Tag: birth control pill

How did an OB-GYN in Puerto Rico become a key architect of the first birth control pill?

bbag-icon-decChoosing to Test: Dr. A. P. Satterthwaite and the First Birth Control Pill Clinical Trials in Humacao, Puerto Rico

Event Flyer

How did Adaline Pendleton Satterthwaite, an obstetrician-gynecologist (OB-GYN) working at a Protestant mission hospital in Puerto Rico, become one of the key architects of the first birth control pill? In 1952, Satterthwaite left the continental United States and went to Puerto Rico to work as an OB-GYN at Ryder Memorial Hospital in Humacao. She continued her work there through the early 1960s, but in 1957 she took on an additional job as Director of Family Planning Clinic and Research in Contraceptive Methods. In this capacity, Satterthwaite oversaw clinical trials of G.D. Searle & Co.’s Enovid, the first Food and Drug Administration approved oral contraceptive. This talk will examine Satterthwaite’s personal and professional reasons for bringing the trials to Humacao, Puerto Rico and demonstrate her central, if understudied, role in the development of Enovid.

oct19-bbagJoin us for Kathryn Lankford’s lecture on Wednesday, October 19, 2016 from noon till 1 pm in person or online.

Kathryn Lankford is a doctoral student in the Department of History at Michigan State University. She is broadly interested in the histories of medicine and science, gender and sexuality, and empire in the United States and Latin America. Specifically, Kathryn’s current research examines clinical trials of contraceptives in Puerto Rico during the mid-twentieth century. Before entering the PhD program in history at MSU, she received a B.S. in Biology from the University of West Georgia.

In person: This lecture will take place in C102 East Fee Hall on MSU’s East Lansing campus. Feel free to bring your lunch! Beverages and light snacks will be provided.

Online: Here are some instructions for your first time joining the webinar, or if you have attended or viewed them before, go to the meeting!

Can’t make it? All webinars are recorded! Visit our archive of recorded lectures. To receive reminders before each webinar, please subscribe to our mailing list.

Announcing the Fall 2016 Bioethics Brownbag & Webinar Series

bbag-iconThe Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences at Michigan State University is proud to announce the 2016-2017 Bioethics Brownbag & Webinar Series, featuring a wide variety of topics from under the bioethics umbrella. The fall series will begin on September 28, 2016, and you can attend the lecture in person or watch live online. Information about the fall series is listed below, and you can visit our website for more details, including the full description and speaker bio for each event.

Fall 2016 Series Flyer

sept28-bbagEthics and Children with Differences in Sex Development and Gender Nonconformity
When should society constrain clinicians from intervening in these contentious arenas?
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
Joel E. Frader, MD, MA, is a Professor of Pediatrics and Professor of Bioethics and Medical Humanities at Northwestern University, and Medical Director of Bridges Pediatric Palliative Care Program at Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago.

oct19-bbagChoosing to Test: Dr. A. P. Satterthwaite and the First Birth Control Pill Clinical Trials in Humacao, Puerto Rico
How did Adaline Pendleton Satterthwaite, an obstetrician-gynecologist (OB-GYN) working at a Protestant mission hospital in Puerto Rico, become one of the key architects of the first birth control pill?
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
Kathryn Lankford is a Doctoral Student in the Department of History at Michigan State University.

nov9-bbagTrust and the Learning Health System
What will it take to trust the health system with all that information?
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
Jodyn Platt, MPH, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Learning and Knowledge Systems in the Department of Learning Health Sciences at the University of Michigan Medical School.

In person: These lectures will take place in C102 (Patenge Room) East Fee Hall on MSU’s East Lansing campus. Feel free to bring your lunch! Beverages and light snacks will be provided.

Online: Here are some instructions for your first time joining the webinar, or if you have attended or viewed them before, go to the meeting!

Can’t make it? Every lecture is recorded and posted for viewing in our archive. If you’d like to receive a reminder before each lecture, please subscribe to our mailing list.