As a freshman at the Darnell-Cookman Middle/High School of Medical Arts, in Jacksonville, Florida, Tony Hansberry II had already come up with a surgical technique that may help surgeons reduce the risk of complications when performing surgical operations.
Tony’s technique, called the “Hansberry Stitch” improved how the top of the vagina (the vaginal cuff) is sutured after a hysterectomy which can reduce surgery time, pain and complications for the 600,000 women annually. In fact, his new technique will allow surgeons to complete their operations by stitching the patients back up after having a hysterectomy in one third of the time that it would normally take them. Physicians at The University of Florida invited Tony to present his project alongside theirs during a medical education event and to teach the others his technique.
That's right, and he was only 14.
The young medical genius, Tony Hansberry II, reviewed various techniques of several surgeries, including hysterectomies and the instruments to perform these operations. He came up with a novel idea to be used when stitching back up the patients. The idea will help surgeons, especially those with fewer surgeries under their belt.
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Hansberry came up with this idea back in 2009, when he was still a student at the Florida school.
"I'm the type of person who always wanted to be in medicine," confesses Hansberry. "I love the idea of becoming a trauma surgeon."
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The young medical genius, who was encouraged to take up advanced classes in medicine at the Darnell-Cookman school, said that he came up with the idea because he wanted to help the patients and the surgeons. He added that his ambition was to become a well respected and competent neurosurgeon.
Hansberry came up with the idea to help surgeons and patients alike when he was studying at Shands Hospital, Jacksonville, while enrolled at the University of Florida’s Center for Simulation Education and Safety Research. He perfected his technique by practicing on a medical dummy.
According to Angela Tenbroeck, lead medical teacher at the University of Florida, Hansberry was far advanced compared to his classmates, when it comes to surgical techniques. She stated that he was on par with a first-year medical student at any university and was proud to have him as a member of her school.
Now 22, Hansberry studied chemistry at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University. He hopes to become a surgeon someday, and make a difference in the lives of others.
“That’s what I love about the idea of medicine: the fact that you can change so many lives with just your hands” Tony said.
But get this Tony isn't alone, he has a twin brother, Tyler, who is just as smart!
While Tony studied chemistry at FAMU, Tyler, fond of Dr. Robert Bullard, the “father of environmental justice,” studied environmental science. Tyler believes Dr. Bullard’s “work to progress the environmental justice movement for blacks and low-income communities has been a great leap for humanity globally.”
Tyler earned multiple scholarships, most notably one from The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and The Florida-Georgia Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation, an organization that partners with the National Science Foundation (NSF) to significantly increase the numbers of baccalaureate, master’s degree and Ph.D. recipients in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). In addition, Tony juggled his roles as a member of his school’s Green Coalition, Senator then Attorney General for the Student Government Association, and Committee and Bylaws Chairman for his fraternity Kappa Alpha Psi, while being a Dean’s List Scholar.
Both Tyler and Tony graduated from Florida A&M with their bachelor’s degrees in 2016. The brothers are now planning to continue their academic journey in graduate school. Tony plans to pursue medicine with a specialization in trauma surgery and Tyler plans to focus his master’s studies on environmental policy and management and has his eyes set on a dual degree J.D./Ph.D. program in environmental science and law at the University of Miami for the fall of 2018.
