If you were a child living in Minnesota during the late 1930s through the 1960s, you may remember receiving a tuberculosis (TB) test from Dr. Kathleen Jordan. The Granite Falls physician traversed the state, often in frigid temperatures on snow-covered roads, to help halt the spread of what was then a prevalent and deadly disease.
During her nearly 40 years as a physician, Dr. Jordan administered more than two million Mantoux tuberculin skin tests for TB, an infectious bacterial infection that primarily affects the lungs. She did this while tracking the prevalence of the disease in Minnesota, and educating children and families on symptoms, prevention, and starting in the 1950s, treatment.
To celebrate Dr. Kathleen Jordan's legacy, and to raise awareness about the history and ongoing threat of tuberculosis, the Jordan Committee—comprised of local volunteers, many of whom received TB tests as children from Dr. Jordan —will host a multi-day tribute in September. The American Lung Association, a key supporter of Dr. Jordan's work through the sale of Christmas Seals®, is also supporting and participating in The Dr. Kathleen Jordan Project event in Granite Falls.
When Dr. Jordan arrived in Minnesota, “TB was everywhere,” said Linda Heen, a Jordan Committee member. “She recognized that by working with the schools and testing all the school children, they could detect tuberculosis that existed in families. By doing so, and continually working with the schools for many years, she ended up bringing the TB rate down.”
“She was a quietly extraordinary person,” said Carol Heen, another Jordan Committee member. Initially, Dr. Jordan conducted and interpreted Mantoux tests in a four-county area. However, she soon received requests to test children in schools throughout the state, often requiring hours of travel between locations. While she primarily traveled to rural communities, she eventually tested children and adults in all 87 Minnesota counties.
Dr. Jordan was born Kathleen Boyt Smith in England in 1901. Shortly after her birth, her family returned to Constantine, Algeria where they were missionaries, operating a school for orphan boys. Dr. Jordan eventually came to the U.S. for college, graduating from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1923 and deciding on a career in medicine at a time when just 5% of U.S. physicians were women.
It was during medical school that she presented with possible tuberculosis symptoms and was sent to recover at the Trudeau Sanatorium in upstate New York, led by Dr. Edward Livingston Trudeau who also founded the National Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuberculosis, which later became the American Lung Association. It was at the Trudeau Sanitarium where Dr. Jordan met her future husband, Dr. Lewis Jordan, and decided on her life’s work.
After graduating from Case Western University with a medical degree, she moved to Granite Falls to join her husband in his work, caring for patients at the Riverside Tuberculosis Sanatorium and publishing professional papers about tuberculosis.
“Her experience of having tuberculosis was part of the reason she became a physician,” said Jill Heins, senior director, nationwide health systems improvement and indoor air quality for the American Lung Association. “She got to Minnesota, and she continued her passion for testing and treating TB patients. This was an incredible woman in an era when women didn’t become physicians and often were not recognized as leaders. This was 90 years ago, and this woman was a rock star.”
The Dr. Kathleen Jordan Project will take place Sept. 12-16, 2024, and will feature displays, exhibits and speakers at three historical locations in downtown Granite Falls, located about two hours west of Minneapolis.
“The first venue will be dedicated to her life prior to moving to Granite Falls; her years in Algeria, college and medical school, featuring beautiful art and photography,” said Linda Heen. In the second location, “we’re using multiple rooms to tell the story of Kathleen in Granite Falls,” including her work at the sanitorium, as well as Dr. Jordan’s life after the death of her husband. In 1967, Dr. Jordan relocated to a town outside of Jackson, Mississippi to teach biology at a Black residential preparatory school. She later returned to Granite falls, resuming and continuing her many civic, public service and humanitarian efforts until her death in 1993.
The third venue highlights the history of tuberculosis, medical advancements in prevention and treatment, and the ongoing prevalence of the disease. The American Lung Association will have a display at this venue, highlighting the history of the organization, including the role of Christmas Seals, in supporting tuberculosis testing, treatment and care, which effectively curbed the devastation of tuberculosis in America.
Event speakers include Mary Krugerud, author of two books on tuberculosis in Minnesota; Dr. Kathleeen Jordan, a San Francisco physician and namesake (no relation) who treated children in Uganda with tuberculosis; and Heins.
"We are thrilled to collaborate with the Dr. Kathleen Jordan Project to celebrate the incredible legacy of Dr. Jordan and the groundbreaking efforts to combat tuberculosis,” said Heins. “This event not only honors the past but also serves as a reminder of the ongoing need to educate and protect our communities from this infectious disease. We look forward to sharing our history, including the impact of the Christmas Seals campaign, and engaging with the Granite Falls community in this meaningful celebration.”
Nearby schools will be sending students to view the exhibits,” said Linda Heen. “Young people today don’t know what TB is. They have no idea of the historic impact on the world, or the fact that it was an issue for their grandparents and great grandparents. We need to get the high school students in here to understand what an issue this was and continues to be.”
Advancements in prevention, testing, and treatment have significantly controlled TB in the U.S. However, the disease persists, remaining the world’s deadliest infectious disease claiming 1.8 million lives each year (one person every 20 seconds). There were also 160 new TB cases reported in Minnesota in 2023.
“The Kathleen Jordan project has brought to light for the medical community and the general population, the extensiveness and seriousness of the effects of TB on the world’s population,” said Darrell Carter, MD, a Granite Falls family physician and a Jordan Committee member. “Dr. Kathleen Jordan had demonstrated that an organized approach to the diagnosis and treatment of a wide-spread disease can have a very positive effect on the health of the community.”
For more information, please visit DrKathleenJordanProject.org.
Blog last updated: August 28, 2024
