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Medicine

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Episode 104: Crying and Doing: Iris Bahr and her Aging Mother

Iris Bahr was halfway around the world when she saw her mother having a stroke over video chat. Within days, she was on an airplane, uprooting her life to become her mother’s primary caregiver. The stroke led to vascular dementia– an irreversible condition. Iris is a writer and actor and chronicles the story in a poignant—and funny— one-woman show See You Tomorrow.  In this episode of Can We Talk?, Nahanni speaks with Iris Bahr about caring for her aging mother and about creating art from personal tragedy. Excerpts from Iris’s show are woven throughout the interview.

Diane Rippa

Project
DAVAR: Vermont Jewish Women's History Project

Ann Buffum and Sandra Stillman Gartner interviewed Dr. Diane Rippa on November 9, 2008, in Essex Junction, Vermont, as part of DAVAR: The Vermont Jewish History Project. Dr. Rippa discusses her family background, her grandfather's influence on her interest in medicine, involvement in Jewish youth groups, and her career as a family doctor in Vermont, highlighting the challenging period when her father fell seriously ill, which ultimately shaped her approach to patient care.

Sadie Shapiro

Sadie Shapiro was an American-Jewish medical social worker who made pioneering contributions to the field of rehabilitation. She developed a novel service for wounded soldiers during World War II that integrated medical care, rehabilitation, and occupational retraining. Regarded as the nation’s top expert in the field of medical social work, Shapiro was hired by the AJJDC to oversee medical social services among Holocaust survivors in the DP camps of Europe.

Louis Trachtman

Project
Katrina's Jewish Voices

Rosalind Hinton interviewed Louis Trachtman on July 20, 2007, in New Orleans, Louisiana, as part of the Katrina's Jewish Voices Oral History Project. Trachtman discusses his family history, the transition from Orthodox to Conservative Judaism, his experiences as a physician during Hurricane Katrina, his involvement in the Chevra Kadisha, and his reflections on race relations in New Orleans.

Ruth Rothstein

Project
Women Who Dared

David Johnson interviewed Ruth Rothstein on March 3, 2003, in Chicago, Illinois for the Women Who Dared Oral History Project. Rothstein discusses her upbringing in Brownsville, New York, her involvement in union organizing, the influence of her Jewish identity on her career, including the Jewish hospital movement, and her current work at Cook County Hospital.

Ruth Finkelstein

Project
Weaving Women's Words

Marcie Cohen Ferris interviewed Dr. Ruth Finkelstein on August 30, 2001, in Baltimore, Maryland, as part of the Weaving Women's Words project. Dr. Finkelstein reflects on her upbringing in New York City, her journey as a female medical student, her experiences as an obstetrician, balancing career and family life, and her engagement in the Jewish community and organizations like Planned Parenthood.

Laurie Schwab Zabin

Project
Women Who Dared

Chana Revell Kotzin interviewed Laurie Schwab Zabin for Women Who Dared on September 24 and October 13, 2002, in Baltimore, Maryland, as part of the Women Who Dared Oral History Project. Zabin discusses the intersection of adolescent sexual education with politics, economics, population, and the environment, sharing frustrations with the lack of emphasis on family planning and education in various countries.

Laurie Schwab Zabin

Project
Weaving Women's Words

Jean Freedman interviewed Laurie Schwab Zabin on April 29, 2001, in Baltimore, Maryland, as part of the Weaving Women's Words Oral History Project. Zabin shares her personal journey, including her education, family experiences, involvement with Planned Parenthood, and career in population and reproductive health, highlighting key moments such as meeting her husbands, navigating motherhood, and contributing to advancements in family planning internationally.

Abby Shevitz

Project
Women Who Dared

Elise Brenner interviewed Abby Shevitz on December 12, 2003, in Sharon, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Who Dared Oral History Project. Shevitz discusses her family, childhood, education, Jewish identity, and involvement in HIV/AIDS activism, emphasizing the impact of womanhood and the women's movement while reflecting on her accomplishments and offering advice for community organizing.

Barbara Seaman

Project
Barnard: Jewish Women Changing America

Judith Rosenbaum interviewed Barbara Seaman on October 30, 2005, in New York, New York, as part of the Barnard: Jewish Women Changing America Oral History Project. Seaman discusses her research on preventative hysterectomies, the influence of Rose Kushner, her family history, activism in the women's movement, and challenges as an activist journalist confronting the pharmaceutical industry.

Freema Shapiro

Project
Women Whose Lives Span the Century

Emily Mehlman and Fran Putnoi interviewed Freema Shapiro on July 25, 1997, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Whose Lives Spanned The Century Oral History Project. Shapiro reflects on life after her husband's passing, her pursuit of personal passions, and her journey toward self-discovery through meditation and holistic health practices.

Judith Hirschfield-Bartek

Project
Women Who Dared

Judith Rosenbaum interviewed Judi Hirshfield-Bartek in Boston, Massachusetts, as part of the Women Who Dared Oral History Project. Hirshfeld-Bartek, an oncology nurse, discusses her activism in breast cancer research funding, influenced by her Jewish upbringing and family's philanthropic values, as well as her lobbying efforts for increased funding.

Blanche Narodick

Project
Weaving Women's Words

Pamela Brown Lavitt interviewed Blanche Narodick on June 6, 2001, in Seattle, Washington for the Weaving Women's Words Oral History Project. Narodick reflects on her childhood, education, professional life in Chicago, marriage, involvement with Jewish organizations, experiences during World War Two, work with the American Red Cross, friendships, and personal philosophy on life.

Lis Kahn

Project
Katrina's Jewish Voices

Rosalind Hinton interviewed Lis Kahn on August 16, 2007, in New Orleans, Louisiana, as part of the Katrina's Jewish Voices Oral History Project. Kahn shares her Jewish education, conversion to Judaism, Hurricane Katrina evacuation, and the challenges and significance of the New Orleans Jewish community.

Les Hirsch

Project
Katrina's Jewish Voices

Rosalind Hinton interviewed Les Hirsch on November 13, 2006, in New Orleans, Louisiana, as part of the Katrina's Jewish Voices Oral History Project. Hirsch reflects on growing up as a Jew in a Newark suburb, his role in medical administration, his experiences during Hurricane Katrina at Touro Infirmary, the subsequent evacuation and recovery efforts, and his determination to stay in New Orleans and contribute to the community's future.

Phyllis Greenberger

Project
Washington D.C. Stories

Deborah Ross interviewed Phyllis Greenberger on March 14, 2011, in Washington, DC, as part of the Washington D.C. Stories Oral History Project. Greenberger looks back at her career from social worker to policy expert, the founding of the Society, the difficulties women encounter in the field of medical research and funding, and addresses the challenges of combining family and professional life.

Shirley Bridge

Project
Weaving Women's Words

Pamela Lavitt Brown interviewed Shirley Bridge on June 27, 2001, in Seattle, Washington, as part of the Weaving Women’s Words Oral History Project. Bridge discusses her family, childhood memories, education, a career in pharmacology, marriage, raising a family, social activism, and her 50-year battle with cancer.

Lynn Amowitz

Project
Women Who Dared

Judith Rosenbaum interviewed Lynn Amowitz on July 31, 2001, in Providence, Rhode Island, as part of the Women Who Dared Oral History Project. Amowitz reflects on her childhood experiences of antisemitism, her parents' establishment of a synagogue for her bat mitzvah, the influence of family history on her career choice, her work in human rights investigations, and her aspirations to impact policies and methodologies in her field.

Randi Abramson

Project
Washington D.C. Stories

Deborah Ross interviewed Randi Abramson on January 22, 2011, in Bethesda, Maryland, as part of the Washington D.C. Stories Oral History Project. Abramson, a doctor at Bread for the City in Washington, D.C., discusses her experience as a minority Jew, challenges in the medical field, commitment to community service, and imparting Jewish values to her children.

Collage with Image of Gisella Perl

Lessons From Gisella Perl, Reflections on the Texas Abortion Ban

Sarah Gorbatov

Holocaust survivor and doctor Gisella Perl's story has long been unsung; learning her story can serve all of us in our struggle for reproductive rights today.

Helene Hines on her handcycle

This Year, Resolve to Be More like This Badass Woman

Madisen Siegel

Whenever she heard ‘no,’ Helene Hines pushed back—and proved everyone wrong.

Episode 70: Jane: Abortion Before Roe

"Pregnant? Don't want to be? Call Jane." That was the catchphrase of the Chicago-based Abortion Counseling Service of Women's Liberation, better known as Jane. Before Roe v. Wade made abortion legal, the women of Jane provided safe, illegal, and affordable abortions to nearly 12,000 women in the Chicago area until seven "Janes" were arrested in 1972. In this episode of Can We Talk?, we hear from Jeanne Galatzer-Levy and Judith Arcana, two of the "Abortion Seven," as well as Jane founder Heather Booth.

Selma Browde

Selma Browde was a medical doctor and activist whose passionate work and advocacy on behalf of disadvantaged communities in South Africa spanned more than half a century.

Image of Rowan Jimenez Singing, wearing hat and sunglasses.

The Privilege of Health and Healthcare: A Tribute to Rowan Jiménez

Dahlia Plotkin-Oren

Since Rowan's passing, I've learned about how lacking the United States is when it comes to healthcare accessibility.

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