“As I said before, we only had maybe three or four faculty at Duke at the time, who were black. Dr. Moore was the only black attending an OB-GYN. There was Dr. Johnson who was in internal medicine, Dr. Jacquelyne Jackson, who was there in sociology, and one other black physician in psychiatry. So once he saw me and some of the other black medical students, he invited us over to his home to meet his family. And just to kind of give us some semblance of being with someone that we could understand where we were, and kind of what we're trying to do. And he certainly gave us a lot of encouragement, in terms of being able to survive in any kind of environment. And, you know, he would constantly tell us that excellence will always prevail. So it didn't matter whether you're black, white, green, or blue, whether you're male or female, that allows you to excel in what you do; you will do very well. So he encouraged us not to be just as good as everyone else, but better than everyone else.”
- Bertram Walls speaking about Donald Moore
February is Black History Month! This year will be highlighting four Black people who advocated for racial justice at Duke Health. These individuals were profiled for the recent Bass Connections project “Agents of Change: Portraits of Activism in the History of Duke Health.” Read our profile on Brenda Armstrong here.
This week we are highlighting Dr. Donald T. Moore, an esteemed obstetrician, community leader, and pioneer in the history of Duke Health. After graduating from Meharry Medical College and training at Grady Memorial Hospital, he moved to Durham in 1965 to become the Chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Lincoln Memorial Hospital. He then became the first African-American Fellow at the Duke School of Medicine when he accepted a position in the OB/GYN department.
Dr. Moore was a strong advocate for healthcare equity and worked tirelessly to address disparities in healthcare faced by minority communities. He was also a dedicated educator who trained many residents, students, and nurses at both Duke and the Lincoln Community Health Center. To honor Dr. Moore's extraordinary contributions, Duke University established the Donald T. Moore, MD, Endowed Lecture.
Gemma Holland interviewed Bertram Walls, MD on February 10, 2024. In the interview, Walls discusses Dr. Donald T. Moore's role in establishing clinics at Lincoln Hospital, his mentorship of medical students and residents, and his impact on patient care and surgical skills. Gemma also interviewed Dr. Moore’s eldest daughter Karen A. Moore, MD on March 17, 2024. She is a graduate of the Duke School of Medicine class of 1984 and a current physician in Atlanta, Georgia.
We encourage to listen to the full interviews and/or read the interview transcripts here:
https://exhibits.mclibrary.duke.edu/agents-of-change/racial-justice/donald-moore.