Patricia Bath
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Patricia Era Bath (November 4, 1942 – May 30, 2019) was an American
ophthalmologist Ophthalmology (, ) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of eye diseases and disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a ...
and humanitarian. She became the first female member of the
Jules Stein Eye Institute The Jules Stein Eye Institute, founded by MCA founder Jules Stein, functions as the department of ophthalmology for the UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, Cal ...
, the first woman to lead a post-graduate training program in
ophthalmology Ophthalmology (, ) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of eye diseases and disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a ...
, and the first woman elected to the honorary staff of the
UCLA Medical Center Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center (also commonly referred to as UCLA Medical Center, RRMC or Ronald Reagan) is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, United S ...
. Bath was the first African-American to serve as a resident in ophthalmology at
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 ...
. She was also the first African-American woman to serve on staff as a surgeon at the UCLA Medical Center. Bath was the first African-American woman doctor to receive a
patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...
for a medical purpose. A holder of five patents,Patricia E. Bath
Google patent search. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
She founded the non-profit American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness in Washington, D.C.


Early life

Born in 1942, in
Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...
, New York, Patricia Bath was the daughter of Rupert and Gladys Bath. Her father was an immigrant from
Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...
, a newspaper columnist, a merchant seaman and the first black man to work for the
New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in New York City serving the New York City boroughs, boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Tr ...
as a motorman. Her father inspired her love for culture and encouraged her to explore different cultures. Her mother was descended from
African slaves Slavery has historically been widespread in Africa. Systems of servitude and slavery were once commonplace in parts of Africa, as they were in much of the rest of the ancient and medieval world. When the trans-Saharan slave trade, Red Sea sl ...
and
Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...
Native Americans. Throughout her childhood, Bath was often told by her parents to "never settle for less than erbest" and had been encouraged by their support of her education. Her mother, encouraging her dreams and love of science, had bought her her first chemistry set. By the time she had reached high school, Bath was already a
National Science Foundation The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an Independent agencies of the United States government#Examples of independent agencies, independent agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that su ...
scholar. This led to her cancer research earning a front-page feature in the '' New York Times''. Patricia and her brother attended Charles Evans Hughes High School where both students excelled in science and math. Inspired by the French
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...
laureate
Albert Schweitzer Ludwig Philipp Albert Schweitzer (; 14 January 1875 – 4 September 1965) was a German and French polymath from Alsace. He was a theologian, organist, musicologist, writer, humanitarian, philosopher, and physician. As a Lutheran minister, ...
's work in medicine, Bath applied for and won a
National Science Foundation The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an Independent agencies of the United States government#Examples of independent agencies, independent agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that su ...
Scholarship while attending high school; this led her to a research project at
Yeshiva University Yeshiva University is a Private university, private Modern Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish university with four campuses in New York City.
and
Harlem Hospital Center Harlem Hospital Center, branded as NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem, is a 282-bed, public teaching hospital affiliated with Columbia University. It is located at 506 Lenox Avenue in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City and was founded on April 18, 1887. ...
studying connections between cancer, nutrition, and stress. In this summer program, led by Rabbi Moses D. Tendler, Bath had studied the effects of
streptomycin Streptomycin is an antibiotic medication used to treat a number of bacterial infections, including tuberculosis, Mycobacterium avium complex, ''Mycobacterium avium'' complex, endocarditis, brucellosis, Burkholderia infection, ''Burkholderia'' i ...
residue on bacteria. Through this, she was able to conclude that cancer, itself, was a
catabolic Catabolism () is the set of metabolic pathways that breaks down molecules into smaller units that are either oxidized to release energy or used in other anabolic reactions. Catabolism breaks down large molecules (such as polysaccharides, lipi ...
disease and tumor growth was a symptom. She had also discovered a mathematical equation that could be used to predict cancer cell growth. The head of the research program realized the significance of her findings and published them in a scientific paper. Her discoveries were also shared at the International Fifth Congress of Nutrition in the fall of 1960. In 1960, at the age of eighteen years old, Bath won a "Merit Award" from '' Mademoiselle'' magazine for her contribution to the project. Bath received her Bachelor of Arts in
chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...
from Manhattan's
Hunter College Hunter College is a public university in New York City, United States. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools ...
in 1964. She then relocated to Washington, D.C. to attend
Howard University College of Medicine The Howard University College of Medicine (HUCM) is an academic division of Howard University that grants the Doctor of Medicine (M.D.), Ph.D., M.S., and the M.PH. HUCM is located at the Howard University Health Sciences Center in Washington, D ...
. Her first year at Howard coincided with the
Civil Rights Act of 1964 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and United States labor law, labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on Race (human categorization), race, Person of color, color, religion, sex, and nationa ...
. She co-founded the Student National Medical Association and became its first woman president in 1965. At Howard, she was awarded a Children's Bureau National Government Fellowship Award to do research in
Belgrade, Yugoslavia Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. The population of the Belgrade metropolitan area is 1,685, ...
, in the summer of 1967, where her research focused on
pediatric surgery Pediatric surgery is a subspecialty of surgery involving the surgery of fetuses, infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. History Pediatric surgery arose in the middle of the 1879 century as the surgical care of birth defects required ...
. The highlight of the award ceremony was the meeting of
Earl Warren Earl Warren (March 19, 1891 – July 9, 1974) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 30th governor of California from 1943 to 1953 and as the 14th Chief Justice of the United States from 1953 to 1969. The Warren Court presid ...
, chief justice of the
United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
, at the US Embassy in Belgrade. Bath graduated with honors from Howard University College of Medicine in 1968. She was awarded the Edwin Watson Prize for Excellence in Ophthalmology by her mentor, Lois A. Young. The assassination of
Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...
, in 1968, caused Bath to dedicate herself to achieving one of the dreams of King, namely the empowerment of people through the
Poor People's Campaign The Poor People's Campaign, or Poor People's March on Washington, was a 1968 effort to gain economic justice for poor people in the United States. It was organized by Martin Luther King Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SC ...
. She organized and led Howard University medical students in providing volunteer healthcare services to the Poor People's Campaign in Resurrection City in the summer of 1968. Bath returned to her Harlem community and
interned Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...
at
Harlem Hospital Center Harlem Hospital Center, branded as NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem, is a 282-bed, public teaching hospital affiliated with Columbia University. It is located at 506 Lenox Avenue in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City and was founded on April 18, 1887. ...
, which had just become affiliated with
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons The Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons (officially known as Columbia University Roy and Diana Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons) is the medical school of Columbia University, located at the Columbia University Irvin ...
. During her internship, she observed large proportions of blind patients at Harlem Hospital in comparison to patients at the Columbia University Eye Clinic. Before beginning her ophthalmology residency study at NYU in 1970, Bath was awarded a one-year fellowship from Columbia University to study and contribute to eye care services at Harlem Hospital. She began collecting data on blindness and visual impairment at Harlem Hospital, which did not have any ophthalmologists on staff. Her data and passion for improvement persuaded her professors from Columbia to begin operating on blind patients, without charge, at Harlem Hospital Center. Bath was proud to be on the Columbia team that performed the first eye surgery at Harlem Hospital in November 1969. Bath served her residency in
ophthalmology Ophthalmology (, ) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of eye diseases and disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a ...
at
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 ...
, from 1970 to 1973, the first African American to do so. She gave birth to her daughter, Eraka, in 1972.


Career

After completing her residency at New York University, Bath began a Corneal fellowship program at
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
, which focused on
corneal transplantation Corneal transplantation, also known as corneal grafting, is a surgical procedure where a damaged or diseased cornea is replaced by donated corneal tissue (the graft). When the entire cornea is replaced it is known as penetrating keratoplasty a ...
and
keratoprosthesis Keratoprosthesis is a surgical procedure where a diseased cornea is replaced with an artificial cornea. Traditionally, keratoprosthesis is recommended after a person has had a failure of one or more donor corneal transplants. More recently, a les ...
surgery (1973 to 1974). While a fellow, she was recruited by both the
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...
Jules Stein Eye Institute The Jules Stein Eye Institute, founded by MCA founder Jules Stein, functions as the department of ophthalmology for the UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, Cal ...
and Charles R. Drew University to co-found an ophthalmology residency program at Martin Luther King, Jr. Hospital. She then began her career in Los Angeles, becoming the first woman ophthalmologist on the faculty at
Jules Stein Eye Institute The Jules Stein Eye Institute, founded by MCA founder Jules Stein, functions as the department of ophthalmology for the UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, Cal ...
at UCLA. When asked who her mentor was, Bath responded by saying her relationship with family physician Cecil Marquez inspired her to pursue this specific career. She was appointed assistant chief of the King-Drew-UCLA Ophthalmology Residency Program in 1974 and was appointed chief in 1983. At both institutions, Bath rose to the rank of associate professor. At UCLA, she founded the Ophthalmic Assistant Training Program (OATP) in 1978. The graduates of the OATP are key personnel to provide screening, health education, and support for blindness prevention strategies. While at UCLA Jules Stein Eye Institute, Bath established the
Keratoprosthesis Keratoprosthesis is a surgical procedure where a diseased cornea is replaced with an artificial cornea. Traditionally, keratoprosthesis is recommended after a person has had a failure of one or more donor corneal transplants. More recently, a les ...
Program to provide advanced surgical treatment for blind patients. The program continues today as the KPRO and thousands of patients have had their eyesight restored with this innovative technology. Based on her research and achievements with keratoprosthesis, Bath was chosen to lead the first national keratoprosthesis study in 1983. In 1983, Bath was appointed Chair of the KING-DREW-UCLA Ophthalmology Residency Program, becoming the first woman in the US to head an ophthalmology residency program. While at UCLA, Bath had wanted to pursue research, though being denied the grants and resources by the National Institutes of Health and the National Eye Institute. It was then she had decided to look further for the best laboratories in the world, to support her plans for innovation in the world of ophthalmology. In 1986, Bath elected to take a
sabbatical A sabbatical (from the Hebrew: (i.e., Sabbath); in Latin ; Greek: ) is a rest or break from work; "an extended period of time intentionally spent on something that’s not your routine job." The concept of the sabbatical is based on the Bi ...
from clinical and administrative responsibilities and concentrate on research. She resigned her position as chair of ophthalmology and followed her research pursuits as visiting professor at centers of excellence in France, England and Germany. In France, she served as a visiting professor at the Rothschilde Eye Institute of Paris with Director, Daniele Aron-Rosa. In England, she served as a visiting professor with Professor Emmony at the Loughborough Institute of Technology. In Germany, she served as a visiting professor at the University of Free Berlin and the laser medical center. In 1993, Bath retired from UCLA, which subsequently elected her the first woman on its honorary staff. Bath served as a professor of ophthalmology at Howard University's School of Medicine and as a professor of telemedicine and ophthalmology at St. Georges University ophthalmology training program. Being a strong advocate for telemedicine, Bath had supported the innovation of virtual labs, as a part of the curriculum in ophthalmology residency training programs, to provide surgeons with more realistic experience, made possible by
3D imaging In computer vision and computer graphics, 3D reconstruction is the process of capturing the shape and appearance of real objects. This process can be accomplished either by active or passive methods. If the model is allowed to change its shape i ...
. In an article written by Bath, in the Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, she proved that with better training and supervision in residency programs, students were able to achieve better results in their surgeries, leading to greater visual acuity. Bath lectured internationally and authored over 100 papers.


Blindness studies and community ophthalmology

Based on her observations at Harlem Hospital, Bath published the first scientific paper showing the higher prevalence of blindness among Blacks. Bath also found that African American people had an eight times higher prevalence of
glaucoma Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that can lead to damage of the optic nerve. The optic nerve transmits visual information from the eye to the brain. Glaucoma may cause vision loss if left untreated. It has been called the "silent thief of ...
as a cause of blindness. Based on her research, Bath pioneered the discipline of
community ophthalmology Community ophthalmology was described as a new discipline in medicine promoting eye health and Visual impairment, blindness prevention through programs utilizing methodologies of public health, community medicine, and ophthalmology in 1978. This new ...
in 1976"U.S. Ophthalmologist, Dr. Patricia E. Bath first defined the term community ophthalmology in her 1976 presentation to the American Public Health Association meeting in Miami, Florida." Source: Logan D. A. Williams, "Introduction", ''Eradicating Blindness: Global Health Innovation from South Asia,'' Springer, August 20, 2018, p. 9. After observations of epidemics rates of preventable blindness among under-served populations in urban areas in the US as well as under-served populations in third-world countries. Community ophthalmology was described as a new discipline in medicine promoting eye health and blindness prevention through programs using methodologies of
public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the de ...
,
community medicine Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the de ...
and
ophthalmology Ophthalmology (, ) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of eye diseases and disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a ...
to bring necessary eye care to under-served populations.


Humanitarian work

Bath's main humanitarian efforts are at the American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness(AIPB). Co-founded in 1976 with Alfred Cannon, an American psychiatrist and community organizer, and Aaron Ifekwunigwe, a Nigerian-born pediatrician and human rights advocate, the organization was created on the principle that "eyesight was a basic human right." Through this organization, Bath spreads eye care worldwide by providing newborns with free eye drops, vitamins, and vaccinations against diseases that can cause blindness, including
measles Measles (probably from Middle Dutch or Middle High German ''masel(e)'', meaning "blemish, blood blister") is a highly contagious, Vaccine-preventable diseases, vaccine-preventable infectious disease caused by Measles morbillivirus, measles v ...
. Bath spent her time as director traveling the world performing surgeries, teaching, and lecturing at colleges. Bath claims her "personal best moment" was while she was in North Africa and using
keratoprosthesis Keratoprosthesis is a surgical procedure where a diseased cornea is replaced with an artificial cornea. Traditionally, keratoprosthesis is recommended after a person has had a failure of one or more donor corneal transplants. More recently, a les ...
, was able to restore the sight of a woman who been blind for over 30 years. With AIPB, Bath traveled to
Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...
in 2005, where cataracts were the main cause of childhood blindness. In Africa, AIPB provided computers and other digital resources for visually impaired students, specifically at the Mwereni School for the Blind in Tanzania and St. Oda School for the Visually Impaired in Kenya. Bath was recognized for her philanthropic work in the field of ophthalmology by President
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
. In 2009 she was on stage with President Obama and was appointed to commission for digital accessibility to blind children. In April 2019, Bath testified in a hearing called the "Trailblazers and Lost Einsteins: Women Inventors and the Future of American Innovation" at the Senate Office Building in Washington D.C. Bath discussed gender disparities in the
STEM Stem or STEM most commonly refers to: * Plant stem, a structural axis of a vascular plant * Stem group * Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics Stem or STEM can also refer to: Language and writing * Word stem, part of a word respon ...
and lack of female inventors.


Inventions

In 1986, Bath conducted research in the laboratory of Danièle Aron-Rosa, a pioneer researcher in lasers and ophthalmology at Rothschild Eye Institute of Paris,American Academy of Ophthalmology
Conversation Between Patricia Bath, MD and Eve Higginbotham, MD
Orlando, FL, October 23, 2011. Retrieved February 24, 2018.
and then at the Laser Medical Center in Berlin, where she was able to begin early studies in laser
cataract surgery Cataract surgery, also called lens replacement surgery, is the removal of the natural lens (anatomy), lens of the human eye, eye that has developed a cataract, an opaque or cloudy area. The eye's natural lens is usually replaced with an artific ...
, including her first experiment with
excimer laser An excimer laser, sometimes more correctly called an exciplex laser, is a form of ultraviolet laser which is commonly used in the production of microelectronic devices, semiconductor based integrated circuits or "chips", eye surgery, and micro ...
photoablation using human eye bank eyes. Bath coined the term "laser phaco" for the process, short for laser photoablative cataract surgery, and developed the laser phaco probe, a medical device that improves on the use of lasers to remove cataracts, and "for ablating and removing cataract lenses". Bath first had the idea for this type of device in 1981, but did not apply for a patent until several years later. The device was completed in 1986 after Bath conducted research on lasers in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
and patented in 1988,Patricia E. Bath
US Patent 4,744,360
''Apparatus for ablating and removing cataract lenses'', issued May 17, 1988 (filed December 18, 1986). Retrieved February 24, 2019,
making her the first African-American woman to receive a patent for a medical purpose. The device — which quickly and nearly painlessly dissolves the
cataract A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens (anatomy), lens of the eye that leads to a visual impairment, decrease in vision of the eye. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colours, blurry or ...
with a
laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word ''laser'' originated as an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radi ...
, irrigates and cleans the eye and permits the easy insertion of a new
lens A lens is a transmissive optical device that focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements'') ...
— is used internationally to treat the disease. Bath continued to improve the device and successfully restored vision to people who had been unable to see for decades. Bath holds five patents in the United States. Three of Bath's five patents relate to the Laserphaco Probe. In 2000, she was granted a patent for a method for using pulsed
ultrasound Ultrasound is sound with frequency, frequencies greater than 20 Hertz, kilohertz. This frequency is the approximate upper audible hearing range, limit of human hearing in healthy young adults. The physical principles of acoustic waves apply ...
to remove cataracts, and in 2003 a patent for combining laser and ultrasound to remove cataracts.


List of U.S. patents

*U.S. patent 4744360,
Apparatus for ablating and removing cataract lenses
, issued May 17, 1988 *U.S. patent 5843071,
Method and apparatus for ablating and removing cataract lenses
issued December 1, 1998 *U.S. patent 5919186,
Laser apparatus for surgery of cataractous lenses
, issued July 6, 1999. *U.S. patent 6083192,
Pulsed ultrasound method for fragmenting/emulsifying and removing cataractous lenses
issued July 4, 2000. *U.S. patent 6544254,
Combination ultrasound and laser method and apparatus for removing cataract lenses
, issued April 8, 2003.


Honors and awards

* 1995:
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (NAACP LDF, the Legal Defense Fund, or LDF) is an American civil rights organization and law firm based in New York City. LDF is wholly independent and separate from the NAACP. Although LDF ca ...
's Black Woman of Achievement Award *2000: Smithsonian Museum's Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation included her in the Innovative Lives program * 2001:
American Medical Women's Association The American Medical Women's Association (AMWA) is a professional advocacy and educational organization of women physicians and medical students. History The '' Woman's Medical Journal'' began publication in the 1893. As World War I broke out ...
induction into Hall of Fame *2006: Tubman's Sheila Award * 2011: Dr. Bath was interviewed for the American Academy of Ophthalmology's Museum of Vision oral history collection that "preserves the memories and experiences of people whose lives are an inspiration." * 2012: Tribeca Film Festival Disruptive Innovation Award * 2013: Association of Black Women Physicians Lifetime Achievement Award for Ophthalmology Contributions * 2014: Alpha Kappa Alpha Presidential Award for Health and medical Sciences * 2014: Howard University Charter Day Award for Distinguished Achievement in Ophthalmology and Medicine * 2017: Medscape one of 12 "Women Physicians who Changed the Course of American Medicine" * 2017: ''Time Magazine'' "Firsts: Women Who Are Changing the World” for being the first to invent and demonstrate laserphaco cataract surgery * 2017: Hunter College Hall of Fame induction * 2018: New York Academy of Medicine John Stearns Medal for Distinguished Contributions in Clinical Practice, for invention of laserphaco cataract surgery * 2018: Alliance for Aging research: Silver Innovator Award for contributions and research towards blindness prevention *2021, it was announced that she would be one of the first two black women (along with
Marian Croak Marian Rogers Croak (born May 14, 1955) is an African American engineer known for her voice over IP (VoIP) related inventions. Croak worked for three decades at Bell Labs and AT&T where she filed over 200 patents and works at Google since 2014 wh ...
) to be inducted into the
National Inventors Hall of Fame The National Inventors Hall of Fame (NIHF) is an American not-for-profit organization, founded in 1973, which recognizes individual engineers and inventors who hold a US patent of significant technology. Besides the Hall of Fame, it also operate ...
. Dr. Bath had also been a Fellow of the
American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons (ACS) is a professional medical association for surgeons and surgical team members, founded in 1913. It claims more than 90,000 members in 144 countries. History The ACS was founded in 1913 as an outgrowth of ...
from 1976 to 1989, a fellow of the
American Academy of Ophthalmology The American Academy of Ophthalmology is a professional association, professional medical association of ophthalmologists. It is headquartered in San Francisco, California. Its membership of 32,000 medical doctors includes more than 90 percent ...
, as well as a member of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery and the
Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (abbreviated ARVO) is an American learned society dedicated to ophthalmology and other Visual perception, vision-related topics. It is based in Rockville, Maryland, Rockville, Maryland. Ov ...
. Bath has been honored by two of her universities. Hunter College placed her in its "Hall of Fame" in 1988 and Howard University declared her a "Howard University Pioneer in Academic Medicine" in 1993. Several books for young people have been published about her life and work in science, including "Patricia’s Vision: The Doctor Who Saved Sight" by Michelle Lord; "Patricia Bath and Laser Surgery" by Ellen Labrecqua, and "The Doctor with an Eye for Eyes: The Story of Dr. Patricia Bath" by Julia Finley Mosca, which was cited by both the National Science Teachers Association and the Chicago Public Library's list of best children's books of the year. She is also the subject of a short play, "The Prize (about Dr. Patricia Bath)" by Cynthia L. Cooper


See also

*
Timeline of women in science This is a timeline of women in science, spanning from ancient history up to the 21st century. While the timeline primarily focuses on women involved with natural sciences such as astronomy, biology, chemistry and physics, it also includes women f ...
*
List of African-American inventors and scientists This list of African-American inventors and scientists documents many of the African-Americans who have invented a multitude of items or made discoveries in the course of their lives. These have ranged from practical everyday devices to applicati ...
*
List of Alpha Kappa Alpha sisters Alpha Kappa Alpha was the first inter-collegiate Greek alphabet, Greek-letter Fraternities and sororities, sorority established for Black college women. It was founded on January 15, 1908, at Howard University in Washington, D.C., Washington, D.C ...


References

Notes


External links


Laserphaco – Bath's website containing information relevant to the technique

Interview
by the American Academy of Ophthalmology, 2011
American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness
– a nonprofit organization founded by Bath {{DEFAULTSORT:Bath, Patricia 1942 births 2019 deaths People from Harlem 20th-century American inventors 20th-century American women physicians 20th-century American physicians 21st-century American women physicians 21st-century American physicians African-American inventors African-American women physicians American ophthalmologists American people who self-identify as being of Cherokee descent American people of Trinidad and Tobago descent David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA faculty Women vision scientists Fellows of Optica (society) Howard University alumni Hunter College alumni Women in optics American women ophthalmologists American women academics 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American physicians 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American physicians Poor People's Campaign 20th-century American women inventors