barriers and opened doors for generations of medical professionals; we are eternally grateful for that.
Modern-Day Eliza Ann Grier
Finding a direct modern counterpart may be challenging due to historical context. However, Dr. Regina M. Benjamin, who served as the 18th Surgeon General of the United States from 2009 to 2013, is a notable contemporary figure in the medical field. She has dedicated her career to improving public health, particularly in underserved communities, and her work aligns with the spirit of Eliza Ann Grier’s contributions to healthcare.
After finishing her family medicine residency, Benjamin moved to rural Alabama and started the Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic in 1990, which offers excellent health care to anybody at an affordable price. Benjamin was Bayou La Batre’s lone doctor, and the clinic was the only place most locals could get basic primary care.
Benjamin has worked for decades to keep the Bayou La Batre clinic open against ordinary and exceptional hurdles. After realizing she required business skills to run the clinic, she received an MBA from Tulane University in 1991. She also turned the clinic into a charity, raising money and providing non-medical services like web design. Hurricane Georges in 1998, Katrina in 2005, and a fire in 2006 devastated the facility, but Benjamin rebuilt all three times. Benjamin earned the 2008 MacArthur Foundation “Genius Grant”. She mostly rebuilt the clinic using the grant.
Benjamin was appointed Surgeon General by President Barack Obama in July 2009 and overwhelmingly approved by the Senate that November. Benjamin accepted the position but often criticized her healthcare system for its high expenses and inaccessibility. In early 2010, she wrote “The Surgeon General’s Vision for a Healthy and Fit Nation,” which noted the high rate of obesity in America, particularly in low-income neighborhoods, and offered solutions. She especially encouraged women of color to exercise, which caused controversy.
Benjamin then published “The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Support Breastfeeding”, a lengthy medical study on breastfeeding’s advantages and promotion. Her 2012 last major report as Surgeon General focused on suicide prevention and updated a prior report from 10 years earlier with 60 goals to reduce U.S. suicide rates.
Benjamin returned to the South after leaving Surgeon General in July 2013. Benjamin runs the Bayou La Batre facility and chairs public health sciences at Xavier University of Louisiana.