George R. Parkerson, Jr., MD, was appointed chair of the Department of Community and Family Medicine in 1985 after the resignation of E. Harvey Estes, Jr., MD, in 1985. Parkerson led the department through a time when the clinical practice and family medicine training program were threatened. Parkerson is credited with saving the department and strengthening its relationship with Duke University Medical Center and other clinical departments. During his tenure as chair, Parkerson was instrumental in obtaining Duke University Hospital admission privileges for family doctors and moving the Duke Family Medicine Center from Durham Regional Hospital to the Duke campus in 1989. Parkerson passed away in May 2022 at the age of 94.
Read more About Dr. Parkerson's career in a 2017 profile.