C. Everett Koop, MD

C. Everett Koop, MD, was an early pioneer of health content on the Web, when, in 1997, he founded a health content portal bearing his name, drkoop.com. The Web site was one of the first of its kind, offering visitors a healthcare portal with integrated, dynamic health content, interactive communities and tools as well as healthcare related products and online services for purchase.

The site was founded by Dr. Koop and a partner to help consumers better manage their health with “comprehensive, relevant and timely information.” At the time, their objective was to establish the healthcare portal as “the most trusted source of consumer healthcare information and services on the Internet.” It was valued at nearly $1 billion before the dot.com bust. The Web site is now owned by Remedy Health Media.

Dr. Koop received his medical degree in 1941 from Cornell Medical School and his doctor of science in medicine from the University of Pennsylvania in 1947. Among his many pioneering medical accomplishments that surgeons still practice to this day, Dr. Koop also:

• Held the position of Surgeon-in-Chief at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia from 1946-1981, where he established the nation’s first neonatal surgical intensive care unit.
• Became a professor of pediatric surgery in 1959 and professor of pediatrics in 1971 at the University of Pennsylvania School Of Medicine.
• Became the first Editor of Journal of Pediatric Surgery.
• Authored The Right to Live, The Right to Die in 1976.
• Co-created the film series What Ever Happened to the Human Race?
• Was Appointed Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health in February 1981 by President Ronald Reagan.
• Was sworn into office as Surgeon General of the United States in January 1982.

Later in his career, Dr. Koop held three professorships at Dartmouth Medical School and was a senior scholar at the C. Everett Koop Institute. He is regarded as a pioneer in online health and was the first Surgeon General to become a “household” name. Dr. Koop passed away in early 2013 at the age of 96 and is inducted posthumously into the Healthcare Internet Hall of Fame for his contribution to the Healthcare Internet space.