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WHEELING -- While today is National Doctors' Day, it is no holiday for area physicians on the front line of the current COVID-19 crisis.
No one knows that better than spouses of the local doctors who are meeting the pandemic head-on while maintaining their practices. Lynn Comerci, wife of Dr. James Comerci, a family medicine specialist who has been practicing in Wheeling for more than 30 years, said it's more important than ever to extend a thank-you to doctors everywhere.
Lynn Comerci is the spokeswoman for the Ohio County Medical Society Alliance which is comprised of spouses of local physicians. The Alliance is celebrating National Doctors' Day but there are no parties or cakes or gatherings as the coronavirus has caused people to keep their distance from one another.
However, to honor doctors and their work, the Alliance has chosen to make a $500 donation to Project HOPE, the local street medicine outreach program that helps the homeless.
The outreach program was started by Dr. William Mercer and registered nurse Crystal Bauer. It now includes a mobile unit that helps to reach and care for the homeless population that has grown locally in recent years. The number of doctors and nurses who donate their time to Project HOPE also has expanded.
"Physicians have always worked to care for the sick and promote the overall well-being of their patients, especially now with this pandemic, they are among those on the front line. This is our way of expressing our gratitude for what they do," Lynn Comerci said.
National Doctors' Day is held every year on March 30 in the United States. The first Doctor's Day observance was in 1933 in Winder, Georgia. Eudora Brown Almond, wife of Dr. Charles B. Almond, decided to set aside a day to honor physicians. This first observance included the mailing of greeting cards and placing flowers on graves of deceased doctors.
On March 30, 1958, a resolution commemorating Doctors' Day was adopted by the U.S. House of Representatives.
In 1990, legislation was introduced in the House and Senate to establish a national Doctors' Day. Following overwhelming approval by Congress, President George Bush signed the measure designating March 30 as National Doctors' Day.