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 Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

state-level affiliate of the national body of the

American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is an American professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. This medical association was founded in 1847 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was 271,660 ...

, 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 is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

and

Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. 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 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 The Maryland General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland that convenes within the State House in Annapolis. It is a bicameral body: the upper chamber, the Maryland Senate, has 47 representatives, and the lower ...

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 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, Baltimore County, Maryland. The population was 44,701 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 US Census. The community is a streetcar suburb of Baltimore along the cit ...

. *

William H. Welch William Henry Welch (April 8, 1850 – April 30, 1934) was an American physician, pathologist, bacteriologist, and medical-school administrator. He was one of the "Big Four" founding professors at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.Johns Hopkins School of Medicine The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (JHUSOM) is the medical school of Johns Hopkins University, a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Established in 1893 following the construction of the Johns Hopkins Hospital, th ...

in Baltimore. * Sir

William Osler Sir William Osler, 1st Baronet, (; July 12, 1849 – December 29, 1919) was a Canadian physician and one of the "Big Four" founding professors of Johns Hopkins Hospital. Osler created the first Residency (medicine), residency program for speci ...

: (president 1896-97), first physician-in-chief at the

Johns Hopkins Hospital Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH) is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1889, Johns Hopkins Hospital and its school of medicine are considered to be the foundin ...

, 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