Friday evening, Medical Alumni Weekend guests will be the first to see The
Physician's Art, Representations of Art and Medicine, during a private showing and
reception at the Duke University Museum of Art. This new exhibit features medical art and
artifacts dating back to the fifteenth century from the collections of Duke University,
the University of North Carolina, East Carolina University, and Wake Forest University.
The exhibit includes more than 100 rare objects, including ivory anatomical manikins from
17th century Europe, an English drum microscope from the mid-19th century, and
hand-colored drawings of human skeletons from the 16th century anatomy textbook by
Vesalius. Special remarks will be given by Suzanne Porter, curator of the Duke University
Medical School Library's History of Medicine Collections. The exhibit will also be open on
Saturday afternoon.
On Saturday morning, weekend participants will focus on the future, as two Duke medical
faculty members and one medical alumnus and former faculty member give talks during the
continuing medical education program. Bart Haynes, MD, HS'73-'75, professor and chairman
of the Department of Medicine, will discuss reconstitution of the human immune system and
the new hope this offers for patients with AIDS and immunodeficiency diseases. School of
Medicine alumnus Alfred P. Sanfilippo, MD'74, PhD'75, the current Baxley professor and
director of the Department of Pathology at Johns Hopkins, will present a talk on current
problems and future solutions to improve the viability of organ transplantation. Andrew
Berchuck, MD, professor of gynecological oncology, will discuss new insights in early
diagnosis and treatment of hereditary ovarian cancer, one of the most elusive and deadly
forms of cancer.
Children attending Medical Alumni Weekend will be treated to a "kids only"
version of "continuing medical education." During the adult CME programs,
current Duke medical students will entertain and enlighten them on health issues important
to kids. Parents are also welcome to join the kid's CME program. Information about other
activities for families, including the Durham Museum of Life and Science's new butterfly
house, will be available at the Weekend Registration Desk.
Other special happenings during the weekend include Friday afternoon's Medical Alumni
Luncheon and Awards program. This year seven distinguished alumni/ae and faculty members
(please see article on page 2-3) will receive awards, and reunion class gifts will be
announced. Edward W. Holmes, MD, HS '70-'74, FAC'73-'91, dean of the School of Medicine,
will present the awards and give a talk on his vision for the Duke School of Medicine.
On Saturday, a special luncheon and ceremony at the Washington Duke Inn will induct the
Class of 1949 into the Half-Century Club. All members of the Half-Century Club are invited
to wear their medallions and participate in this moving ceremony. The youngest reunion
class, the Class of 1994, is invited to attend as special guests of the Medical Alumni
Association. Other individual reunion classes (years ending in 4 or 9) will be hosted for
lunch at the homes of area alumni.
After lunch on Saturday, all alumni are invited to join Del Meriwether, MD'67, for a
focus session on minority programs. Meriwether, now an emergency room physician in
Potomac, Md., was Duke's first African-American medical student. He is an award-winning
sickle cell disease researcher, a former medical missionary and anti-apartheid crusader in
South Africa, and a former world record-holder in the 100-yard-dash.
Class reunion dinners will be held Saturday night at a variety of locations in Durham
and Chapel Hill. The weekend festivities conclude on Sunday with a brunch at the
Washington-Duke Inn followed by a worship service in Duke Chapel.
For more information about Medical Alumni Weekend 1999, including
updated lists of alumni planning to attend, please visit the Medical Alumni Association
site on the World Wide Web at http://medalum.mc.duke.edu or contact the Medical Alumni
Association staff at 919-667-2500, 800-541-9533, or by e-mail at dukemed@mc.duke.edu.
