The development of pediatric critical care medicine at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia: an interview with Dr. John J. 'Jack' Downes.

Abstract

Dr. John J. 'Jack' Downes (1930-), the anesthesiologist-in-chief at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (1972-1996), has made numerous contributions to pediatric anesthesia and critical care medicine through a broad spectrum of research on chronic respiratory failure, status asthmaticus, postoperative risks of apnea in premature infants, and home-assisted mechanical ventilation. However, his defining moment was in January 1967, when The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia inaugurated its pediatric intensive care unit--the first of its kind in North America. During his tenure, he and his colleagues trained an entire generation of pediatric anesthesiologists and intensivists and set a standard of care and professionalism that continues to the present day. Based on an interview with Dr. Downes, this article reviews a career that advanced pediatric anesthesia and critical care medicine and describes the development of that first pediatric intensive care unit at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

• Authors: Christine L Mai, Mark S Schreiner, Paul G Firth, Myron Yaster
• Journal: Paediatric anaesthesia (Paediatr Anaesth) Vol. 23 Issue 7 Pg. 655-64 (Jul 2013) ISSN: 1460-9592 [Electronic] France
• PMID: 23679061 (Publication Type: Biography, Historical Article, Interview)
• Copyright: © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Topics

• Anesthesiology (history)
• Child
• Critical Care (history)
• History, 20th Century
• Hospitals, Pediatric (history)
• Humans
• Pediatrics (history)
• Philadelphia