VALLEY CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – The Barnes County Historical Society Lecture Series Season 21 Presents: Dr. Stephen McDonough “History of Public Health in North Dakota- Lessons Learned” 7:30 PM Thursday June 16th at the Barnes County Museum.  This presentation follows the Society’s annual meeting at 7 PM.

North Dakota has a rich history of public health spanning the smallpox epidemics of Native Americans to the COVID disaster of 2020-2022.  Individuals made a difference.  The presentation will discuss the efforts of pioneering physicians and nurses in getting vital records and clean drinking water, the Spanish influenza pandemic, polio, and more recent efforts with tobacco use, HIV/AIDS, immunizations, and now COVID-19.

Stephen McDonough MD worked as a pediatrician in North Dakota for 40 years including 15 years at the North Dakota Department of Health (NDDoH).  He authored “The Golden Ounces- A Century of Public Health in North Dakota” in 1989.  During his tenure at the NDDoH, he led efforts to battle the tobacco industry and HIV/AIDS and eradicate the most common cause of childhood meningitis.  In 2010, he became the first pediatrician appointed to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition and he was the first physician to receive the Bismarck Sanford “Physician of the Year Award” in 2013.  He has also received a star quilt for assisting cancer control for the Mandan-Hidatsa-Arikara Nation.

This presentation is the final one for Season 21, 2019-2022.  We sincerely thank all of the presenters who’ve participated in this extended season and look forward to Season 22 starting in Fall 2022.

All Lectures are at the Barnes County Historical Society Museum and held in conjunction with Valley City State University.  They are free and open to the public.

For more information contact Wes Anderson at 701-845-0966.