Margaret Ann Storkan (September 1, 1919 – December 3, 2000) was an American dermatologist who was clinical professor of dermatology at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

. She was particularly known for her work on the sailings of the hospital ship SS ''Hope'' to the developing world and for her

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve damag ...

clinic in California. She graduated in medicine from

Creighton University School of Medicine The Creighton University School of Medicine is the graduate medical school at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, United States, and grants the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree. It was founded in 1892. A new satellite campus opened in 2012 at S ...

in 1944, before working her way to professorship and a busy dermatology clinic at Redondo Beach. In addition, she was a co-founder of The History of Dermatology Society, the first woman vice-president of the

American Academy of Dermatology The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) is a non-profit professional organization of dermatologists in the United States and Canada, based in Rosemont, Illinois, near Chicago. It was founded in 1938 and has more than 20,500 members. The Academy ...

(AAD), and the second woman to be elected to the AAD board of directors.

Early life

Margaret Storkan was born on September 1, 1919. She studied at the Creighton University School of Medicine, qualifying MD in 1944, and trained in dermatology at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

and the

(USC).

Career

Storkan was clinical professor of dermatology at USC and ran a busy clinic in Redondo Beach, California. Between 1962 and 1972, she took seven trips on the SS ''Hope'' ("Health Opportunity for People Everywhere") where she was the only dermatologist. The ship called on countries in the developing world and Storkan's job was to pass on the latest developments in dermatology to local doctors. She initiated the painting of the wards at the leprosarium. Ashore, she ran a

clinic for USC in San Pedro. She was one of the founders of The History of Dermatology Society in 1973 and in the same year was the first woman vice-president of the

(AAD). She was the second woman to be elected to the AAD board of directors, serving from 1971 to 1973.

Death and legacy

Storkan died at her home in Redondo Beach, on December 3, 2000.

Selected publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Storkan, Margaret 1919 births 2000 deaths American dermatologists University of Southern California faculty 20th-century American women physicians 20th-century American physicians Leprosy researchers Creighton University alumni American women academics