Ralph Engle, MD Papers

Collection

Identifier: US-NNCORMA-RGPPM-033

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Scope and Contents

The collection is divided into four series: General Files (1945-1988), Medical Diagnosis and Computers (1950-1990), HEME/HEME2 Computer Program (1957-1982), and Reprints and Publications (1950-1982). See series description for more information.

Dates

1945 - 1990

Conditions Governing Access

Historical records in the Medical Center Archives are protected by HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996), internal policies requiring protection and confidential handling of PHI (protected health information), FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act), or other institutional polices regarding internal or confidential records, and may require additional permissions prior to access. Some records in this collection are restricted and require additional permissions prior to access. View the container inventory for more information and visit the Medical Center Archives website for the most updated policies and procedures regarding access to historical materials containing restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Materials from this collection cannot be reproduced outside the guidelines of United States Fair Use (17 U.S.C., Section 107) without the advance permission of the Medical Center Archives of NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine or the copyright holder. In the event that anything from the collection become a source for publication, a credit line indicating the Medical Center Archives of NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine is required.

Historical records in the Medical Center Archives are protected by HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) and internal policies which require protection and confidential handling of all protected health information (PHI). Materials containing PHI, personally identifiable information (PII), and/or student information (protected under FERPA) have been restricted and require additional permissions prior to reproduction and use.

Please visit the Medical Center Archives website for the most updated policies and procedures regarding reproduction and use.

Biographical / Historical

Dr. Ralph Engle Jr. was born on June 11, 1920 in Philadelphia. He was married in 1945 to Dr. Mary Allen Engle (born English). Both were on the staff of the New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center. He received a BS degree at the University of Florida in 1942 and his MD degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in 1945.

He completed his internship and residency at New York Hospital. In 1949, he began his career at Cornell University Medical College at the rank of Assistant in Medicine and rose in the ranks of Professor in the Departments of Medicine and Public Health. At the hospital, he started at the Assistant Attending Physician rank in 1954 and became Associate Attending Physician in 1957. He also worked at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Montrose, NY and the Bellevue Hospital. In 1961, he became the Chief of Hematology Division of the Department of Medicine at the Cornell Medical Center.

His specialty was Hematology and Biochemistry of Immunoglobulins. He was interested in the history of Medical Records and the use of computers as aids for physicians in medical diagnosis.

In 1967, Dr. Engle and Betty Flehinger from IBM and Cornell University Graduate School of Medical Sciences developed the HEME/HEME2 computer program for the Hematology Division. The program used the Thomas Bayes theorem to diagnose blood disorders and diseases.

Dr. Engle died on October 7, 2000.

Extent

7.96 Linear Feet (14 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Dr. Ralph Engle donated the papers from 1989-1992.

Processing Information

This collection was processed and finding aid was written by Elizabeth Shepard in 2002. Minor modifications to the finding aid were made during migration to ArchivesSpace in 2024.