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ITEM — Box: Small Manuscript Collections 01 Identifier: H MS c502

Letter from Benjamin Alexander to Dr. Wessler regarding Beth Israel Hospital Medical Senior Staff Dinner

Content Description

1 page letter from Benjamin Alexander inviting Dr. Wessler to attend the Beth Israel Hospital Medical Senior Staff Dinner and detailing the agenda for that meeting.

Dates

  • Creation: March 1957

Creator

Language of Materials

Materials in English.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research. Access requires advance notice. Contact Public Services for further information.

Conditions Governing Use

The Harvard Medical Library does not hold copyright on all materials in the collection. Researchers are responsible for identifying and contacting any third-party copyright holders for permission to reproduce or publish. For more information on the Center's use, publication, and reproduction policies, view our Reproductions and Use Policy.

Extent

0.01 cubic feet (1 file folder)

Biographical / Historical

Benjamin Alexander (1909-1978), B.A., 1930, Harvard College, Cambridge, Massachusetts; M.D., 1934, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, was Associate Director of the Medical Service at Beth Israel Hospital (now Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center) and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School (HMS). Alexander began his career as a house officer in medicine at Beth Israel Hospital and a teaching fellow in biological chemistry at HMS. He researched thiamine and intermediary metabolism before shifting focus to hematology and the study of blood clotting factors and mechanisms. In 1949, he and his colleagues successfully identified SPCA (serum pro-thrombin conversion accelerator), now known as factor VII, which spurs coagulation in the presence of thromboplastin. Two years later, he observed congenital deficiency of factor VII in a patient. Over the course of his career, Alexander also made significant research contributions to the study of congenital hemorrhagic disorders, like hemophilia and von Willebrand’s disease. Upon his departure from HMS in 1966, Alexander led the coagulation laboratory at the New York Blood Center of the Community Blood Council of Greater New York and served as Clinical Professor of Medicine at Cornell College of Medicine.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Found in circulating copy of "Human Blood Coagulation and its disorders" by Rosemary Biggs and R.G. MacFarlane originally owned by Dr. Wessler.

Title
Alexander, Benjamin, 1909-. Letter from Benjamin Alexander to Dr. Wessler regarding Beth Israel Hospital Medical Senior Staff Dinner, March 1957: A Finding Aid.
Status
completed
Author
Caroline Littlewood
Date
2020-04-07
Description rules
dacs
Language of description
und
EAD ID
med00353

Repository Details

Part of the Center for the History of Medicine (Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine) Repository

The Center for the History of Medicine in the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine is one of the world's leading resources for the study of the history of health and medicine. Our mission is to enable the history of medicine and public health to inform healthcare, the health sciences, and the societies in which they are embedded.

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