Howard A. Rusk (April 9, 1901 – November 4, 1989) was a prominent American

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

and founder of the

Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine Rusk Rehabilitation is the world's first and among the largest university-affiliated academic centers devoted entirely to inpatient/outpatient care, research, and training in rehabilitation medicine for both adults and pediatric patients. The sys ...

. He is considered to be the founder of

rehabilitation medicine Physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R), also known as physiatry, and outside the United States as physical and rehabilitation medicine (PRM), is a branch of medicine that aims to enhance and restore functional ability and quality of life ...

. Born in

Brookfield, Missouri Brookfield is a city in Linn County, Missouri, United States. The population was 4,111 at the 2020 census. History Brookfield was surveyed in 1859 by John Wood Brooks, a native of Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in t ...

, Rusk was active in the Health for Peace movement in the 1950s and supported US efforts to participate more in rehabilitation medicine in international affairs. He was the first recipient of the Pacem in Terris award of the Pope John Paul II Center of Prayer and Study for Peace.

Education

Rusk graduated from the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...

in 1923 and received his medical degree at Pennsylvania School of Medicine in 1925. He completed his internship at St. Luke's hospital in St. Louis.

Early career

From 1926 to 1942, Rusk practiced

internal medicine Internal medicine, also known as general medicine in Commonwealth nations, is a medical specialty for medical doctors focused on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases in adults. Its namesake stems from "treatment of diseases of ...

in St. Louis, becoming a teacher at

Washington University School of Medicine Washington University School of Medicine (WashU Medicine) is the medical school of Washington University in St. Louis, located in the Central West End neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1891, the School of Medicine shares a ca ...

, staff physician at Barnes-Jewish, and chairman of the Intern Committee at St. Luke's, where he had trained as an intern. In 1942, Rusk left his practice to join the

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

. He initially served as chief of medical services at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri. He soon developed a convalescent program for those who had recovered from their illness but were not yet ready to resume their military training. In 1943, Rusk participated on rehabilitation subcommittee of the Baruch Committee on Physical Medicine. Rusk soon went on to establish the first Air Force rehabilitation center, in

Pawling, New York Pawling may refer to: *Pawling (town), New York, in Dutchess County **Pawling (village), New York, in the town of Pawling *** Pawling (Metro-North station), train station for the village **Pawling Nature Reserve, in the northern section of the t ...

, which was to treat airmen returning from battle with physical and psychological disabilities. Rusk described it as "a combination of a hospital, a country club, a school, a farm, a vocational training center, a resort and a little bit of home as well." During the remainder of World War II, a total of 12 such centers were to be opened by the Air Force. With the influence of

Bernard Baruch Bernard Mannes Baruch (August 19, 1870 – June 20, 1965) was an American financier and statesman. After amassing a fortune on the New York Stock Exchange, he impressed President Woodrow Wilson by managing the nation's economic mobilization in W ...

, Rusk convinced President Roosevelt to start rehabilitation programs for all military branches. In 1945, Rusk was part of the American entourage to attend the Potsdam conference. While on this trip, he discussed rehabilitation medicine with General Bradley. Subsequently, he provided consultation to the VA on the organization of a rehabilitation program following the war.

Leadership in rehabilitation

After the war, Rusk unsuccessfully tried to establish a rehabilitation institute within Washington University. Nonetheless, in December 1945 Rusk moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, accepting an offer from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

to establish a department of Rehabilitation and Physical Medicine. He also accepted an offer, extended by

Arthur Hays Sulzberger Arthur Hays Sulzberger (September 12, 1891December 11, 1968) was publisher of ''The New York Times'' from 1935 to 1961. During that time, daily circulation rose from 465,000 to 713,000 and Sunday circulation from 745,000 to 1.4 million; the staff ...

, to work for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' as a weekly medical columnist. In 1947, Rusk joined with George Deaver, another pioneer of rehabilitation medicine, to establish a rehabilitation center at

Bellevue Hospital Bellevue Hospital (officially NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue and formerly known as Bellevue Hospital Center) is a hospital in New York City and the oldest public hospital in the United States. One of the largest hospitals in the United States ...

, the first of its kind for civilians. In 1951, Rusk founded the Institute of Medical Rehabilitation at New York University, at which he served for 33 years. The American Legion lists Rusk as having the nickname "Dr. Live-Again".

Legacy

* In 1950, Rusk founded the Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation,

New York University Medical Center NYU Langone Health is an integrated academic health system located in New York City, New York, United States. The health system consists of the NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine, both part of New Y ...

. The Institute was later renamed Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine and in 1984, NYU honored Rusk and renamed it Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine. * In 1952, Rusk received the Albert Lasker Public Service Award (today, it is Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award) with G. Brock Chisholm * In 1954, Rusk was elected as the President of the American-Korean Foundation. * In 1955, Rusk founded the World Rehabilitation Fund. * In 1964,

Soong Mei-ling Soong Mei-ling (also spelled Soong May-ling; March 4, 1898 – October 23, 2003), also known as Madame Chiang (), was a Chinese political figure and socialite. The youngest of the Soong sisters, she married Chiang Kai-shek and played a prom ...

, also known as Madame Chiang Kai-shek, sent a private airplane for Rusk and four other rehabilitation experts to visit Taiwan. Three years later, Cheng Hsin Rehabilitation Medical Center, specialized in

poliomyelitis Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

(often called polio or infantile paralysis), was established in 1967. * Rusk's autobiography ''A World To Care For: The Autobiography of Howard A. Rusk, M.D.'' was published in 1972. * In 1977, Rusk received the Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged, an award given out annually by

Jefferson Awards The Jefferson Awards Foundation was created in 1972 by the American Institute for Public Service. The Jefferson Awards are given at both local and national levels. Local winners are ordinary people who do extraordinary things without expectatio ...

. * NYU Langone Health’s Rusk Rehabilitation is named after him.

References

External links

* Cheng Hsin Rehabilitation Medical Center (Taiwan) 財團法人振興復健醫學中心醫院 :zh:財團法人振興復健醫學中心醫院 * (''

Longines Chronoscope ''Longines Chronoscope'', also titled ''Chronoscope'', is an American TV series, sponsored by Longines watches, that ran on CBS Television from 1951–1955. The series aired Monday nights at 11 p.m. ET to 11:15 p.m., and expanded to Mondays, ...

'', 9 November 1953) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rusk, Howard A. American rehabilitation physicians 1989 deaths 1901 births People from Brookfield, Missouri Washington University School of Medicine faculty University of Missouri alumni Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania alumni