Dedicated To Dr. Charles R. Drew
The Consortium is dedicated to the memory and science of Dr. Charles R. Drew and the multitude of medical and science forefathers and mothers that laid the foundations for the discoveries we benefit from in all aspects of science and medicine today and for which they never received the recognition and acclaim they were due because of the social, political, racist environment.
Charles R. Drew was an African-American surgeon and physician best remembered for his work on blood transfusions and blood storage. Not only was he responsible for developing better ways to go about storing blood effectively, but he also played an instrumental role in the establishment of “blood banks” during World War II.
He made history by becoming the first African-American to receive a Doctor of Medical Science degree from Columbia University. He resigned from his position as director of the American Red Cross Blood Bank after the introduction of a new policy that separated the blood of African-Americans from that of whites.
“Fostering targeted research and clinical trials on the populations most impacted to achieve enhanced efficacy of the results”