Medical Alliance to the Medical Society of New Jersey Records, Guide to the

The Medical Alliance to the Medical Society of New Jersey (Medical Alliance) was established in 1927 under its original name, the Woman's Auxiliary to The Medical Society of New Jersey. Its membership, comprised of the wives of physician members of the Medical Society of New Jersey (MSNJ), organized to aid the MSNJ in its mission and to promote its program of health education and public welfare.

The Medical Alliance was formed as a state branch of its national parent organization, The Woman's Auxiliary to the American Medical Association (WAAMA), which was established in 1922. The formation of WAAMA was preceded by that of the Woman's Auxiliary to the Texas Medical Association, which had introduced the resolution to form the national woman's auxiliary at the 1922 AMA annual meeting.

The formation of the Medical Alliance was initiated on June 17, 1926, at the annual meeting of the MSNJ, when a resolution to create a New Jersey auxiliary was unanimously approved. A special committee to organize the state auxiliary, headed by Mrs. Samuel Barbash of Atlantic City, was formed. It was decided that auxiliaries to the county medical societies would form first, then join together as a state organization at the next annual meeting of the MSNJ.

The 1927 annual meeting of the MSNJ was attended by the first members of the Medical Alliance. Fourteen county auxiliaries had been organized in the preceding year, and three were in the process. (The remaining four counties would organize county auxiliaries by 1928.) Mrs. A. Haines Lippincott of Camden was elected as the first president, while Mrs. George L. Orton, Mrs. Walt P. Conaway, Mrs. Ephraim R. Mulford, Mrs. Frank Devlin, Mrs. A.J. Stillwell and Mrs. James Hunter were also selected as officers of the organization. Dr. Walt Conaway was chosen by the MSNJ to act as advisor to the Medical Alliance during its first year. Column space for reporting on Medical Alliance activities was set aside inthe NJMS journal, New Jersey Medicine.

A handbook that outlined the mission and activities of the Medical Alliance, Primer for the Woman's Auxiliary to The Medical Society of New Jersey, was written by Mrs. James Hunter in 1929 and was sent to every physician in the state for the purpose of recruiting new members. (A copy of the Primer is located in the PUBLICATIONS series.)

A primary activity of the Medical Alliance in its earliest years was the distribution of the AMA publication, Hygeia, through the sale of individual, school, and library subscriptions, and handbooks were provided from WAAMA to emphasize the importance of this duty.

In the 1930s, study groups began meeting to discuss public health issues and hear speakers from the MSNJ. In 1932, the Legislation Committee was formed and the Medical Alliance first became involved in promoting legislation endorsed by the MSNJ.

During World War II, the Committee on Medical Preparedness was formed as a means of participating in the war effort. Data on the special qualifications of each Medical Alliance member was compiled, and emergency nursing and transportation groups were organized. In 1947, the Medical Alliance worked to promote the School Health Plan, which had been developed by the New Jersey Department of Education and the NJMS. The plan proposed physical examinations for N.J. school children and psychological counseling when needed.

The state auxiliary publication, News Notes, which would subsequently change its name to The New Jersey Newsletter, and later to The Shingle in 1967, began publishing in 1948. In 1948, Mrs. David B. Allman of Atlantic County, a former president of the Medical Alliance, was elected president of the national organization, WAAMA.

The 1950s brought involvement in the promotion of homemaker services for the chronically ill, the dissemination of public health information in rural communities, and recruitment of students into the field of nursing through involvement in Future Nurses Clubs and the awarding of scholarships for nursing students. In 1953, the Medical Alliance joined in a national fundraising program of WAAMA to support medical education. In 1955 the Medical Alliance established the Medical Student Loan Fund to provide financial assistance to New Jersey residents attending U.S. or Canadian medical schools.

In the mid-1960s the International Health Activities Committee was established for the purpose of raising money and supplies for foreign clinics and hospitals suffering from severe shortages. Mrs. Asher Yaguda of Essex County, a former Medical Alliance president, was elected WAAMA president in 1965.

Involvement in community service projects continued with the promotion of Eye Health Screening, Meals on Wheels, CPR, nutrition, accident prevention, immunization awareness, mental health, and drunk driving prevention.

In 1976, the organization's name changed from The Woman's Auxiliary to the Medical Society of New Jersey to The Medical Society of New Jersey Alliance; in 1995 the name changed once again, to The Medical Alliance to the Medical Society of New Jersey.