Frontier Physician: The Life and Legacy of Dr. C. Earl Albrecht

This book chronicles the life and legacy of a caring, vigilant doctor who ranks among Alaska's great leaders. Young Dr. C. Earl Albrecht arrived in Alaska during the Great Depression, the sole physician to a remote colony of impoverished farm families. At the Palmer colony he delivered babies, treated diseases, performed emergency surgery, built a new hospital, then raised money to keep the hospital open. He became Alaska's first full-time commissioner of health under territorial Gov. Gruening. Deeply concerned about the health of Alaska's Natives, he all but eradicated T.B. in the Bush, created programs to teach nutrition and sanitation in rural villages, and won the right for Natives to be treated at Alaska hospitals. He helped found The International Union for Circumpolar Health in 1967. A great man - I'm glad that I read this fine biography.