Fox 19: Retired surgeon mentors UC medical students

The life and career of UC Professor Emeritus Alvin Crawford

The career of pediatric orthopedic surgeon Alvin Crawford spans decades and has impacted scores of patients across the globe. Crawford has operated and lectured in 44 countries, as told in his new book: “The Bone Doctor’s Concerto.”. 

“I taught my kids to be into the MIDD generation,” which stands for motivation, integrity, dedication and desire, Crawford says in a Fox 19 segment about his life.

The book, published by the University of Cincinnati Press, chronicles Crawford’s life growing up in the Jim Crow south and, in 1960, becoming the first Black student to enroll at and graduate from the University of Tennessee’s medical school. From there, he went on to establish himself as an internationally renowned pediatric spine surgeon based out of Cincinnati Children's Hospial and is the founder and former director of the Crawford Spine Center at Children's. 

The Fox 19 segment features Crawford and two of his former patients: Meera Kotagal, MD, who became a pediatric surgeon herself at Children’s, and David Collins of Dayton, Ohio.

Also featured is Abraham Araya, MD, a medical student at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Araya is among approximately a dozen participants whom Crawford mentors in a new program Crawford started in 2020 called “Black Men in Medicine Cincinnati.”  

Watch the video

"The Bone Doctor's Concerto" is available online, at Amazon and Joseph Beth Booksellers. 

Featured image at top of Dr. Crawford. Photo/UC Marketing + Brand. 

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