Letter from Ralph M. Waters to Virginia Apgar

Waters established the first anesthesiology residency program at the University of Wisconsin in 1927, and Virginia Apgar was one of the residents in early 1937. When she became chief of the Division of Anesthesia at Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital in 1938, she consulted her mentor on several issues. In this letter, Waters wrote to let Apgar know about an upcoming visit from Dr. Nesbit, an ear, nose, and throat specialist, and discussed the best way to handle the anesthesia for the surgery he would do while in New York. Waters' reference to cradle robbing may refer to the difficulty Apgar experienced in recruiting anesthesiology residents from the New York area.