Who is Patricia Bath? The First Black Female Doctor to Receive a Medical Patent

Patricia Bath, a breakthrough Black doctor, devised the Laserphaco Probe, which improved cataract therapy. Following her initial interest in science, she became a doctor and the first Black person to study ophthalmology at Columbia University in 1969. Bath pioneered creative approaches to increasing eye care access in low-income communities, including co-founding the American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness in 1976, which stated “eyesight is a basic human right.”

A decade later, she developed the Laserphaco Probe to help treat cataracts. Bath patented the gadget in 1988, making her the first African American female doctor to have a medical patent. She died in May 2019, aged 76. In 2022, she became one of the first Black women elected into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.

Early Life

Patricia Era Bath was born November 4, 1942, in New York City’s Harlem area. Her father, Rupert Bath, was the first Black motorman on the New York City subway system. Her mother, Gladys Bath, was a homemaker and domestic worker who saved money for her children’s schooling. Patricia had one brother named Rupert.

Patricia’s parents pushed her to pursue academic interests. Patricia’s father, a former Merchant Marine and occasional newspaper columnist, taught her about the wonders of travel and the importance of seeing different cultures. Her mother sparked the little girl’s interest in science by purchasing a chemical set.

As a result, Patricia worked hard on her academic pursuits and, at the age of 16, was one of just a few students invited to a National Science Foundation-sponsored cancer research program. Dr. Robert Bernard, the program’s director, was so impressed with Bath’s findings throughout the research that he included them in a scholarly report he presented at a conference. In 1960, Bath received the Merit Award from Mademoiselle magazine for the attention around her discovery.

Education

Bath graduated from high school in two years and attended Hunter College, where she got a bachelor’s degree in 1964. She subsequently went to Howard University to obtain a medical degree. Bath graduated from Howard with honors in 1968 and soon after began working as an intern at Harlem Hospital.

The next year, she began a residency in ophthalmology at Columbia University, becoming the first Black person to train in the field. During her investigations there, she observed that Black Americans were twice as likely to be blind as other patients she saw, and eight times as likely to acquire glaucoma. Her research led to the creation of a community ophthalmology system, which boosted the amount of eye care available to those who could not pay it. Bath finished her residency in ophthalmology at New York University in 1973.

Pioneer in Ophthalmology

Bath relocated to California in 1974 to serve as an assistant professor of surgery at both Charles R. Drew University and the University of California, Los Angeles. In 1975, she became the first woman to enter the Department of Ophthalmology at UCLA’s Jules Stein Eye Institute.

Bath co-founded the American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness in 1976, establishing “eyesight as a basic human right.” Bath helped establish the Ophthalmology Residency Training program at UCLA-Drew in 1983, which she also chaired—becoming, among other firsts, the first woman in the US to occupy such a position.

Inventions: Laserphaco Probe and Other Patents

Bath began developing her best-known innovation, the Laserphaco Probe, in 1981. Using laser technology, the device, completed in 1986, offered a less painful and more precise therapy for cataracts. In 1988, she secured a patent for the Laserphaco Probe, making her the first African American female doctor to do so. She also holds patents in Japan, Canada, and Europe.

Bath used her Laserphaco Probe to help recover the sight of people who had been blind for over 30 years. The device is widely used around the world and has improved millions of people’s vision.

Bath possessed a total of five US patents, three of which were linked to the Laserphaco probe. In July 2000, she received a patent for a method of fragmenting and eliminating cataracts with pulsed ultrasonic energy. Three years later, in April 2003, her comparable patent for removing cataracts using ultrasound and laser technologies was accepted.

Later Career

Bath withdrew from her position at UCLA Medical Center in 1993 and was named an honorary member of the medical staff. That same year, she was recognized as a “Howard University Pioneer in Academic Medicine.” Among her various positions in the medical sector, Bath was a great supporter of telemedicine, notably for providing medical assistance to remote locations.

Family

In 1972, Bath had a daughter, Eraka, with Beny J. Primm, a doctor who established early methadone clinics in New York City to treat heroin addiction. He was also an advocate for improving public health policies around intravenous drug users.

According to Blackpast, Bath and Primm married but kept their romance quiet. Primm died in October 2015.

Eraka became a doctor after receiving a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and graduating from Howard University College of Medicine. She works as an associate professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at UCLA.

Death and Honors

Bath died on May 30, 2019, in San Francisco, due to cancer-related complications. She was 76. Bath’s memorial ceremony was conducted on June 14 in Los Angeles.

Bath’s achievements have been honored in a variety of ways. In 2001, the American Medical Women’s Association inducted her into its International Women in Medicine Hall of Fame. In May 2018, Bath’s alma institution Hunter College announced her induction into their Hall of Fame. Similarly, Howard University honored Bath with a lifetime achievement award.

Bath was posthumously elected into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2022. She and her colleague inductee, engineer Marian Croak, were the first Black women to receive this honor.Eraka described the inclusion as “an unbelievable honor” and “an overdue recognition” of her mother’s achievements.

In March 2024, the revolutionary physician and inventor will be inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame. Other 2024 inductees include civil rights leader Ruby Bridges and retired professional tennis star Serena Williams.

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