C. Henry Kempe (birth name Karl Heinz Kempe; April 6, 1922 in
Breslau, Germany (now Wrocław, Poland) – March 3, 1984 in
Hanauma Bay, Hawaii) was an American
pediatrician and the first in the medical community to identify and recognize
child abuse.
In 1962, Kempe and his colleagues, including Brandt F. Steele and
Henry Silver, published the paper "The Battered-Child Syndrome", which led to the identification and recognition by the medical community of child abuse. This syndrome has since been discredited by medical science and shows the problems when medical doctors are tasked with law enforcement resulting in overturned convictions and innocent people being incarcerated.
Kempe received two nominations for the
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
: the first nomination was for his work in developing a safer
smallpox vaccine
The smallpox vaccine is the first vaccine to be developed against a contagious disease. In 1796, British physician Edward Jenner demonstrated that an infection with the relatively mild cowpox virus conferred immunity against the deadly smallpox ...
; the second was recognition for his contribution to the prevention and treatment of child abuse. Due to the efforts of Kempe, abuse reporting laws exist in all 50 US states. His efforts also led to the passage of the 1972 Colorado law requiring legal counsel for the child in all cases of suspected abuse.
Early life
Born into a Jewish family in Germany during the rise of the Nazi party, Kempe fled Germany as a teenager and came to the United States of America. He learned a new language, completed high school and college, and eventually became a physician. Specializing in the study of
virology
Virology is the scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host cells for reproduction, th ...
, he helped develop
Vaccinia immune globulin Vaccinia immune globulin (VIG) is made from the pooled blood of individuals who have been inoculated with the smallpox vaccine. The antibodies these individuals developed in response to the smallpox vaccine are removed and purified. This results in ...
to counter the adverse effects of the
smallpox vaccine
The smallpox vaccine is the first vaccine to be developed against a contagious disease. In 1796, British physician Edward Jenner demonstrated that an infection with the relatively mild cowpox virus conferred immunity against the deadly smallpox ...
.
Kempe became the youngest chairman of the pediatrics department at the
University of Colorado
The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University o ...
. During his tenure, he began to recognize the prevalence of non-accidental injuries to children. He demanded a better diagnostic investigation of the unexplained and life-threatening injuries observed in children at four different hospital emergency rooms: shattered bones, inflicted burns, and brain damage.
His research led to the publication of "The Battered-Child Syndrome".
Career
Kempe Center
Kempe, his colleagues and wife
Ruth Kempe founded The Kempe Center, originally the National Center for the Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect,
in 1972 to prevent and treat child abuse and neglect.
In 1976, The Kempe Foundation was established to spearhead fundraising, awareness and advocacy efforts for children.
The Kempe Center and The Kempe Foundation are currently located at The Gary Pavilion at
Children's Hospital (Aurora, Colorado).
The C. Henry Kempe Award
First awarded in 1985,
The Kempe Award is presented to professionals and philanthropists who have contributed substantially to the community on behalf of children and who have creatively fought the war against child abuse. The award is given every two years by ISPCAN, The International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, to an outstanding young professional or organization working in any discipline in the field of child abuse and neglect.
Awards
* 1959 -
E. Mead Johnson Award
Personal
Kempe met his future wife Ruth Svibergson while they were both in
residency
Residency may refer to:
* Domicile (law), the act of establishing or maintaining a residence in a given place
** Permanent residency, indefinite residence within a country despite not having citizenship
* Residency (medicine), a stage of postgra ...
at Yale and they married in 1948. Ruth, who was also later a professor at CU, and Henry had five daughters. Ruth and Henry were co-authors of several books, including ''Healthy Babies; Happy Parents''.
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See also
* Child abuse
* Neglect
In the context of caregiving, neglect is a form of abuse where the perpetrator, who is responsible for caring for someone who is unable to care for themselves, fails to do so. It can be a result of carelessness, indifference, or unwillingness an ...
Footnotes
External links
Kempe Center
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kempe, C. Henry
1922 births
1984 deaths
20th-century American physicians
American pediatricians
American virologists
Child abuse
German emigrants to the United States
University of Colorado faculty
Members of the National Academy of Medicine