Medicine and Health Care

For reference queries contact Grenander Department Reference staff or (518) 437-3935

ACT-UP, ALBANY (N.Y.) CHAPTER
Records, 1983-1992 (APAP-106)
The collection documents the activities of ACT-UP, Albany (N.Y.) Chapter, and other chapters from its creation in 1987 to 1992. In March 1987, ACT-UP, AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power, was formed in New York City by a group of people as a diverse, nonpartisan organization of individuals united in anger and committed to ending the AIDS crisis. ACT-UP is a national and international nonpartisan activist group whose mission is to fight for "an end to the AIDS crisis." The collection consists of administrative files such as handbooks for activists, activism in various chapters, the AIDS Curriculum Lesson for the City of Albany, AIDS education and preventive guides and programs, correspondence, minutes, and papers of the Health Systems Agency of Northeastern New York, Inc., from 1990 to 1991. It also includes several legal documents related to human rights, penal law, and public health law, and meeting notes. The strengths of this collection are the posters, fliers, and other activism material from ACT-UP chapters.

BLUMENTHAL, FRITZ (1913-2002), physician, painter, printmaker
Papers, 1922-2002, 7 cubic ft. (GER-115)
Family and personal documents; correspondence, 1930-1996; clippings; manuscripts and typescripts of poetry, as well as published poems; sketchbooks; correspondence and clippings concerning exhibitions of Blumenthal's art (water colors and monotypes); materials and correspondence on radioactive fallout from the 1950s and 1960s. Fritz Blumenthal came to the U.S. in 1938 after having received his Doctor of Medicine degree in 1937 from the University of Bern, Switzerland. Although Blumenthal remained a practicing physician, he continued to write poetry, paint and produce monoprints and his work was exhibited throughout the U.S. and Europe during his lifetime.

BROWN, PATRICIA
Papers, 1970–2000, 2 cubic ft. (APAP–203)
Patricia Brown was the first science faculty member at Siena College and a co-founder of Capital Region Action Against Breast Cancer! -- a grassroots organization committed to making the eradication of breast cancer a priority through education and advocacy, to empowering women and men to participate fully in decisions relating to breast cancer, and to promoting and focusing research into the causes, prevention, treatment, and cure of breast cancer.

CAPITAL AREA COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
Records, 1941–2002, 9 cubic ft. (APAP–129)
The Capital Area Council of Churches (CACC) was founded in 1941. The federation was intended to encompass, absorb, coordinate and extend the community service and ministry functions of several existing organizations. The majority of records in this collection are board minutes (with organizational constitutions, Director's Reports, and some committee minutes) reports, newsletters, administrative files, subject files, and some correspondence. There is also a collection of clippings from local newspapers. Well structured documentation, in the form of meeting minutes, of the formative period of the organization allow for a determination of the principle factors, both human and situational, for the genesis of the CACC. There are numerous sources (minutes, newsletters, annual reports) of the names of individuals and the roles they played in the organization; names, locations, size, relative prosperity and denomination of member congregations; and information pertaining to the other groups, individuals, and organizations which provided services in the Capital District. Many of the records show the degree to which the organization was concerned and involved with issues and events of local, national and international concern including World War II, the anti-Communist fervor, the Civil Rights Movement, the Abortion debate, the evolution of the State University of New York system, urban blight, and fair housing.

CAUCUS ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS AT SUNY, ALBANY CHAPTER
Records, 1970–1976, .17 cubic ft. (UA-XXX)
 The Caucus on Women's Rights at SUNY was organized in Syracuse, New York in June 1970. Includes newsletters, position statements, and other records of the Caucus and the University of Albany chapter. The issues addressed by the Caucus included equal compensation and benefits, affirmative action, parental leave, health and retirement benefits, various student concerns, and part–time employment.

COMMITTEE FOR PROGRESSIVE LEGISLATION
Records, 1950-1993, 1.2 cubic ft. (APAP-123)
The Committee for Progressive Legislation was a group of Unitarian women who raised a liberal religious voice in politics by enlisting other members of the Albany and Schenectady First Unitarian Universalist Societies and working together with other organizations interested in dealing with social problems. The group focused on the repeal of New York State's abortion law and state funds for family planning clinics. Included in the collection are administrative files, records of the group's legislative interests, and research of social issues. Documentation on family planning matters as well as other social welfare issues is abundant in the collection. The numerous news clippings on abortion rights and family planning articles as well as correspondence between chair Kay Dingle and New York State legislators is a strong point of the collection.

COMMUNITY STUDIES, CENTER FOR
Records, 1950–76, 16 ft. (UA–652.4)
Includes a 1951 survey of the ethnic composition of local school districts, 1951; Polio Study Project, 1955–56; memoranda and correspondence, 1953–68; copies of exams, 1961–66; and questionnaires for the ethnic study Project X, 1968; notes on the East Side ghetto and on desegregation in education; dissertation proposals, 1964; and photographs.  The Center was created in 1950 to study education in local school districts.

COMPARATIVE DEVELOPMENT STUDIES CENTER
Records, 1968–79, 20 ft. (UA–680.1)
Correspondence, 1972–83; material on the internship program, 1973–77; survey questionnaires; proposal on solid waste disposal facilities; course syllabi; audio tapes; and material on public affairs programs. Includes background data on three major areas of study: (1) the Legislative Improvement Project, "Legislative Development," 1968–78, with correspondence, conference papers, studies, and bibliographies on legislative development in the United States and developing countries, and audio tapes and computer tapes from 1968–71 on abortion, voting age, and other key issues; (2) "Validity of Our States in Our Federal System," 1972, measuring the relative efficiency of federal and state governmental structures; and (3) "Collective Bargaining Study," 1978, with graphs pertaining to collective bargaining, its causes and effects.  A unit of the Graduate School of Public Affairs, the Comparative Development Studies Center was established in 1970 to engage in research and program activities relating to the concept of development in western was well as emerging nations by focusing research in the fields of Public Administration, Political Science, and Political Economy.

CROSS, VINCENT (APAP-183)
Papers, 1986–1999, .17 cubic ft. (APAP–183)
The collection contains material related to Dr. Anna Perkins, a doctor in Westerlo and the surrounding Hilltowns in New York from the 1920s-1980s. A significant part of the collection is the manuscript produced by Cross about Dr. Perkins.

ELIAS, HANS
Autobiography and reprints, undated, .5 cu ft., (GER-031)
Photocopy of typescript of "Abenteuer in Emigration und Wissenschaft," by Hans Elias, a native of Darmstadt who taught medicine at the University of Chicago since 1950. Also includes reprints of various articles related to Elias' work and interests.

ESTABROOK, ARTHUR H.
Papers, 1910-1943, 3 cubic ft. (APAP-069)
Correspondence, notes, manuscripts, and typescripts from his research on eugenics, public health, and housing. Includes materials pertaining to his research for the book Mongrel Virginians: The Win Tribe, 1923, and on the Jukes family, 1916-1933; public housing in Buffalo, New York, 1943-1947; crippled children in Buffalo, 1936-1947; anti-venereal disease campaign in New York City, 1920-1936; and the Carrie Buck trial in Virginia, a case of sterilization of the feeble-minded, 1924-1927.

FORD, ALVIN
Collection, 1965–1995 (APAP–159)
Alvin Ford was convicted of first-degree murder in Broward County, Florida on December 17, 1974, and sentenced to death on January 6, 1975. He appealed his murder conviction and death sentence to the Supreme Court of Florida, which upheld both in Ford v State (1979). After spending years on death row during which Ford became incompetent, his case eventually was heard by the United States Supreme Court. In Ford v. Wainwright (1986), the Court concluded that the 8th Amendment prohibits the State from inflicting the death penalty on a prisoner who is insane. This collection includes the legal case file created by Ford's legal team during the period 1974-1990.

GLUECKSOHN-WAELSCH, SALOMÉ (1907- ), geneticist
Papers, 1928-1998, 27 cubic ft. (GER-117)
Correspondence; personal documents, including awards, citations, diplomas; grant applications; reviews; publications; National Academy of Science files; conference, seminar and lecture materials; photographs; extensive reprint collection in the field of genetics. Dr. Waelsch received her Ph.D. from the University of Freiburg, Germany in 1932, but was forced to flee Hitler's Germany one year later with her first husband, biochemist Rudolf Schoenheimer. Her first position in the U.S. came in 1936 as a Research Associate at Columbia University, a position she held for nineteen years. Finally, in 1955, she was offered a full-time faculty position in the Department of Genetics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. In 1979, Waelsch was elected to the National Academy of Sciences and in 1993, she was awarded the National Medal of Science.

HUTSCHNECKER, ARNOLD (1898-2000), psychoanalyst, psychotherapist
Papers, 1925-1994, 5 cubic ft.(GER–118)
Correspondence, including copies of letter to and from Richard M. Nixon; publications by Hutschnecker; newspaper clippings; diaries; photographs; Richard Nixon materials, including a copy of Hutschnecker's unpublished typescript, "Richard Nixon: His Rise to Power – His Self Defeat." Arnold Hutschnecker, the author of the bestseller The Will to Live, became Richard Nixon's personal therapist in 1952 and remained his personal friend and consultant through Nixon's years in the White House.

LAQUEUR, GERT (1912- ), pathologist
Papers, 1935-1981, .25 cubic ft.(GER–055)
Documents; photographs; publications.

LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF ALBANY COUNTY
Records, 1938-2001, 31.47 cubic ft. (APAP-128)
The records of the League of Women Voters of Albany County (LWVAC), include material produced by the LWVAC as well as material that was produced by the League of Women Voters of New York State and the League of Women Voters of the United States. The most comprehensive series in the collection is the Administrative Files. There are meeting minutes, annual reports, and Board of Directors lists from 1940-2001. A large portion of the LWVAC collection relates to the two main purposes of the organization: voter service and "study and action." Records relating to voter service include pamphlets with information about candidates and citizen voting rights published by the LWVAC and material used to increase voter participation. Records related to "study and action" include material used by the LWVAC to inform citizens about public policy issues locally, statewide, and nationally. A strength of the LWVAC collection is the amount of material related to various public policy issues and how they affected the local community.

LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF RENSSELAER COUNTY
Records, 1914, 1925, 1939-2000, 11.2 cubic ft. (APAP-103)
The Rensselaer County League of Women Voters was founded by thrity-eight women in October 1939. The first president of the County League was Beulah Bailey Thull (1891-1975), one of Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt's speechwriters at the time. The collection holds information about the history and activities of the LWVRC from 1939 through 2000. The collection includes board and general meeting minutes and agendas, treasurers' reports, the results of various studies conducted by the organization, photographs, videos of workshops and debates and audio tapes of oral histories of former members' participation in the League. The local studies conducted by the League covered such topics as city planning, land use, and other environmental issues in Rensselaer County. The League was especially interested in public health (tuberculosis in particular), children's services, and the county's welfare administration in the 1940s.

LEHR, DAVID (1910- ), pharmacologist
Papers, 1935-2005, 3 cubic ft.(GER–121)
Typescripts and original materials used for Dr. Lehr's autobiographical account, Austria Before and After the Anschluss (1998); correspondence and documentation concerning legal cases; memorabilia of his teacher and mentor Dr. Ernst Peter Pick; documents; newspaper clippings; publications. Dr. Lehr, who emigrated to the U.S. in 1939, was a full-time faculty member of the New York Medical College for 43 years and served as the first Chairman of the Department of Pharmacology for 25 years.

MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION IN NEW YORK STATE
Records, 1879-2001 (APAP-131)
The Mental Health Association in New York State, Inc. (MHANYS) was formed in 1960 (under the initial name New York State Association for Mental Health, Inc.) as a statewide network of community based Mental Health Associations. MHANYS is an affiliate of the National Mental Health Association. The purposes of MHANYS are to promote mental health, to improve care and treatment of persons with mental disabilities, and to help prevent mental illness. MHANYS seeks to fulfill these goals through public education and citizen advocacy. The collection includes records of MHANYS's predecessor organizations, board files, administrative files, publications, project files, and related material.

NECHELES, HEINRICH (1897-1979), physician, and STEPHANIE (1901- )
Autobiography, 1988, 1 volume(GER–068)
Autobiography of Heinrich and Stephanie Necheles: Autobiographical Reminiscenes by Heinrich Necheles and My Life's Journey: Berlin, Chicago, Walnut Creek. A Memoir by Stephanie Necheles, privately published in 1988.

NEW YORK COALITION FOR ALTERNATIVES TO PESTICIDES
Records, 1908–2002, Bulk Dates, 1988-1995, 23.89 cubic ft. (APAP–151)
In 1989, Tracy Frisch, an etymologist who had suffered from pesticide poisoning, formed a non-profit citizens' organization committed to reducing hazardous chemical pesticides use through education and advocacy called the New York Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides (NYCAP). The early issues that NYCAP championed included: safe pest control for schools, hospitals, and public places; reducing work exposure to chemicals; farm worker protection; prevention of groundwater pollution; environmentally sound farming; and strict regulation of pesticides. NYCAP also sought to provide leadership on these issues to other organizations such as parent teacher associations, labor unions, and general environmental groups. This collection documents the activities of NYCAP from its creation in 1989 through 2002. It contains administrative files such as committee and meeting minutes, fundraising campaigns, by-laws, correspondence, annual telemarketing campaigns, grant proposals and funding, invoices, prepaid sales receipts, and technical assistance logs. Mailing and membership lists for NYCAP and some related organizations are also included, along with: state and national legislation; government reports and publications; conference planning, programs, and attendance; information requests, news clippings and journal articles on pesticide-related topics; pesticide fact sheets; brochures and pamphlets; pesticide labels; and copies of newsletters, magazines, journals, and other publications of related groups received through a newsletter exchange.

NEW YORK PUBLIC WELFARE ASSOCIATION
Records, 1928-2000, 10 cubic ft. (APAP-126)
The New York Public Welfare Association, founded in 1870, is a non-profit organization acting as an agency of the public welfare districts of the state in order to establish ways for obtaining the most economical and efficient administration of public assistance. To achieve this goal, the New York Public Welfare Association studies issues of public welfare administration, provides its members with an opportunity to exchange ideas and to benefit by the advice of experts in the field and suggests and develops better ways of providing for those individuals who need public welfare services. From the 1930s through the 1990s, committee meetings were always a focal point and numerous correspondence, minutes of meetings and meeting agendas are maintained which clearly illustrate the evolving nature of public welfare in New York State. The annual conference was crucial to the success of the organization for it allowed public welfare officials the opportunity to meet, share ideas, and collaborate collectively on important issues. As the 1960s and 1970s progressed, issues such as Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security were often discussed in correspondence, meetings, and agendas. In the 1980s and 1990s, correspondence, meetings, and agendas often reflected such topics as welfare fraud, managed care, child support, and related issues.

NEW YORK STATE SOCIETY FOR CLINICAL SOCIAL WORK, INC.
Records, 1977-2005, .33 cubic ft. (APAP–290)
The collection is comprised entirely of the newsletters of the New York State Society for Clinical Social Work, Inc. from 1977 through 2005.

NEW YORK STATE CONFERENCE OF LOCAL MENTAL HYGIENE DIRECTORS RECORDS(APAP-315)
Records, 1950-2009, 36.5 cubic ft. (APAP-315)
The records of the New York State Conference of Local Mental Hygiene Directors trace the development of mental healthcare throughout the state from the early 1950s through the beginning of the twenty-first century. Established in the mid-1970s, the Conference's records include correspondence, memos, meeting minutes, reports, and manuals that chronicle the efforts of mental health professionals as they encourage local, county, and state agencies to provide quality, affordable services for persons living with mental illness, chemical dependency, and/or developmental disability.

NEW YORK STATEWIDE SENIOR ACTION COUNCIL
Records, 1974-2001, 14.05 cubic ft. (APAP-111)
The New York StateWide Senior Action Council records document the issues faced by senior citizens in New York State over the course of almost three decades. The bulk of the records consist of subject files in the areas of health care, Medicare, and social security issues. In addition to topical material, these records document the fundraising activities of the organization and its various sub-groups. Notably included are publications issued by the organization, including the Sentinel newsletter (1992-1996) and the Senior Action newspaper (1977-1991). The bulk of the material, found in the subject files, is useful for documenting issues about which NYSSAC was active. NYSSAC's work with New York state legislators, as well as government and private agencies in advocating for seniors and social justice issues, and their outreach efforts in education and advocacy, are well documented throughout the collection. Records of the activities of Executive Directors Michael Burgess and Bonnie Ray are the most prominent in the collection.

NURSING, SCHOOL OF
Records, 1967–79, 16 ft. (UA–629)
Includes annual reports, 1967–79; minutes, 1969–78; admission materials, 1970–75; course descriptions, syllabi and assignments, 1970–79; a history of the school, 1975; workshop materials, 1975–79; and newspaper clippings and other material about the closing of the school, 1976–79. The School of Nursing opened in 1967 and closed in 1979.

PERSICO, JOSEPH E.
Papers, 1964–1981, 25.09 cubic ft. (APAP–030)
The collection is arranged in three general series. The first contains Persico's public papers, including press releases, transcripts of press conferences, television and radio interviews, and drafts of speeches written by Persico for Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller between 1964 and 1976. This material covers a wide range of topics including mental health and healthcare in New York State. The second series contains the notes, speech and manuscript drafts, news clippings, and memoranda which comprise Persico's private subject files for reference in his writing of The Imperial Rockefeller, material ranging form approximately 1966–1981. The third series contains various writings from 1950s-1990s and personal documents including correspondence, speeches, and other articles.

QUIRINI, HELEN
Papers, 1941-2001, 27.25 cubic ft. (APAP-102)
Helen Quirini worked at General Electric (GE) in Schenectady, New York and was active in the UE and IUE Local 301, the union at the GE plant. The collection documents her activism in labor and coummunity activities including the rights of senior citizens, the need for affordable health care, day care, human rights, the United Way, and other organizations.

ROSENTHAL, DONALD
Papers, 1980-2004, .75 cubic ft. (APAP-202)
Collection includes publications and material from the CDGLCC, some material from other parts of New York State, and other material created by Rosenthal including a copy of a paper regarding AIDS services.

SIROTKIN, PHILLIP, educator
Papers, 1968-72, .25 ft. (UA-902.012)
Includes materials pertaining to the hospitalization of political dissidents in Soviet mental institutions, 1968-71, retained by Sirotkin as a member of the First U.S. Mission on Mental Health to the Soviet Union. He served as executive vice president for academic affairs at the University at Albany, 1971-76.

SOCIAL JUSTICE CENTER
Records, 1988-1997, 13 cubic ft. (APAP–177)
The Social Justice Center is a grassroots community based organization which, through its programming and projects, confronts the roots and structures of oppression. The center acts as an umbrella organization for various activist groups in New York's Capital Region. Issues of interest include racism, sexism, reproductive rights, the peace movement, and environmental issues.

WAMC/NORTHEAST PUBLIC RADIO
Records, 1981-2000, 6,795 audio recordings (APAP–138)
WAMC/Northeast Public Radio is a regional public radio network serving parts of seven northeastern states and is a member of National Public Radio and an affiliate of Public Radio International. The station's programs cover a number of issues including education, politics and government, the environment, health and medical issues, women's issues, and others. Some of the programs in the collection include: 51 Percent, The Best of Our Knowledge, Capitol Connection, Dancing on the Air, The Environment Show, The Health Show, The Law Show, Legislative Gazette, Media Project, Vox Pop, and other regular and special broadcasts.

WILLOWBROOK REVIEW PANEL
Records, 1968-1981 (bulk 1975-1981), 110 cubic ft. (APAP–127)
The records document the Panel's main function: monitoring implementation of the Willowbrook Consent Decree. There are near-complete files on audits conducted by the Panel at Willowbrook and extensive files on community placement for Willowbrook residents. 90 Day Progress Reports, written by Willowbrook officials for the Panel, document the state's attempts to bring the facility into compliance with the Consent Decree standards. Subject files, publications, and news clippings collected by the Review Panel provide a larger context for the Willowbrook case. Included in the subject files are files on community placement and deinstitutionalization in other areas of the country, as well as theoretical writings on topics related to care of the developmentally disabled. There are extensive administrative files, which provide evidence of the day-to-day operation of Panel staff. The administrative files include correspondence, mailings, and meeting packets. The records contain little information about Willowbrook Developmental Center in the years prior to the Consent Decree. The New York Civil Liberties Union files located at the end of the collection provide the best documentation of the Willowbrook lawsuit itself.