Heritage Snapshot: Part 201

Robert D. Mitchell, MD, was born on June 2, 1923, in Bellingham, Washington. His father worked for a logging company and his mother was a nurse. He had a brother and three sisters. He attended Auburn Academy, about 25 miles from Seattle, from which he graduated in 1940 at age 16. Because he thought studying medicine was financially out of reach, he considered teaching math, a favorite subject. Colporteuring one summer earned him a partial scholarship. He joined his sister at La Sierra College because it had more student jobs available than the nearby Walla Walla College. The future Dr. Mitchell met his future wife, Gladys Haffner, a pre-dietetic student at La Sierra. They both were accepted at the Loma Linda College of Medical Evangelists in 1943 and married in 1945 at Lynwood Academy near her home during Robert’s junior year in medicine. Gladys had just completed the dietetics course. The Mitchells have three sons: an orthodontist; radiologist; and mortgage banker. During World War II, the United States War Department virtually commandeered America's medical schools to increase the number of physicians available for the war effort. This decision had a major impact on Mitchell’s medical education. To assure itself of having a continuous supply of young physicians to serve as medical officers in the United States military, the War Department implemented its "Accelerated Program," beginning July 1, 1943. CME cooperated in the interest of national security. In the summer of 1943, the CME Board of Trustees approved the installation of Army Specialized Training Program Number 3934 on both campuses. During this time, the United States military issued uniforms and paid tuition. Students received a financial stipend greater than the wages of an unskilled laborer. Married men received even greater remuneration. Dr. Mitchell graduated in the Loma Linda Bowl on June 30, 1946, but is considered to be a member of the Class of 1947 because at that time graduates didn’t receive their diplomas until after they had entered an internship. Following a year of internship in Seattle, Dr. Mitchell enrolled in a graduate course in Internal Medicine at the White Memorial Hospital. He then took an Internal Medicine residency at a Veterans Hospital in Van Nuys, and completed it in 1950 at the Veterans Hospital in Long Beach. Following one year of practice, Dr. Mitchell served in the United States Army Active Reserve from 1952 to 1954, including six months in Korea. He joined the faculty of CME in 1951. After practicing Internal Medicine for about five years in Loma Linda, Dr. Mitchell decided to study Gastroenterology, a subspecialty he completed in June 1960. Dr. Mitchell became the first Gastroenterologist in Loma Linda. While directing the Department of Gastroenterology for about 15 years, he established the GI Laboratory at the new Loma Linda University Hospital in 1967 and organized the Department of Gastroenterology at the new Jerry L. Pettis Memorial Veterans Medical Center in 1977. Most of Dr. Mitchell’s career has been academic. He enjoyed Internal Medicine because it was a problem-solving specialty.