The Maryland State Medical Society, commonly known as MedChi, a shortened form of the state medical society's full and ancient historic name: "The Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of the State of Maryland" is the
Maryland state-level affiliate of the national body of the
American Medical Association, founded in 1799. It represents the interests of physicians and citizens in the state of Maryland "from unscrupulous and untrained practitioners holding themselves out as health care providers."
"MedChi" has offices in
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...
and
Annapolis
Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...
, the state capital.
History
MedChi was founded in January 1799, in Annapolis by 101 leaders of the medical profession in Maryland, including Dr.
Tobias Watkins
Tobias Watkins (December 12, 1780 – November 14, 1855) was an American physician, editor, writer, educator, and political appointee in the Baltimore-Washington, D.C. area. He played leading roles in early American literary institutions such a ...
and Dr. Ashton Alexander, its first secretary, treasurer, and last surviving charter member. The physicians who started the organization represented most of Maryland's counties. The
Maryland General Assembly approved a petition for a charter for an incorporated society of physicians in Maryland to be known as "The Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of the State of Maryland". ("Chirurgical" was the common spelling of surgical at the time of the 18th Century.)
The society became the seventh of its kind established in the country. In 1882,
Whitfield Winsey Whitfield Winsey (September 1847-July 6, 1919), was the first African American doctor admitted to the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland. Winsey was born to William H. and Malvina Gibbs Winsey of Baltimore. The Winseys were a free African ...
was admitted to the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland, becoming the first African American to do so.
MedChi is composed of 24 component medical societies, plus international medical graduates, residents, and medical students sections.
MedChi's governing body is known as the "House of Delegates" and elects the MedChi president each year. The president of the Society must be a Maryland physician.
[MedChirurgical Faculty bylaws as amended]
Staff
Current MedChi staff includes:
*Gene M. Ransom III - CEO
*Shannon P. Pryor, M.D. - president
*Debra C. Sciabarrasi - COO
*Catherine Johannesen - Chief of Staff
Notable past presidents
*
Richard Sprigg Steuart: (president 1848-49, 1850–51), founder of the
Maryland Hospital for the Insane, now known as Spring Grove Hospital Center, near
Catonsville, Maryland
Catonsville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 41,567 at the 2010 census. The community lies to the west of Baltimore along the city's border. Catonsville contains the majority of th ...
.
*
William H. Welch: (president 1891-92), first dean of the
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore.
* Sir
William Osler: (president 1896-97), first physician-in-chief at the
Johns Hopkins Hospital, described as the "Father of Modern Medicine".
Notes
References
*''Md Med J.'' 1985 Sep;34(9):900-12. "Supporting Maryland physicians: the Med-Chi staff". Lehman E.
*''The Medical Annals of Maryland. 1799-1899''. Prepared for the centennial of the medical and chirurgical faculty. by William Cordell, Eugene Fauntleroy (1843–1913).
External links
"MedChi" websiteNottingham, England medical and chirurgical society
{{Authority control
American Medical Association
1799 establishments in Maryland
Organizations established in 1799