APRIL/MAY
MEDICINE, PUBLIC WORKS, PAINTER AND GENEROSITY
By Nancy Cook Lauer
Dr. Charlotte Maguire's philosophy is summed up by the book on her chairside table: "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff." It's her attention to the bigger stuff of life that has made this versatile woman the success she is today.
The pioneer in a number of fields, including being Orlando's first woman doctor, has donated $1 million to create the Charlotte Edwards Maguire Eminent Scholar Chair in the Program in Medical Sciences (PIMS) at Florida State University.
Dr. Maguire, whose bright eyes and bustling manner belie her 80 years, has held a number of positions during her busy life - long-distance telephone operator, teacher, physician, government official, citrus grove manager, real estate associate, genealogist and now, artist as well.
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These days, she relaxes in her comfortable Tallahassee home amidst colorful splashes of floral art and scenic rivers she has created. Her latest painting is of her faithful 9-year-old golden retriever, Misty.
When she's not painting or handling all the details as co-trustee of the family business, Dr. Maguire can be found at her bright red iMac computer, surfing the Internet as she researches her projects. She has traced her husband's family back to the Maguire Castle in Ireland, and still holds seminars and training sessions on genealogy as well as the history of medical practice and physicians.
She said she feels a special affinity for Florida State's PIMS program, with its unique approach to training physicians. PIMS is one of the few medical programs where students are exposed to a clinic setting in their first year, giving them an advantage in later years because of their skills in communicating with and understanding patients.
"I've always been patient-oriented, to make sure they have a direct line to care," Dr. Maguire said. "That's why I love this PIMS program. This is something pretty special."
Dr. Maguire said the program also appealed to her because of the similarities between the nontraditional graduates and herself.
She worked her way through college as a third-shift long-distance operator for the telephone company, where the slow pace allowed her to study or catch a few winks between calls. She returned to Orlando in 1944 after she received an M.D. from the University of Arkansas Medical School, where she was the only woman in her class.
She left her Orlando private practice of pediatrics to become medical director of the Florida Crippled Children's Commission. Subsequently, she worked in various medical positions for the state of Florida. As the first assistant secretary, she assisted in the creation of the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (now two departments, the Department of Health and the Department of Children and Families).
She moved to Atlanta as assistant secretary of health and scientific affairs for the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare in the Nixon administration and later moved to Washington, D.C., in the same capacity.
From 1980 to 1987, Dr. Maguire was a member of the clinical staff in the department of pediatrics at the University of Florida. She also has managed citrus groves, worked as a teacher and earned a real estate license to help in the family business.
Dr. Maguire was married to Raymer F. Maguire, who died in 1960. An attorney who graduated from the University of Florida, he served on the Florida Board of Control - the predecessor to the Board of Regents - from 1929 to 1933, including two years as chairman.
With ties to five universities and never having attended FSU herself, why did Dr. Maguire pick the PIMS program for her gift?
"The PIMS program, Florida's best kept secret, seemed to me to be the one with the greatest need of all," she said. "We hope there will be a lot of students who can attend, and we hope the university can start a second year as well."
Dr. Maguire's contribution will be enhanced by a $750,000 grant from the state. The money will be divided between an eminent scholar chair and scholarships.
"Dr. Maguire's generosity will continue to be appreciated by students and faculty alike for years to come."said FSU President Sandy D'Alemberte.
Established in 1971, PIMS is a cooperative effort in medical education between FSU and the University of Florida College of Medicine. Each year, 30 students are selected for the program. Upon successful completion of a year of study, they are guaranteed entry as second-year students in medicine at UF.
PIMS tries to recruit students likely to practice primary-care medicine in Florida, especially students from medically underserved areas of the state, as well as nontraditional and minority students.
PIMS seems to be meeting that goal with a vengeance: more than 60 percent of physicians who start in PIMS choose primary-care medicine - about double the national average. In almost 30 years, the program has produced a demographically diverse group of more than 800 graduates.
"There are only two fundamental reasons that a university exists: students and faculty," said Don Foss, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. "Her gift is going to help us recruit and train the best of both."