Interesting facts about charles drew
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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 (1904–1950) was a gifted young athlete who earned a bachelor’s degree at Amherst College in Massachusetts, where he was 1 of only 13 African Americans in a student population of 600. From Amherst he enrolled at McGill University in Montreal, receiving his medical and surgical degrees in 1933.
While doing his residency at Montreal Hospital (1933–1935), Drew became interested in the science and medicine of blood transfusions. In 1935 he joined the faculty of the Howard University College of Medicine and then the surgical staff at Freedmen’s Hospital, which was affiliated with Howard. In 1938 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 he engaged in a project to create an experimental blood bank unde
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Charles Drew
(1904-1950)
Who Was Charles Drew?
Charles Richard Drew was an African American physician who developed ways to process and store blood plasma in "blood banks." He directed the blood plasma programs of the United States and Great Britain in World War II, but resigned after a ruling that the blood of African Americans would be segregated. He died on April 1, 1950.
Family & Early Life
A pioneering African American medical researcher, Dr. Charles R. Drew made some groundbreaking discoveries in the storage and processing of blood for transfusions. He also managed two of the largest blood banks during World War II.
Drew grew up in Washington, D.C. as the oldest son of a carpet layer. In his youth, Drew showed great athletic talent. He won several medals for swimming in his elementary years, and later branched out to football, basketball and other sports. After graduating from Dunbar High School in 1922, Drew went to Amherst College on a sports scholarship. There, he distinguished himself on the track and football teams.
Education
Drew completed hi
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Charles R. Drew
American surgeon and medical researcher (1904–1950)
This article is about the medical researcher. For other people, see Charles Drew (disambiguation).
Charles Richard Drew (June 3, 1904 – April 1, 1950) 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 1950.[2]
Early life and education
Drew was born in 1904 into an African-American middle-class family in Washington, D.C.[3] His father, Richard, was a carpet layer[4] and his mother, Nora Burrell, trained as a teacher.[5] Drew and
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