Windsor embraces diversity and celebrates Black History Month.

Windsor care centers across California and Arizona are proud to celebrate diversity in its workplace, and to pay tribute to the great achievements and contributions Black Americans have made in the field of medicine. In honor of Black History Month, Windsor is highlighting several of these great individuals, and the positive impact they have made on our industry, and the world.

Alexander Thomas Augusta (March 8, 1825 – December 21, 1890) was a surgeon, veteran of the American Civil War, and the first black professor of medicine in the United States. Augusta offered his services to the United States Army and in 1863, he was commissioned as major and the Army’s first African-American physician. He became the first black hospital administrator in U.S. history while serving in the army. He left the army in 1866 at the rank of brevet lieutenant colonel. In 1868 Augusta was the first African American to be appointed to the faculty of Howard University and the first to any medical college in the United States.

Mary Eliza Mahoney (May 7, 1845 – January 4, 1926) was the first African American to study and work as a professionally trained nurse in the United States. In 1879, Mahoney was the first African American to graduate from an American school of nursing. Mahoney worked tirelessly on behalf of the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses (NACGN) to improve the access to educational and nursing practices for African-American registered nurses. Mahoney received many honors and awards for her pioneering work. She was inducted into the American Nurses Association Hall of Fame in 1976 and into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1993.

Georgia E. Lee Patton Washington (April 16, 1864 – November 8, 1900) was an American missionary and physician. Following her education, she served as a medical missionary in Liberia. Patton went to live in Memphis, Tennessee, where she established her own medical practice. She was the first black woman licensed surgeon and physician in Tennessee. She was also the first black woman to practice medicine in Memphis.

James Edward Bowman Jr. (February 5, 1923 – September 28, 2011) was an American physician and specialist in pathology, hematology, and genetics. He was a professor of pathology and genetics at the Pritzker School of Medicine at the University of Chicago. Bowman was certified by the American Board of Pathology and was the first tenured African-American professor in the University of Chicago’s Biological Sciences Division. He served as the medical school’s Assistant Dean of Students for Minority Affairs from 1986 to 1990.  Bowman was the author of numerous articles and books.

Patricia Era Bath (November 4, 1942 – May 30, 2019) was an American ophthalmologist, inventor, humanitarian, and academic. She was an early pioneer of laser cataract surgery. She  was the first woman to lead a post-graduate training program in ophthalmology and was the first woman elected to the honorary staff of the UCLA Medical Center. Bath was the first African-American person to serve as a resident in ophthalmology at New York University and 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 for a medical purpose and is the holder of five patents.