Doctor who has delivered 10,000 babies, honored by LA County Board of Supervisors
Dr. Wilburn Durousseau was honored by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for 59 years of professional influence and personal integrity in the medical profession -- and delivering an estimated 10,000 babies.
The 87-year-old received special recognition during Tuesday's Black History Month presentations, where Supervisor Janice Hahn thanked him for his commitment and devotion to his patients at St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood.
"To this day, you can find him sleeping at the hospital, near his patients so that he can personally provide continual care," she said.
Durousseau graduated with a bachelor's degree from Dartmouth College, then received his medical degree from Howard University College of Medicine in 1962, and completed his obstetrician-gynecologist residency in 1966.
He was also a Lt. Commander in the U.S. Naval Reserves, where he served at Camp Pendelton and the naval hospital in Taiwan, where he was the OB-GYN officer in charge for a year.
While still in the Navy, Dr. Durousseau began his tenure at St. Francis in 1968, and began serving patients in Lynwood. St Francis is celebrated for offering access to maternity care to all patients, regardless of their ability to pay.
"He has served many roles, on various boards throughout his career, including the advisory board group where he worked with my dad, Kenny Hahn, to help open the Martin Luther King Jr. Hospital," Hahn said. Durousseau served on the King-Drew Medical Center teaching staff for 38 years.
Durousseau in turn thanked the board for the honor and said he was thankful that the Martin Luther King Hospital was built following the Watts riots, as there was a lack of medical care in the area. "With King, we were only not able to serve the area, but train physicians who were competent and comfortable in the area. Not only Black physicians, but a large number of Hispanic phycisians," Durousseau said.
"And it is my hope that one day that we will be able to regain thve vision of Kenny Hahn, and have a teaching hospital again in the area to serve the needs of (the community)."
In a ceremony hosted by St. Francis Medical Center last year, Chief of Staff Ayman Alladawi, MD described Durousseau as tough, diligent, and a skillful surgeon, with his most understated characteristics being genuineness and honesty.
Dr. Alladawi said, "At the end of the day, what Dr. Durousseau cares about is doing the right thing and taking care of our patients."
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