Physician. Seventh Surgeon General of the United States. Educated at University of Michigan and Detroit College of Medicine and Surgery. He interned at Chicago's Marine Hospital from 1933 to 1934 and accepted a commission as an Assistant Surgeon on July 2, 1934. During World War II he was assigned to the military and in 1943 through 1945 he was detailed to the Medical Department of the Army where he earned the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and specialized in health-related governance in occupied territories. He received the U.S. Typhus Medal for his work in Germany. In 1946, he was promoted to Surgeon and in 1947 became Associate Director of NIH. Scheele was appointed as Surgeon General by Democratic President, Harry S. Truman on April 6, 1948, and remained in that position 4 years later under a Republican, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, his former commander-in-chief from the war. Scheele twice served as President of the World Health Organization, but his main focus was on domestic issues. During his term, NIH added numerous other institutes to its charter, including the National Heart Institute, the National Institute of Dental Research, the National Microbiological Institute, the National Institute of Experimental Biology and Medicine, the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Blindness, and a 500-bed Clinical Center to link bench research with patient care. In August 1956, Scheele resigned from his post as Surgeon General, to become President of Warner-Chilcott Laboratories. After his retirement from Warner-Lambert, Scheele returned to the Washington, D.C., where he lived the remainder of his life.
Physician. Seventh Surgeon General of the United States. Educated at University of Michigan and Detroit College of Medicine and Surgery. He interned at Chicago's Marine Hospital from 1933 to 1934 and accepted a commission as an Assistant Surgeon on July 2, 1934. During World War II he was assigned to the military and in 1943 through 1945 he was detailed to the Medical Department of the Army where he earned the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and specialized in health-related governance in occupied territories. He received the U.S. Typhus Medal for his work in Germany. In 1946, he was promoted to Surgeon and in 1947 became Associate Director of NIH. Scheele was appointed as Surgeon General by Democratic President, Harry S. Truman on April 6, 1948, and remained in that position 4 years later under a Republican, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, his former commander-in-chief from the war. Scheele twice served as President of the World Health Organization, but his main focus was on domestic issues. During his term, NIH added numerous other institutes to its charter, including the National Heart Institute, the National Institute of Dental Research, the National Microbiological Institute, the National Institute of Experimental Biology and Medicine, the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Blindness, and a 500-bed Clinical Center to link bench research with patient care. In August 1956, Scheele resigned from his post as Surgeon General, to become President of Warner-Chilcott Laboratories. After his retirement from Warner-Lambert, Scheele returned to the Washington, D.C., where he lived the remainder of his life.
Bio by: Anne Cady
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