Dr. Jeffrey Baker

Biography

Jeffrey Paul Baker is a practicing pediatrician and medical historian whose early research focused on the history of premature infant care and neonatal medicine. His notable book, 'Machine Nursery: Incubator Technology Origins Neonatal Intensive Care,' examined the controversy surrounding the introduction of baby incubators in the early 20th century and how it reflected broader anxieties about medical technology and eugenics. Baker's research subsequently shifted to the history of vaccines, particularly addressing the public health interventions that sparked significant resistance in the late 20th century. He investigated the alleged links between vaccines and autism, contributing to the discourse around the historical roles of figures like Leo Kanner in defining autism. In recent years, Baker has explored topics of history, race, and health disparities, including a project examining local health histories in Durham, North Carolina. This work includes case studies spanning over a century, focusing on issues like tuberculosis, childbirth desegregation, HIV, and diabetes, with an emphasis on local histories' roles in establishing trust between academic health centers and communities.

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