Marin Women's Hall of Fame

Patricia Halinan, MD 

Patricia Halinan was born into a large family - five older sisters and two older brothers had already preceded her into the world of 1916 San Francisco.  She was the youngest child by eleven years,  nurtured and raised by her mother - whom Dr. Halinan has described as a "tremendous wit".   Pat's father, who had alternately been a street car conductor and a teamster, provided for the family  economically, but "was  never involved much with the children".

   Dr. Halinan has described herself as a girl that was overweight and "a mouse" - frightened to death of  men and boys.  Yet, she was also a girl that loved to play the piano.  She even at one time considered a career as a concert pianist.  Pat was to be a serious piano student all the way through college.  Patricia was educated by nuns in Catholic girls schools.   She remembers most vividly her  English studies under the tutelage of Presentation nuns at Saint Agnes School.  The education she received there was so strong that she scored among the highest in English on her college preparatory exams.  Her high score is  not surprising, as Dr. Halinan has mentioned that her mother was "Gung Ho!" for education and thus received tremendous support for learning at home.

    She received other types of support from her home, too.  Of all of the family members, her older brother Vincent (he was twenty years her senior) was her closest sibling.  He was devoted to his family, in fact,  when he won his first case as a  lawyer, he used the money he earned to "buy a flat" for his widowed mother and younger brothers and sisters.  He also paid to  have the flat furnished.    He encouraged his siblings to prepare for the professions, and even paid for Patricia's college education all the way through medical school.  "He was my goad [and he] was my inspiration," she has claimed.    When she found that she was unhappy in undergraduate school at the University of California at San  Francisco, Vincent arranged for her to have an interview with Ray Lyman Wilbur, head of Stanford University.   By the end of the interview, Patricia was enrolled in Stanford, where she was to stay until her medical training was completed.

    It was  during graduate school that  Patricia says  she began to develop her ability to stand up for herself, "scrappiness" as she called it.  Perhaps that is because there  were sixty  men in her class and  only five women; perhaps because these five women were among the first to be admitted to Stanford University's medical program; and/or, perhaps because the classes were difficult and she strove for academic achievement.

    Dr. Halinan has mentioned that she encountered her first discrimination (aimed against her because she was a woman) during her medical studies.  A physiology professor was very discouraging to her, yet she needed to pass the physiology requirements.  In order to complete the physiology training, she had to fly to the only other place where it was offered - the University of Minnesota.  Luckily, not  only did she pass the course with flying colors, her U of M professor at the turned out to be the author of the physiology textbook used at Stanford.

    Later, she was denied the study of Urology because it encompassed studying both the female and male bodies in depth, including the male reproductive organs.  Not to be stopped in her quest to be a well-educated doctor, Patricia arranged to be privately tutored by one of the world's most eminent urologists.  Yet despite these obstacles, Patricia loved learning medicine, and has described medical school as one of the most rewarding periods of her life.

   Upon completion of school, she was ready to begin her internship at a local hospital.  She wanted to intern at San Francisco General Hospital to receive the broadest exposure to medicine possible, to  ensure that she could develop into the most competent doctor possible.  She was informed, however,  that all of the females in her class had been assigned internships at Children's  Hospital.  Patricia   was not happy with this exclusion, and approached the head of the intern program at S.F. General directly about the matter.  After success in gaining an internship at S.F. General, she began her studies under the direction of Dr. John Mansfield.  Dr. Mansfield was to be an important medical tutor; he even  gave Patricia her first microscope.  When she completed her internship.  The Chief of Medicine at S.F. General awarded her the first residency granted in twenty years to the "Stanford side".

   Also after her internship was completed, Patricia decided to marry a man she had met at Stanford  Medical School. But her marriage did not stop her from continuing to prepare for her medical career   (an unusual decision for the 1930's).  She continued her residency work while pregnant, and completed it while mothering a small child.  Again needed support arrived from her home.  Her mother and two oldest sisters took turns caring for her children. Eventually,  Pat and  her husband were to have six boys, though one premature son died shortly after birth.

   She entered into private practice as a cardiologist, with her offices located in San Francisco.  Her medical prospered for over six years.  But, the demands of managing a large family finally took their toll on Pat - the needs of a busy cardiology practice often conflicted with the needs of her loved ones.   Her compromise was to close her practice and instead find a medical career "with steadier hours.   Dr.  Halinan became the Director for Employees Health Service for the American Red Cross Regional Office in San Francisco, a position she held for four years.  Later, Dr. Halinan worked for Marin County as the Assistant Health Officer. Upon assuming these duties. Pat and her family moved to Marin, settling in Ross.  Again, Vincent Halinan purchased a house for them, just as he was to purchase a house for all of his brothers and sisters.

   As Assistant Health Officer, Pat's responsibilities were diverse. She served as head of crippled children's services, and she made referrals on behalf of mentally retarded children.  She was also in charge of both tuberculosis cases and the control of (some) venereal diseases programs. Slowly,  Patricia found herself becoming involved with cases of child abuse - the beginning of a life-long advocacy.  She would often testify in court on behalf of the battered child only to see the judge return the child to the abusing parents simply because she had not actually witnessed the abuse.  (She had only seen the resulting bruises and broken bones.)   

    She became an active lobbyist for the laws regarding children and their right to a life free from physical, emotional and mental abuse.  She consulted with Assemblyman Leo Ryan on specific legislation.  Her frustration over the occurrence of child abuse continues to this day.  Pat exclaims, "Children are still second class citizens....Child abuse is a social evil. It's poverty, loneliness and despair, and until these things are corrected I think children will still be abused".   Dr. Halinan established the battered child program in the county's Department of Health.

   After seven years of employment with the Marin County Health Office, Pat transferred to  a position with the County's Agency for Infant Development (A.I.D.).   As  the A.I.D. physician. Pat cared for  children ranging in age from newborn infants to three years old who were developmentally disabled or who suffered from birth defects.  In her work, she not only addressed the physical needs of her patients, she also supported the highly-stressed parents of these children.  Through education and counseling, the potential abuse of these children was often thwarted.

   During this time. Dr. Halinan was also very active in community service.   She served on the medical advisory board to the local March of Dimes.   She  received the March of Dimes Award for Meritorious Service  in recognition of her contributions.  Other advisory boards on which she served were the Respite Home for the Retarded, Marin Home Care, and the Marin Hearing and Speech Center.  She was appointed by President Reagan to serve on the Citizen's Committee on Welfare Reform.   Pat has been listed in Who's Who in California and Who's Who of Women in America.

   In the later Spring of 1988, an advancing liver cancer forced Dr. Halinan to retire from her work  with A.I.D./Easter Seals.  Her sixteen years with that agency left a legacy of caring and excellence.    Of her lifelong accomplishments.  Dr.  Patricia Halinan is the most proud of her five sons and her career  as a doctor.  "Women need to have something of their own," she stated. She has loved having the knowledge and ability to cure people. Looking back over her many years, she smiled saying "I have lived a full life with few regrets".

Three months after the Marin Women's Hall of Fame Celebration, Dr. Patricia Halinan succumbed to cancer in June, 1988.