Vivien Thomas: The Carpenter Who Helped Pioneer Heart Surgery
He never went to college, was paid as a janitor, and stood on a step stool coaching the surgeon through one of the first heart operations on a baby. The story of Vivien Thomas, and what it means for the 40,000 American babies born with heart defects every year.
A dream put on hold
Vivien Thomas was born in Louisiana in 1910 and grew up in Nashville, Tennessee. He learned carpentry from his father and brothers and graduated from Pearl High School in 1929. He wanted to become a doctor and saved money for college1.
Then the Great Depression hit. The stock market crash put his plans on hold, and when Nashville's banks failed in 1930, his savings were wiped out1. He needed work, and he found it in a research lab at Vanderbilt University with a young surgeon named Alfred Blalock.
Doing a scientist's work on a janitor's pay
Thomas learned fast. Within a few years he was running complex experiments and performing delicate surgery on lab animals. By the mid 1930s he was doing the work of a postdoctoral researcher, yet Vanderbilt classified and paid him as a janitor1. He was a Black man working in a segregated city, and the system refused to see what he was2.
His carpentry skills turned out to matter. He designed many of the surgical instruments he and Blalock used, and helped work out key surgical techniques2. When Blalock became chief of surgery at Johns Hopkins in 1941, he insisted that Thomas come with him2.
- Born
- 1910, Louisiana
- Grew up in
- Nashville, Tennessee
- Known for
- Helping develop the blue baby operation, 1944
- Worked at
- Vanderbilt, then Johns Hopkins
- Honored
- Honorary Doctor of Laws, Johns Hopkins, 1976
- Died
- 1985, age 75
The blue baby operation
Some babies are born with a heart defect called tetralogy of Fallot. Not enough blood reaches the lungs to pick up oxygen, so the babies turn bluish and struggle to survive. In 1943, pediatric heart doctor Helen Taussig asked Blalock whether surgery could help1.
Thomas went to work in the lab, testing the operation on animals until it worked1. On November 29, 1944, a baby girl named Eileen Saxon became the first patient1. Blalock operated. Thomas, who had done the procedure far more times than anyone, stood on a step stool behind him and coached him through it2.
- 1910BornBorn in Louisiana. His family soon moves to Nashville.
- 1929Plans derailedGraduates high school. The Depression puts college on hold.
- 1930The labHired by Alfred Blalock at Vanderbilt. His savings are lost when banks fail.
- 1941Johns HopkinsMoves to Baltimore with Blalock.
- 1944First operationCoaches Blalock through the first blue baby operation.
- 1964Leading the labBecomes director of surgical research labs after Blalock's death.
- 1971PortraitHis portrait is formally presented and hung beside Blalock's.
- 1976HonoredReceives an honorary Doctor of Laws from Johns Hopkins.
- 1985DeathDies at 75. His autobiography is published that year.
Recognition, finally
After Blalock died in 1964, Thomas stayed at Hopkins as director of the surgical research labs. He trained lab technicians and mentored Dr. Levi Watkins Jr., the first Black cardiac surgery resident at Hopkins2. Surgeons he had trained commissioned his portrait, which was hung beside Blalock's1. In 1976 Johns Hopkins gave him an honorary Doctor of Laws degree and made him an instructor in surgery2.
Thomas died in 1985. His autobiography, later reissued as Partners of the Heart, came out that year1. His story reached millions more through the PBS documentary Partners of the Heart and the HBO film Something the Lord Made2.
What his story means for families today
The work Thomas did helped open the door to modern heart surgery for children. Heart defects are still the most common type of birth defect, affecting nearly 1% of US births3. But many children now grow up and live full lives.
In 2010, about 1 million children and 1.4 million adults in the US were living with a heart defect3. Many adults who had surgery as children need ongoing heart care, even when they feel fine.
- Keep copies of their surgery and medical records
- Ask whether they should see a heart doctor who treats adults with congenital heart disease
- Keep up with regular checkups, even when they feel well
- Ask their doctor before starting a new exercise plan or pregnancy
- Call 911 for chest pain, fainting or severe trouble breathing
A lesson for the rest of us
Vivien Thomas did steady, excellent work for years without the title or pay he deserved. He trained the next generation and helped save countless children. Every workplace has people like him, quietly making things work. This week, notice one of them and say thank you.
Frequently asked questions
Who was Vivien Thomas?
A Black surgical technician who helped develop the blue baby operation at Johns Hopkins in 1944, without a college or medical degree12.
Did Vivien Thomas ever become a doctor?
No. Johns Hopkins gave him an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in 1976 and named him an instructor in surgery2. It was not a medical degree, so he could not operate on living patients1.
What is blue baby syndrome?
A name for heart defects like tetralogy of Fallot, where not enough blood reaches the lungs, so a baby's skin can look bluish1.
How common are heart defects in babies?
They affect nearly 1% of US births, about 40,000 babies a year, and are the most common type of birth defect3.
Meet more Forgotten Healers, or learn the signs of a stroke or heart attack and what your blood pressure numbers mean.
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