The People’s Doctor- C. L. Brumback Born April 19, 1914

To measure Dr. C. L. “Carl” Brumback’s influence, look at these numbers:
One decade ago, only 40 percent of the county’s 7-month-old infants were immunized; today, 98 percent are. Ten years ago, 20 percent of Palm Beach County’s pregnant women received no prenatal care; today, only 3 percent don’t.
In the last three decades, the life expectancy here has risen by 10 years.
Brumback, Palm Beach County’s first public health doctor, has spent nearly 50 years improving life for a diverse and growing population. In 1950, the young doctor tooled down the slick muck roads to the Glades in his Nash station wagon, determined to care for some 55,000 migrant workers.
By 1951, Brumback had identified 56 health hazards in Palm Beach County. Pollution was No. 1. “Raw sewage was being dumped into Lake Worth. The gas coming off Lake Okeechobee would tarnish silverware,” he said in 1998. He photographed the horrendous conditions to sway public sympathy.
At 85, he still goes to the office on Evernia Street every day to run the public health residency program that has been copied around the country.
“He was a true innovator,” said Dr. Jean Malecki, the health department’s director, who was hired by Brumback 15 years ago. “He was ahead of his time with many of his ideas.”
Brumback was among the first to enlist nutritionists and social workers to create a total wellness plan for migrant workers. His philosophy: Every dollar spent in prevention can save thousands in treatment.
“I would often be asked who it is I work for. Is it the state, the county or the federal government?” he said. “I tell them I work for the people. The people.”
- DAN MOFFETT