In order to understand the history of the department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, it would be helpful to briefly review the history of the School of Medicine and its teaching hospital.
The School of Medicine, originally known as the "Medical Department", was established in 1867, one year after the founding of the Syrian Protestant College (SPC). From the outset, the Founding Fathers and the Trustees were keenly aware of the necessity for the College to have its own campus and teaching hospital. As neither was available, the College started out in rented premises in the Zokak el-Blat district of Beirut. A small building adjoining the school was set-up as a clinic and hospital of about eight beds. This was clearly recognized as a makeshift arrangement until more satisfactory hospital facilities became available. It is unlikely that a laboratory existed in such a set-up. This clinic and hospital were abandoned in 1871 when an �affiliation� agreement was made between the College and the Prussian Hospital that had been built by the Knights of the Order of St. John whereby the clinical teaching would be conducted at that hospital.
The Prussian Hospital was fairly well equipped, could house more than sixty patients, and probably had a laboratory. Besides, it was only five minutes walk from the new campus to which the College would move in 1873. The agreement was terminated on January 2,1918, by order of the Ottoman Sultan because the USA entered the war against Germany and its ally Turkey. With the advent of the French mandate in Lebanon the French authorities seized the hospital as war bounty, turned it into their own military hospital, and renamed it �Hopital Militaire Maurice Rottier�. It remained as such until the end of 1946 when French troops were withdrawn from Lebanon. However, the property remained French. It has since been used to house the French embassy and, more recently, the "Ecole Sup�rieure d'Administration (E.S.A.)".
From the outset the College wanted to have its own hospital. In the summer of 1902, it purchased the Adham (Azm) property which lay south and east of the medical gate This, added to a small plot already owned, provided a sizable area for future hospital buildings. The new property included a very large house (palace) which was remodeled and �served as administration building, superintendent�s and head nurse�s home, the pupil nurse�s home, the kitchen, and wards for gynecology and obstetrics, children�s diseases, and two beds allocated to dermatology. In addition to the palace there were three small buildings that would be put to good use by the future hospital.
Beginning in 1904, an active building program began; funds were raised and construction began after the necessary permits were obtained. The first facility designed and built as a hospital owned by SPC was the Women's Pavilion (1908), followed by the Eye Pavilion (1909) the Children's Pavilion (1910)., and the Hospital Gate. One of the small buildings was used for the polyclinics consisting of nine rooms: three examining, three demonstration, and three waiting rooms. The mortuary was set up in one of the other buildings. Later on, other buildings were built thanks to various grants: Dale Home, to house the School of Nursing and dormitories was built in 1924, the Pathology building in 1925, the former Out-Patient (OPD) building, in 1932, and the "New Wing" commonly known as "Building 56" in 1954. The first floor of this last building was named after Bayard Dodge Jr. the eldest son of president Bayard Dodge who was killed during World War II. By this time the hospital capacity had risen to two hundred twenty beds distributed in different pavilions (Internal Medicine, Surgery, Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Pediatrics). Of the old buildings only three remain in use at the time of writing: Building 56, Dale Home (the old Nursing School building) and the old OPD building. The present Medical Center was inaugurated in June 1970.
The Adham (Azm) house was destroyed by fire on December 30, 1939. At the time of its destruction it housed hospital administration, medical records, and living quarters of the interns. Fortunately no one was injured and only part of the patients records were totally destroyed.
The Beginning - A Polyvalent Faculty
As stated earlier, at the very beginning the College had only two "departments": the Literary and the Medical. The Medical department later became the School of Medicine and, more recently, the Faculty of Medicine and Medical Center. There were no academic departments as known today but the pathology museum is mentioned in the catalogues beginning with the year 1880.
Originally, three professors taught all the medical courses
Cornelius Van Alen Van Dyck M.D. professor of Internal Medicine and General Pathology and provisionally Ophthalmology (1867-1882)
John Wortabet M.D. professor of Anatomy and Physiology (1867-1882) and lecturer in Pathology and Practice of Medicine (1882-1885)
George Edward Post M.D. professor of Surgery, Materia Medica and Botany.
Dr. Van Dyck the first professor of pathology, resigned from the College in December 1882. To help the College ensure the continuity of pathology teaching, the Board of Missions were willing to release Dr. Calhoun from his Mission work in Tripoli to go to Beirut to temporarily replace Dr. Van Dyck. However, that was not necessary because Dr. Wortabet accepted to take on the additional load of pathology teaching. Thus it was no longer necessary for Dr. Calhoun to leave his work in Tripoli. A few months later a new professor of Pathology and Practice of Medicine was appointed. He was Dr. Charles Dight who occupied the chair for six years, 1883 to 1889. Dr. Harris Graham followed Dr. Dight in 1889. He was appointed as Professor of Pathology, Bacteriology and Practice of Medicine. He remained at that post until his death in Beirut on February 27, 1922. He also had the title of Pathologist to the Johaniter Hospital.
During the period between 1900 and 1920 eight teachers were appointed at different academic levels and for varying lengths. They are listed below. Some of these new staff were SPC graduates.
Harry G. Dorman MD, Professor of Histology, General Pathology and Pediatrics, from (1903 to 1910).
Nimeh Nucho MD (SPC), Assistant in Histology and General Pathology, (1904 - 1912).
Nechan Hampartsumian, MD (SPC), Clinical Assistant to the professor of pathology, (1904 -1905).
Nikula Constantine Rubeiz, MD (SPC), Clinical Assistant in Pathology, (1907).
Nejib Ardati, MD (SPC), Clinical Assistant to the professor of pathology; (1907 - 1908), Hospital Pathologist, and Instructor in Bacteriology, (1908- 1913).
Suleiman Salibi, MD (SPC), Bacteriologist in College Hospitals, (1913 1914).
Hovsep Yenikomshian, MD (SPC), Hospital Pathologist; and Instructor in Materia Medica, (1918 - 1921); Adjunct Professor Elect of Internal Medicine and Hospital Pathologist, (1922 - 1923).
Harry G. Thomas, MD, Adjunct Professor Allenby Foundation in charge of courses in General Pathology, Physical Diagnosis and Hygiene, (1920 - 1922).
Laboratory work was done manually. There existed in each pavilion a room where simple qualitative and semi quantitative tests were performed by the students, and, in one of the small buildings near the pavilions, a main laboratory for microscopy and the more advanced tests. This lab catered to both inpatients and outpatients.
Departments of study were listed for the first time in the College catalogue for the year 1920 - 1921. This would place the creation of departments in 1920. One of these was the department of "Bacteriology, Pathology, Hygiene and Parasitology". The Pathology building was built in 1925 to accommodate the department. Ample space became available for classroom work, for teaching, service, and research laboratories, a reception area for ambulatory patients, as well as a hundred-seat amphitheater, a museum, mortuary, and the necessary support services. Thus the organization changed from one department for the whole school as seen since 1867, to many departments in one school beginning in 1920. Pathology and the disciplines that are now called "Laboratory Medicine" were combined in one department under one chairman.
In 1929, the department was split into two departments: Pathology on one side, and Bacteriology, Hygiene and Parasitology on the other. In 1936, Hygiene was taken out and the department became department of Bacteriology and Parasitology. This department was responsible for supervising the clinical laboratories for both in-patient and out patient work until 1949 when a separate Department of Laboratory Studies was created with Dr. Krikor S. Krikorian as its first chairman. Dr. Krikorian remained in office until his death in 1957. Dr. Raif Nassif succeeded him until 1967 at which time Dr. Samih Alami became chairman. The name of the department was changed to Clinical Pathology in line with the appellation of the American Board of Pathology in 1955 then to "Laboratory Medicine" in 1978. Finally, in 1996, the two departments Pathology and Laboratory Medicine were combined and became the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine with Dr. Ghazi Zaatari as chairman.
The new Pathology Building enabled the department to greatly improve its work both academic (teaching and research) and service (patients and the community at large). At first all the service laboratories were located in the new building for easy supervision by the department of Bacteriology-Parasitology or Pathology as the case may be (bacteriology, parasitology/clinical microscopy, and serology under the supervision of the department of Bacteriology-Parasitology, and hematology under the supervision of the department of Pathology). Only the clinical chemistry lab was located in Van Dyck Hall under the supervision of the chairman of the department of biochemistry. It was only in 1949 that supervision of all sections became the responsibility of the newly established department of Laboratory Studies later known as the department of Laboratory Medicine. The clinical chemistry lab moved to the Pathology Building with the appointment in the department of Clinical Pathology of a Hospital Biochemist.
From its very beginning the Department always aimed at excellence and spared no effort towards that end. Essential new equipment was obtained as soon as possible and, at times some was home-built pending availability of the funds needed for its purchase. There were serious shortages in many items during the Second World War. The department met the challenge head on: adequate quantities of spare parts were stocked and came to the rescue quickly when needed. Vaccines that were in short supply were prepared locally and the practice was continued until the early 1970s. AUB's TAB and small pox vaccines were well known and sought throughout the country.
Finally, only a few of the "first in Lebanon" and perhaps in the Near East in the recent past are listed as illustration:
Blood bank,
Quality control and quality assurance program,
Flame photometer,
Automatic tissue processor,
Endocrinology laboratory,
Continuous flow analyzer,
Fully automated random access analyzer,
Amino acid analyzer,
Gas chromatography for amino acid analysis,
Determination of intermediary enzymes of metabolism for inborn errors of metabolism,
Immunohistochemistry,
Tissue culture for cytogenetics,
Prenatal karyotyping.
APPENDIX
PATHOLOGY- LABORATORY MEDICINE FACULTY
(In chronological order by year of first appointment)
I - The original faculty
Cornelius Van Alen Van Dyck, MD: 1867 - 1882, Professor of Internal Medicine and General Pathology and, provisionally, Ophthalmology.
John Wortabet, MD: 1867 - 1882, Professor of Anatomy and Physiology; 1882 - 1885, Lecturer in Pathology and Practice of Medicine.
George Edward Post, MD: 1868 - 1909, Professor of Surgery, Materia Medica, and Botany.
II - Faculty prior to 1920
Charles Dight, MD: (1883 - 1889) Professor of Pathology and Practice of Medicine
Harris Graham, MD: (1889 - 1922) Professor of Pathology, Bacteriology and Practice of Medicine, (died Feb. 27, 1922).
Harry Dorman, MD: (1903 - 1910) Professor of Histology, General Pathology, and Pediatrics.
Nimeh Nucho, MD: (1904 - 1912) Assistant in Histology and General Pathology.
Nechan Hampartsumian, MD: (1904 -1905) Clinical Assistant to the professor of Pathology.
Nikula Constantine Rubeiz, MD: (1907) Clinical Assistant in Pathology.
Nejib Ardati, MD: (1907 - 1908) Clinical Assistant to the professor of Pathology; (1908 - 1913) Hospital Pathologist, and Instructor in Bacteriology (1925) Professor of Public Health and Hygiene and instructor in Clinical Microscopy.
Suleiman Salibi, MD: (1913 - 1914) Bacteriologist in College Hospitals.
Hovsep Yenikomshian, MD: (1918 - 1921) Hospital Pathologist; Hospital Pathologist and Instructor in Materia Medica; (1922 - 1923) Adjunct Professor Elect of Internal Medicine and Hospital Pathologist.
Harry G. Thomas, MD: (1920 - 1922) Adjunct Professor Allenby Foundation in charge of courses in General Pathology, Physical Diagnosis and Hygiene.
III - Faculty since 1920 - Departments Created
William T. Van Dyck, MD: (1922 - 1923) Professor of Zoology, Physiology and Parasitology.
Yervant Djanian, MD: (1922 -1924) Instructor in Parasitology.
William D. Cruikshank, MD: (1922 - 1925) Professor of Pathology.
Leland W. Parr, MD: (1923 - 1930) Associate Professor of Bacteriology and Hygiene.
Raif Shadid Bellama', PhD: (1923 - 1924) Lecturer in Tropical Medicine, Pathologist for Outpatient Department; (1924 - 1926) Adjunct Professor of Parasitology, Lecturer in Tropical Diseases, Instructor in Clinical Microscopy; (1926 - 1927) Director of Hospital Laboratory; (1933 - 1938) Adjunct Professor of Clinical Pathology.
Philip Sahyoun, MD: (1923 - 1927) Adjunct Professor of Pathology and Assistant Director of Hospital Laboratory; (1933 - 1969) Professor of Pathology, (1945 - 1969) Chairman.
Miss Marjorie Webster: (1923 - 1925) Hospital Bacteriologist.
III - 1 - Department of Bacteriology, Pathology, Hygiene and Parasito-logy, 1920.
William Topous Khan, MD: (1924 - 1925) Lecturer in Pathology and Morbid Anatomy.
Pierre Lepine, MD: (1925 - 1926) Adjunct Professor of Pathology.
Ellen E. Porter, M.S.: (1925 - 1927) Instructor in the Clinical Laboratory of the Hospital.
Raymond Goodale, MD: (1926 - 1927) Adjunct Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Director.
Margaret Avery: (1926 - 1927) Instructor in Clinical Laboratory of the University Hospital.
Horton C. Hinshaw, PhD (1928 - 1932) Associate Professor of Parasitology.
Harald Krischner, MD: (1928 - 1931) Adjunct Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Director.
III -2 - Creation of Department of Bacteriology, Hygiene and Parasitology and Department of Pathology 1929
Dikran Berberian, MD: (1930 - 1933) Assistant in Bacteriology and Parasitology; (1933 - 1947) Associate Professor of Bacteriology-Parasitology.
E. Westervelt Dennis, PhD: (1931 - 1941) Associate Professor of Bacteriology-Parasitology and chairman.
Hans Karl Gustav Homma, MD: (1933 - 1937) Professor of Pathology, Chairman.
Harutune Senekjian, MD: (1934 - 1937) Instructor in Bacteriology.
Edmund Mayer, MD: (1937 - 1941) Professor of Pathology, Chairman.
Edith Sproul, MD: (1946 - 1948) Professor of Pathology; (1954 - 1956) Visiting Professor of Pathology.
III - 3 - Hospital Laboratory set up as separate department of Laboratory Studies 1949
Krikor S. Krikorian, MD: (1949 - 1957) Director of Hospital Laboratories.
Frederic Roulet, MD: (1950 - 1951) Visiting Professor of Pathology.
Edmond Shwayri, MD: (1950 - 1952) Assistant Professor of Pathology.
Raif E. Nassif, MD: (1952 - 1994) Professor of Clinical Pathology (Laboratory Medicine); (1957 - 1967) Director of Hospital Laboratories and Chairman of the Department of Clinical Pathology.
III - 3 - Change of name of department of Laboratory Studies to Department of Clinical Pathology 1955. Pathology Department separate.
Nimr Tuqan, MD: (1952 - 1963) Associate Professor of Pathology.
Robert Matossian, MD: (1954 - 1956) acting director of the Blood Bank.
Henry Azar, MD: (1958 - 1960) Assistant Professor of Pathology; (July 1965 - December 1966, and May 8 - 19, 1978) Visiting Professor from University of South Florida College of Medicine.
Harry Sproat, MD: (1959 - 1962) Visiting Associate Professor of Pathology.
George Abu-Haidar, MS: (1959 - 1975) Hospital Biochemist, Lecturer in Clinical Pathology.
Samih Alami, PhD, MD: (1961 - 1963) Assistant Professor of Clinical Patho-logy, part time; (1968 - 1997) Professor of Laboratory Medicine; (1976 - 1996) Chairman and Director of Hospital Laboratories.
Latifeh Ghandour, MD: (1961 - 1976) Associate Professor of Pathology.
Alejandro Chediak, MD: (1962 - 1963) Lecturer in Clinical Pathology and Deputy Director of Hospital Laboratories.
Farid Khouri, MD: (1963 - 1995) Professor of Laboratory Medicine
Harry Smith, PhD: (1964 - 1965) Visiting Research Associate, Department of Clinical Pathology.
Leila Rafie, MD: (1964 - 1968) Instructor in Clinical Pathology.
William Shelley, MD: (Feb. 11 - May 11, 1965) Visiting Professor of Pathology from Johns Hopkins University..
Fred Stewart, MD: (Feb. 11 - May 11, 1965) Visiting Professor of Pathology from New York University Memorial Hospital.
Said Zu'bi, MD: (1966 - 1967) Instructor in Pathology.
Amin T. Nasr, MD: (1968 - 1970) Instructor in Pathology.
Jean Rebeiz, MD: (1968 ��) Professor of Internal Medicine (Neurology) and Pathology (Neuropathology); (1986 - 1995) Chairman.
Charles Allam, MD: (1968 -1975) Assistant Professor; (1976 - 1978) Associate Professor of Pathology and Clinical Pathology.
Wedad Riad, MD: (1969 - 1975) Visiting Assistant Professor of Pathology,
Janine Tomb, MD: (1969 - 1978) Assistant Professor of Pathology (Cytopath-
ology).
Harald Noltenius, MD: (1970 - 1973) Professor of Pathology, Chairman.
Ramez Azoury, MD: (1970 - 1978) Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Pathology (Gynecological Pathology).
Victor H. Nassar, MD: (1971 - 1975) Associate Professor of Pathology.
Nabil Wakid, PhD: (1972 - 1989) Clinical Chemist, Associate Professor of Laboratory Medicine.
Fawzi Abu Jamra, MD: (1967 - 1968) Instructor in Pathology (part time).
Zuheir Naib, MD: (June 15 - August 28, 1974) Visiting Professor of Pathology (Cytopathology) (Emory University, Atlanta GA).
Michael Gravanis, MD: (October 15 - December 15, 1974) Visiting Professor of Pathology from Emory University, Atlanta GA.
William Christopherson, MD: (February 1 - April 30, 1975) Visiting Professor of Pathology from University of Louisville, KY.
Abdur Rahman Sa'di, MD: (1975 - 1976) Visiting Assistant Professor of Pathology for 3 months.
Tanios Koussa, MLT: (1976 -1977) Instructor in Laboratory Medicine.
Zuheir Habbal, Ph.D. (1976 ��) Hospital Biochemist, Professor of Laboratory Medicine.
Joel Brunson, MD: (Sep.1, - March 31, 1977) Visiting Professor of Pathology from Jackson University.
Walter Sheldon, MD: (March 1 - June 30, 1977) Visiting Professor of Pathology from Johns Hopkins University.
III - 4 - Change name of Clinical Pathology to Laboratory Medicine, 1978.
Pathology Department separate.
Jean-Pierre de Chadarevian, MD: (1979 - 1980) Associate Professor of Pathology.
George Banayan, MD. (September 16 - October 31, 1979, and February 1 - May 31, 1980) Visiting Professor of Pathology from University of Texas at San Antonio.
Amira Mansour, MD: (1979 - 1991) Associate Professor of Pathology.
Patrice Hassoun, MD: (1981 - 1984) Assistant Professor of Pathology.
Ziad Salem, MD: (1981 - 1993) Assistant Professor of Laboratory Medicine (half time).
Ghazi Zaatari, MD: (1981 - 1984) (1995 ��) Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine.
Amjad Mufarrij, MD: (1982 - 1986) Professor of Pathology.
Fadi Abdel Karim, MD: (1984 - 1987) Assistant Professor of Pathology.
Siham Fuleifil, MD: (1985 - 1988) Assistant Professor of Pathology.
Nina Salem Shabb, MD: (1991 ��) Associate Professor of Pathology.
Ayman Tawil,MD: (1991 ��) Associate Professor of Pathology.
George Araj, PhD: (1992 ��) Professor of Laboratory Medicine.
Hanna Kaspar, MD: (1993 ��) Associate Professor of Gynecological Pathology.
Leila Zahed, Ph.D. (1994 ��) Associate Professor of Laboratory Medicine.
Rose Daher, Ph.D. (1996 ��) Associate Professor of Laboratory Medicine
Joud Haidar, MD: (1996 ��) Assistant Professor of Laboratory Medicine.
III - 6 - Pathology and Laboratory Medicine combined into one department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine 1996, composed as follows:
Samih Alami, Ph.D., M.D.
George Araj, Ph.D.
Rose Daher, Ph.D.
Zuheir Habbal, Ph.D.
Joud Haidar, M.D.
Hanna, Kaspar, M.D.
Amjad Mufarrij, M.D.
Raif Nassif, M.D. M.P.H. (emeritus)
Jean Rebeiz, M.D.
Ghazi Zaatari, M.D. (chairman).
Bibliography
American University of Beirut: Catalogues for the years 1880 - 1881 to 1939 - 1940, 1941- 1942, 1945 - 1946, 1951 - 1971, 1972 - 1973, 1974 to 1976,1978 to 1996.
Annual Reports of the Faculties of Medical Sciences, American University of Beirut, 1954 -1955 to 1977 - 1978.
Annual Reports of the Board of Managers of the Syrian Protestant College 1867 - 1902.
Mufarrij, Amjad A.: Pathology in Lebanon - The Role of the American University of Beirut, 1866 - 1985. Lebanese Medical Journal vol.36: 1, 1986.
Penrose, Stephen B.L.: That They May Have Life, 1941.Trustees of the American University of Beirut, publishers.