SERVICE, MENTORSHIP AND A LASTING LEGACY IN LOUISVILLE
A Narrative on Ephraim Roseman, MD:
SERVICE, MENTORSHIP AND A LASTING LEGACY IN LOUISVILLE
Ephraim Roseman, MD, pictured while a student at Johns Hopkins University in the early 1930s.
by Robert D. Buck, M3, John R. Dodds, M3, Morton L. Kasdan, MD, FACS, Harry Friedman, MD, FACS
When we first began reading about Dr. Ephraim Roseman, we correctly expected to find the story of an accomplished neurologist. We expected publications, records of military service and honors. Those pieces certainly existed; although, what surprised us was how many people remembered him not because of titles or publications, but because of the way he invested in students and residents and advocated for patients. Dr. Roseman helped shape far more than the practice of neurology in Louisville. His influence extended to both military medicine and the University of Louisville. The philanthropy of Dr. Roseman continues to impact countless lives decades after his death.
Ephraim Roseman was born on Jan. 1, 1913, in Baltimore, Maryland, to Joseph Adolph Roseman and Sarah Levitzsky Roseman. Dr. Roseman attended Johns Hopkins University, earning a Bachelor of
Arts degree in 1933, before entering the University of Maryland School of Medicine, class of 1937. 1 He practiced medicine long before the invention of modern tools like the CT or MRI. Instead, neurologists of his era relied entirely on patient histories, physical examination, electroencephalography( EEG), x-rays, the pneumoencephalogram and careful clinical reasoning.
A defining moment in Dr. Roseman’ s professional career was World War II. His military service began during his time at Johns Hopkins University, when he joined the Reserve Officer Training Corps. He received a commission as a 2nd lieutenant in the U. S. Army Reserves upon graduation and served during both World War II and the Korean War. While in the U. S. Army Medical Corps, he attained the rank of Lieutenant Colonel( LTC) and received an honorable discharge in 1952.1 In 1942, in what may be one of his most important accomplish-
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