Picture of Bill James

To Fairbanks Interviews

Dr. William (Bill) James

H2004-17-26
Part 1
Part 2 | Part 3

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Dr. Bill James spent much of his career as a physician working for the Public Health Service in Interior Alaska. He started working with health aides when he arrived at the Tanana Hospital in 1960. He retired from the Chief Andrew Issac Clinic in Fairbanks in 2003 and is well remembered by people throughout Interior Alaska for his calm and caring manner. In this interview, he talks about the development of his medical career, his work with and admiration for the talents of the health aides, his appreciation of Native culture and life in rural Alaska, and changes he has seen in medical care and health conditions in Alaska.
Click on a section below to hear the audio.

Dr. Bill James talks with Karen Brewster on February 1, 2006 at his home in Fairbanks, Alaska about...

1) A little background on his education and his early years in Alaska with the Public Health Service.
education\ Ohio State University\ medical school -- internship\ Denver General Hospital\ draft -- Army\ medical intern\ Indian Health Service -- application\ Alaska -- arrival\ Anchorage -- hospital\ TB -- patients\ beds -- number of\ St. George Island\ Pribilof Islands\ doctor -- need for\ Shaw, Dr. Bud -- EENT\ Native Center\ assistant\ Bering Sea Patrol\ Public Health Service\ Coast Guard\ Seattle\ ice breaker -- "North Wind"\ Bering Sea -- cruise\ presence -- United States.\ Ketchikan\ Juneau\ Tatitlek\ Kodiak\ Russians\ Japanese\ fishing\ boats -- trawlers\ crew -- medical care of\ villages -- day clinics\ Yakutat\ Atka\ helicopters\ boat -- landing craft\ Little Diomede\ Nome\ Elim\ Wales\ Koyuk\ Wainwright\ Point Lay\ Barrow -- hospital\ ocean\ Unalakleet\ Gambell\ Savoonga\ King Island -- population\ summer time -- migration\ Nome|

2) The end of his time at sea and his assignment to the Tanana Hospital.
atomic submarine -- ice pack\ harbor\ submarine -- “Seadragon”\ sea -- conditions\ voyage -- return\ Bering Sea\ Adak\ Kodiak\ orders\ oceanographers\ Arctic Ocean\ pattern -- zig-zag\ water -- samples\ border -- Canada\ water -- freezing\ Seattle -- arrival\ Tanana\ Bering Sea Patrol -- employment\ Public Health Service -- clinician\ Tanana -- vacancy\ bush\ assignment\ station -- two-doctors\ Dillingham\ doctor -- family\ field trips\ villages\ airplane -- type\ airplane -- charter\ Ruby\ Nulato\ Kaltag\ Koyukuk\ health aides\ villages -- communication with\ hospital -- telephone\ airport -- telephone\ Anchorage -- communication with\ radio -- single side-band\ Galena\ Huslia\ Hughes\ Allakaket\ Fort Yukon\ Arctic Village\ Venetie\ Circle\ Anaktuvuk Pass\ Alaska Native Service -- service unit|

3) His preparation and orientation for the assignment to Tanana and how things have changed in medical education over the years.
Anaktuvuk Pass -- first trip\ flu\ doctor\ airplane -- charter\ houses -- sod\ medicine\ supplies\ cases -- metal\ bandages\ service area -- highway system\ Fairbanks\ Dot Lake\ Mentasta\ Cantwell\ Anchorage -- service unit\ population\ Nenana\ Healy\ service unit -- size of\ villages -- travel to\ records -- medical\ villages -- population\ Alaska -- map\ janitor -- Tanana\ airplanes -- flights\ travel -- means of\ Public Health Service -- preparation\ lapse\ Hadley, Dr Owen\ orientation -- lack of\ Public Health Service --- orientation\ Anchorage\ teeth -- pulling\ fillings -- temporary\ eye care -- refractions\ Sheldon, Dr. ? -- opthamologist\ glasses -- prescription\ specialty\ internship -- rotating\ surgery\ medical care -- internal\ medical care -- OB-GYN\ medical care -- pediatrics\ confidence\ residency -- training\ medicine -- family\ residency -- duration|

4) The evolution of his career as he quit the Public Health Service for other things and eventually returned to it.
childhood\ Ohio\ medicine -- interest in\ father -- veterinarian\ science\ math\ siblings -- oldest\ siblings -- careers\ family -- influences of\ communication -- radio\ storekeepers\ missionaries\ missionaries -- wives\ nurses\ church -- Episcopal\ Hughes\ Allakaket\ Venetie\ Nulato\ Ruby\ Kaltag\ communication -- radio\ radio -- location\ communication -- content of\ patients -- condition\ advice\ public health nurse -- Tanana\ villages -- downriver\ communication -- reliability of\ Public Health Service\ Medical Officer in Charge -- Tanana\ career -- advancement\ pressure\ military -- draft\ experience\ Kotzebue\ Bethel\ Window Rock, Arizona\ boat race -- Yukon 700\ Circle\ Tanana River\ nurse -- call\  airplane -- crash\ Fairbanks\ Dunlap, Dr?\ wife\ nurse\ spine -- compression fracture\ Lundquist, Dr.?\ Tanana Clinic -- establishment of\ doctors -- need for\ commission -- resignation\ residency\ winter -- cold\ kids -- young\ car\ wife\ medical care -- private practice\ Idaho\ residency -- pediatric\ Ohio\ Tanana Clinic -- pediatrician\ Native Clinic\ consultant -- pediatric\ Public Health Service\ Chief Andrew Issac Clinic\ Fairbanks\ Tanana Chiefs Conference|

5) Changes in how medical care was provided in Alaska, and what life was like in Tanana with a young family.
Congress\ Indian Self Determination Act\ tribes -- rights\ contracts -- government\ services\ health care -- contract\ Chief Andrew Issac Clinic\ Fairbanks\ Bureau of Indian Affairs\ social services\ private practice\ Indian Health Service\ people\ travel\ Public Health Service\ Tanana\ school -- kids\ grade -- level\ Fairbanks\ house -- rental\ schools\ classmates\ daughter -- student\ Tanana -- students\ learning\ Lathrop High School\ wife -- work\ kids -- caring for\ wife -- Native\ Fort Yukon\ work -- Wien Airlines\ Tanana -- marriage\ life -- village\ kids -- swimming\ river -- current\ driftwood\ raft\ danger\ worry\ transportation -- snowmachine\ snowmachine-- pull-start\ pick-up truck\ kids -- driving|

6) His lifestyle in Tanana and his memories of the origins of the Community Health Aide Program.
Tanana -- hospital\ housing\ apartment -- crowding\ water -- running\ heat\ maintenance\ apartment -- location\ school\ children\ health aides -- work\ Community Health Aide Program\ Moses, Bertha\ Allakaket -- missionary\ missionary -- wife\ wife -- nurse\ midwives\ fieldtrips -- nurses\ pilots -- assistance\ health -- leadership\ liaison\ blood pressure\ temperature\ ear infections -- treatment\ training\ equipment\ stethoscope\ notoscope\ medicine\ Anchorage -- meeting\ plan -- training\ Tanana\ Anchorage -- hospital\ hospital -- head of\ facility -- use of\ hospital -- admissions\ hospital -- overcrowding\ tonsillectomies -- number of\ pediatric ward -- crowding\ nurses\ beds\ competence\ money\ court marshal -- threat of\ Johnson, Dr. Walter\ Community Health Aide Program -- establishment of|

7) Early communication between the villages and the frequency of doctor's visits to the villages.
communication -- radio\ communication -- satellite\ radio traffic -- frequency of\ villages -- communication with\ Tanana\ telephones -- introduction of\ satellite -- introduction of\ telephone traffic\ radio -- single side-band\ health aides -- training\ diagnosis\ treatment\ clinics\ supplies\ medicines\ field trips -- schedule\ supplies -- transportation of\ doctors -- number of\ trips -- number of\ doctor -- duties\ duties -- division of\ Fairbanks\ Fort Yukon\ Tanana\ Koyukuk River\ Anaktuvuk Pass\ Tok\ Galena\ villages -- visits|