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In This Issue:
“My dear Mr. President,” read BWH President Betsy Nabel, MD, in a letter from Alan Steinert, her 1963 counterpart at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital (PBBH). “I don’t think he was expecting me!” she said, to the laughter of a crowded Bornstein Amphitheater—an audience that included Steinert’s son, Alan Steinert Jr.
In 1963, the PBBH sealed a time capsule as part of its 50th anniversary celebration. Among other artifacts, the time capsule was comprised of a packet of letters written by the hospital’s leaders and addressed to their successors in 2013.
The time capsule was ceremonially handed to J. Linzee Coolidge, whom in 1963 was the youngest trustee of the PBBH, for safekeeping at the 50th anniversary gala. Five decades later, Coolidge was present as the contents of the time capsule were revealed and BWH leaders read from and reflected on their predecessors’ letters at Time Capsule Tuesday on May 7.
“Throughout this past year, patient occupancy has been at an all-time high,” read Chief Nursing Officer and Senior Vice President of Patient Care Services Jackie Somerville, PhD, RN, from her letter, which was written by Margarita Farrington, RN, director of the PBBH School of Nursing in 1963. “While hospitalization is shorter, medical problems are more serious, with many very ill patients to care for,” said Somerville. “Was she here last week?” she added, with a smile.
Many letters contained predictions about what medicine would be like in 2013. “The next 50 years will undoubtedly see transplantation extended beyond kidneys and livers,” wrote PBBH Director F. Lloyd Mussells, MD, foreshadowing BWH’s future position as a global leader in cutting-edge transplantation surgery.
The reception in Cabot Atrium featured BWH’s largest cake to-date. (See photos and sidebar on page 4.) Approximately 1,000 BWHers stopped by for a slice, as well as to browse an exhibit of historic hospital artifacts arranged by archivist Catherine Pate and Director of Medical Library & Educational Services Anne Fladger.
A new exhibit across from the Shop on the Pike showcases the contents of the time capsule, and videos of today’s hospital leaders reading their letters can be found at brighamandwomens.org/online/blueprint/time-capsule.aspx.
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