Lucille Constance Gunning, or as she was mostly known, Lucille Blackwood, was a famous American pediatrician and medical executive. She lived for almost 100 years and during this time became an authority in the field of healthcare and medical care in the US. i-bronx.com will tell more about this famous personality.
About Lucille and her childhood
Lucille C. Gunning was born on February 2, 1921 in NYC. The 1920s were the time of the end of World War I and the beginning of the postwar recession. The US introduced Prohibition and refused to join the UN. A few years later, the global economic crisis began here, plunging other countries into poverty, a decline in production and a deterioration in living standards. It was in these conditions that little Lucille was born and grew up.
She received her primary education in Jamaica, in the West Indies. There, she attended high school. But she came to the place where she was born, namely NYC, to get her higher education. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree here. Some years on, the girl realized that she was more interested in medicine. Therefore, the next step was to study to become a pediatrician at Harlem Hospital. Then, the young woman continued her journey to knowledge at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She studied rehabilitation medicine there.
Her studies allowed L. Gunning to get a job at the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Eventually, after working there as the chief pediatric resident, she was able to obtain her doctorate in medicine. It was 1949, the year when World War II ended and the Cold War began, which could easily escalate into a heated confrontation involving nuclear weapons. Therefore, during this period, it was important for scientists to study the effects of radiation, the development of various diseases such as cancer and to develop medicine in general. That is why there was a demand for specialists in this field and for doctors in general.
Further education
In the following years, L. Gunning studied at Yale University as a postgraduate student in pediatric cardiology (i.e., she studied heart and cardiovascular diseases in children). The woman also practiced her knowledge at Grace New Haven Hospital, a world-renowned higher education institution. Gunning honed her pediatric oncology skills at the Cancer Memorial Hospital in NYC as well.
Personal life
Dr. L. Gunning’s married life was successful. She married a fellow doctor, Carlton Earle Blackwood. He was originally from Jamaica, where she received her primary education, had an M.D. degree and worked as a cancer researcher and biochemist at Columbia University. Eventually, C. Blackwood moved to NYC to become a member of a research team that was formed at a local university.
L. Gunning and her husband raised 4 children together: Alexander, Isabelle, Maryanne and Constance. Their lives were spent working and living in the town of New Rochelle, New York, where they built a home and raised their children. Lucille’s husband died in 1974, on November 29.
Information about all of L. Gunning’s children is not available in open sources, but her son Alexander followed in his parents’ footsteps. In August 1974, he was awarded the Cornelius H. Teaega Student Fellowship from the New York Arthritis Foundation. He went on to study with Dr. Ines Mandl, who taught at Columbia University in Washington, DC.
L. Gunning’s private medical practice
After graduation, Lucille had to decide where to go next. She decided to open a private medical practice in the Bronx. Why the Bronx? The fact is that she had been seeing patients here for 10 years before. Therefore, the woman had a large number of successful consultations and acquaintances among the borough’s residents. She also often worked and counseled Americans at home in New Rochelle. Gunning often helped there for free. Her support was especially needed by people who had financial difficulties.
In 1964, the Bronx office was closed and Lucille began her studies again. This time, she majored in pediatric psychiatry. The hospital where she was able to acquire knowledge and practice was Montefiore Hospital in the Bronx. She also worked at Wright State University School of Medicine.
In the late 60s and early 70s, Lucille was a member of the faculty at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at her alma mater. She also worked as a physician and director of pediatric rehabilitation at Montefiore Hospital. Since 1977, she had served on the advisory board of the Journal of the National Medical Association. In 1980, the woman became the head of pediatric rehabilitation at Harlem Hospital. Gunning was part of the NYC Mayor’s Task Force on Child Abuse.
In June 1980, Lucille gave a talk on Social Perspectives on Violence. She also continued to devote much of her time to treating children with sickle cell anemia and served on the Child Abuse Committee, which was part of the Harlem Hospital structure. In the late 1980s, Lucille joined the Westchester Developmental Disabilities Service, where she served as deputy director. In total, her career spanned more than 45 years. She retired in the 1990s.
Public activities
Since 1964, Lucille had been actively involved in public and educational activities. On October 15, 1964, she and her husband gave lectures on Cancer and the Layman, Clinical Aspects of Cancer in Children and Trends in Cancer Research at St. Simon’s Episcopal Church in New Rochelle. The event was sponsored by the New Rochelle Cricket Club, which included her husband.
In 1998, L. Gunning was elected vice president of the New Rochelle chapter of the Zonta Club. What is Zonta Club? It is an international organization dedicated to building a better world for women and girls. The beginning of this club was in 1919. Then, the first Zonta Club was established in Buffalo, New York, by enterprising women. It was headed by Marian de Forest. The structure was not simple.
Every woman who was in the club had to devote 60% of her time to it. Membership was strict and considered a privilege. Only a well-known woman with a high profile in her career could become a member. At the beginning of the 21st century, the club had 29,000 members in 62 countries. Its members are represented at the Council of Europe, the UN, the ILO and other global institutions.
Honors
In 2002, Lucille was recognized for her leadership in healthcare.
In 2009, she was inducted into the Spirit of Women Archive at Westchester Community College’s Harold Drimmer Library.
In 2012, she was honored as a Champion of Change by the Westchester Black Women’s Political Caucus, Inc.
Thus, Lucille C. Gunning lived for almost 100 years and became a famous African American pediatrician and healthcare administrator, an expert in the treatment of childhood cancer, sickle cell anemia, director of pediatric rehabilitation at Harlem Hospital, deputy director of medical services of the Westchester Developmental Disabilities Service. She was called a visionary and a catalyst for progress for all other black doctors and a rehabilitation specialist for children.