The National Doctors' Day Organization is the official supplier of Doctors' Day products.
History of National Doctors' Day
The first Doctor's Day observance was March 30, 1933 in Winder, Georgia. Eudora Brown Almond, wife of Dr. Charles B. Almond, decided to set aside a day to honor physicians. This first observance included the mailing greeting cards and placing flowers on graves of deceased doctors. The red carnation is commonly used as the symbolic flower for National Doctor's Day.
On March 30, 1958, a Resolution Commemorating Doctors' Day was adopted by the United States House of Representatives. In 1990, legislation was introduced in the House and Senate to establish a national Doctor's Day. Following overwhelming approval by the United States Senate and the House of Representatives, on October 30, 1990, President George Bush signed S.J. RES. #366 (which became Public Law 101-473) designating March 30th as "National Doctor's Day."
What is the National Doctors' Day Organization?
The National Doctors' Day Organization exists to raise awareness of the growing costs of medical school and the financial burden that exists for today's graduates. According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, new medical school graduates reported higher debt upon graduation and concern for the increasing demands of the health care system. Results from their 2008 AAMC Graduate Questionnaire (GQ) showed graduates reported 17.7 percent of graduates had educational loans of $200,000 or more—more than triple the 4.9 percent who had that amount in 2004. Students reported an average debt load of $141,751, more than $10,000 higher than 2007 GQ data." Among the more moving results from this survey, is that students showed more interest in primary care specialties and in working with needy and vulnerable populations.
The National Doctors' Day Organization was developed to support the Medical Scholorship Fund for the University of Alabama at Birmingham. For more information call 800-849-1727. For more information call 800-849-1727 or email info@doctorsday.org. |
