Robert Arthur Whitney, Jr. (born July 27, 1935) is an American veterinarian and public health administrator. He served as acting

surgeon general of the United States The surgeon general of the United States is the operational head of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (PHSCC) and thus the leading spokesperson on matters of public health in the federal government of the United States. Th ...

from July to September 1993.

Biography

Whitney was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He received his

Doctor of Veterinary Medicine A veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, vet ...

degree from Oklahoma State University in 1959 and his master's in

pharmacology Pharmacology is a branch of medicine, biology and pharmaceutical sciences concerned with drug or medication action, where a drug may be defined as any artificial, natural, or endogenous (from within the body) molecule which exerts a biochemica ...

from Ohio State University in 1965. A career United States Public Health Service officer, Whitney was appointed deputy surgeon general on September 1, 1992. Since 1971, he held a number of positions of increasing responsibility in the National Institutes of Health. From 1989 to 1992, he was director of the NIH National Center for Research Resources. Prior to joining the PHS, Whitney was director of the U.S. Army training program in laboratory animal medicine and served a year in

South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...

(1970) as commander of a veterinary medical detachment. He retired from the USPHS in 1994, and co-founded "Earthspan", a non-profit organization dedicated to advanced technologies to conserve biodiversity, ecosystems, and environmental health. Whitney served as president of Earthspan, until his retirement in 2008. Whitney is a diplomate of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine and served as chief veterinary officer of the Public Health Service from 1985 to 1989. His awards include the U.S. Public Health Service Distinguished Service Medal and the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

for his US Army service.

References

* 1935 births Living people United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War People from Oklahoma City Oklahoma State University alumni Surgeons General of the United States Recipients of the Public Health Service Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army officers American veterinarians Male veterinarians Ohio State University Graduate School alumni {{Oklahoma-politician-stub