Doris A. Howell

Doris Howell was an American physician who specialized in pediatric oncology. She became known as the "mother of hospice," for her pioneering work in palliative care.

Early life and education Howell was born in Brooklyn, New York. She was born prematurely, and was placed in a "shoebox, in my Institutions Medical College of Pennsylvania Duke University School of Medicine Harvard Medical School grandmother's home on the top shelf of the old kitchen stove,". Her father died when she was two years old. Her step father was from Hungary. She grew up in Baldwin, New York. As a young child, she was treated for mastoiditis, and decided that she wanted to become a nurse. She moved to McGill University for her graduate studies, where she studied medicine. She originally thought that she would train in psychiatry, but changed her mind after a bad experience on a ward. She moved to Children's Memorial Hospital to complete an internship in pediatric medicine. In 1951, she joined Duke University School of Medicine as an assistant resident in pediatrics. She ran the Department of Community and Family Medicine. The department was going through a high rate of staff turnover, and whilst Howell had originally intended to stay for only a year, she ended up staying for five.

Howell was passionate about identifying new ways to support people who were dying and their families. She was critical in the development of The San Diego Hospice and Palliative Care Center, which she founded in 1976. She became known as the "Mother of Hospice". She created training programs for medical students, nurses, physicians and fellows. She was named Director Emerita in 1989.

Awards and honors 1970 Duke University Distinguished Alumni of the Year