MSM 606 Dr. Tom Mayer - McComb Railroad Doctor - a podcast by USM Center for Oral History

After graduating from medical school in 1947, Dr. Tom Mayer took a temporary job with the Mississippi State Department of Health while waiting to begin his internship. In this episode, he remembers trying to vaccinate school children in Walthall County. Later, he returned to McComb to set up a medical practice at the urging of a friend.

In the mid-1950s, Mayer was hired by the Illinois Central Railroad to be the company doctor. He discusses the advantages and disadvantages of being a railroad physician. At that time, penicillin had only recently been discovered.  He recalls the limited number of available drugs and one old doctor’s story of a fifty-cent price limit.

Working around trains has always been a dangerous job and as a railroad doctor, Mayer has seen it all. He recounts some of his more memorable cases and reflects on the many friendships he collected during his career.

(contains a bit of graphic description of a patient's injuries)

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