Partners of the Heart - by Vivien T Thomas (Paperback)

About the Book

The true-life inspiration for the Emmy Award-winning HBO film Something the Lord Made and the award-winning PBS documentary Partners of the Heart.

Book Synopsis

Visitors to the Blalock Building at the Johns Hopkins University Medical Center are greeted by portraits of two great men. One, of renowned heart surgeon Alfred Blalock, speaks for itself. The other, of highschool graduate Vivien Thomas, is testimony to the incredible genius and determination of the first black man to hold a professional position at one of America's premier medical institutions.

Thomas's dreams of attending medical school were dashed when the Depression hit. After spending some time as a carpenter's apprentice, Thomas took what he expected to be a temporary job as a technician in Blalock's lab. The two men soon became partners and together invented the field of cardiac surgery.

Partners of the Heart is Thomas's extraordinary autobiography. Trained in laboratory techniques by Alfred Blalock and Joseph W. Beard, Thomas remained Blalock's principal technician and laboratory chief for the rest of Blalock's distinguished career. Thomas very rapidly learned to perform surgery, to do chemical determinations, and to carry out physiologic studies. He became a phenomenal technician and was able to carry out complicated experimental cardiac operations totally unassisted and to devise new ones.

In addition to telling Thomas's life story, Partners of the Heart traces the beginnings of modern cardiac surgery, crucial investigations into the nature of shock, and Blalock's methods of training surgeons.

Review Quotes

"For one who had the privilege of being a student, coworker, and later a colleague of Vivien Thomas, reading this autobiography is an extraordinary experience. Although the reviewer worked with him in the laboratory for 20 years, often on a daily basis, many features of this unique and compelling story have been revealed for the first time."-- "David C. Sabiston, Journal of the American Medical Association"

"The fascinating tale of an extraordinary black man's involvement, growth, and final recognition in a white man's world of surgical research and medical practice. . . . At the same time, an insightful firsthand account of the genesis of some of the pioneering research into the nature of shock and some of the early procedures in cardiovascular surgery."-- "Journal of the History of Medicine"

About the Author

Vivien T. Thomas, a high school graduate, was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Johns Hopkins University and was made a member of the medical school faculty in recognition of his contributions to the practice of cardiovascular surgery and to the education of young surgeons. Partners of the Heart is the autobiography of this extraordinary man who struggled against overwhelming odds and achieved international recognition.