Book chronicles life of Koop

KOOP: The Memoirs of America’s Family Doctor, by C. Everett Koop, Random House, 342 pages, $22.50.

“Everett Koop is one of the finest pediatric surgeons in the world,” said Dr. Maynard Beach, head of surgery at Eastern Maine Medical Center. “He has earned the respect of the medical world for, among other things, his innovations in treating birth defects in children.”

Koop, who served eight tempestuous years as surgeon general of the United States, is living proof that the man makes the job. Who remembers his predecessors (stretching back to President John Adams) or who can name his successor? This only child from Brooklyn from the beginning had a singular aim: He wanted to be a doctor, preferably a surgeon. His formative years at Dartmouth College and his medical study at Cornell prepared him for his 35-year tenure at Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia.

During these years — years when he realized his goal of using his hands and his brain to heal — he reared his family (three sons and a daughter were born to him and his wife, Betty) in the Philadelphia suburbs. Later on, his son David was killed in a mountain climbing accident, but Koop and his wife were sustained by their strong evangelical Christian faith.

Indeed, during his time in Philadelphia, a friend induced him to attend services at the Tenth Presbyterian Church, one of the historic churches of the city, where Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse was the minister, one of the greatest theologians in the world. In fact, I often sat in a pew behind his. Although a church member, Koop for the first time fell under the strict biblical teaching that no man can earn his salvation. “I learned that `sin’ did not mean just the big bad things we do, but anything that we do that falls short of the righteousness of God.”

From that point on, everything he did in his professional and personal life reflected his dependence on the sovereignty of God. His love of God became synonymous with his love of man; hence was born and fostered his desire to raise the quality of life in all his patients, whether adults or, more likely, newborns.

A staunch Republican, Koop is demonstrably easy on the administration that nominated him to his post as surgeon general in 1980. In view of the snubs, the flagrant inconsiderations and rudeness of President Reagan and the White House staff, Koop is singularly forgiving. His confirmation was upheld for almost a year, during which he patiently sat it out.

Once confirmed, he initiated his campaign against smoking, an assault that has had surprisingly positive results as the number of smokers has declined. Koop not only deplored active smoking but passive smoking as well since non-smokers can become ill by inhaling someone else’s smoke. He evidently does not consider alcohol as dangerous even though it results in the ruination of countless lives and the death of thousands each year.

Two large segments of this well-written account — an account that underscores the author’s charity and compassion — deal specifically with AIDS and abortion. He early tried to disseminate information on AIDS to the public so that they, being informed, could cope more sensibly with this scourge. As he says, God hates the sin, but not the sinner.

An anti-abortionist, he nonetheless has promoted the use of contraceptives. As he argues, convincingly, if there were fewer pregnancies, there would be fewer abortions. He addresses these major concerns in such a way that it is little wonder that the nation focused attention on him during his tenure as surgeon general.

These memoirs chronicle the life of one of the most remarkable men of our time. His reasoned approach to medical issues and his sensible philosophy of life come to fruition in these pages. Warmly recommended.

Robert H. Newall is a free-lance writer who resides in Hampden.