The Double E.M.D.

In 1954, a young Auburn freshman agreed to do a favor for a friend. That favor subsequently led to a long and successful career in medicine for Dr. Eugene Birdsong.

Words by Erin Shockey | Images by Blakeney Clouse 

 “In Iuka, Mississippi, I learned a lot about the ‘Art of Medicine.’ I learned that the little lady in room four was not ‘the Appendectomy’ as patients were so often referred to during school and internship. She actually had a name. I learned to never, never, never compromise your values, medical knowledge or skills. I reaffirmed something that had been instilled in my life from a good home: never, never, never let image compromise your integrity. Image is the type of person that people think you are, but integrity is the type of person that you really are.”

 - Dr. Gene Birdsong, in a speech at a Huntsville Hospital 

On a brisk morning in the Spring of 1954, Dr. William Eugene ‘Gene’ Birdsong said “yes” to an opportunity that altered his life forever. 

Then a freshman at Auburn University, Dr. Birdsong was asked to sit with a student at the Auburn infirmary who had been injured in a car accident. The experience exposed Birdsong to the world of medicine in a way he had never experienced before. In that moment, he became compelled to explore the possibilities of a career in medicine. This spark of interest soon became all-encompassing and led to an impactful, lifelong career touching thousands of lives. 

Gene Birdsong grew up in Jackson, Mississippi, and attended Auburn University from 1953-1956. After changing his field of study from engineering to pre-medicine, he was accepted into medical school during his third year at Auburn and went on to earn his medical degree in 1960 from the University of Mississippi in Jackson. He knew that as a doctor he would truly make a difference in peoples’ lives, which is exactly what he wanted in a career.

“I didn’t graduate from Auburn before going to medical school and I have had many friends tease me throughout the years for that,” Dr. Birdsong says, smiling. “In 2016 my family and friends submitted a copy of my medical school transcript to Auburn and I was awarded a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering. I kept telling people I was a ‘double E.M.D,’” he laughs. 

After graduating from medical school, Dr. Birdsong stayed in Mississippi to work in a general practice. During that time, he also served as a flight surgeon in the United States Army for almost two years. 

In 1965, the opportunity of a lifetime opened to meet the needs of a community in Jasper, Alabama. The obstetrician there was delivering 300-400 babies a year but didn’t have a pediatrician to take care of the newborns. As it turns out, a local radiologist knew just the man for the job—one of his medical school classmates, Dr. Gene Birdsong. 

“The two things I enjoyed most in medical school were pediatrics and obstetrics, so I was excited when I heard of the opportunity in Jasper,” he says. 

Without hesitation, Dr. Birdsong packed his bags and moved to Walker County to assist the doctor there and begin his own family practice. The doctor became a great mentor for Birdsong in obstetrics, which led him to develop an obstetrical practice of his own. 

“When you deliver a newborn and there are other children in the family, quite often the whole family rotates to your practice,” Birdsong says. “Obstetrics was a good field for my family practice in that way.”

While he worked to build a successful practice of his own, Dr. Birdsong also met needs in Walker County’s emergency room. When he first arrived in Jasper, there was no emergency room coverage and Walker County led the state in automobile deaths. Local physicians were put on a rotation system to take calls for the emergency room. Birdsong still recalls the staff’s openness towards him taking ER calls upon his arrival here. Over time, he became the first physician called to treat ER patients. 

Dr. Birdsong also served his community on the football field. For many years, he was the team physician for the Walker Vikings. Often, he would spot individuals on or around the field whom he had literally brought into the world. “One night, Walker High School was playing Curry and I counted 11 defensive starters, 11 offensive starters, and a cheerleading complement that I had delivered,” he beams. 

 Over the course of his 43 years in practice, Birdsong has treated patients of all ages, ranging from before birth to 101 years old. He has cared for over 10,000 newborns and delivered close to 8,000 babies. In one fascinating case, Birdsong had the privilege of delivering babies for three generations.

 While a significant majority of Dr. Birdsong’s practice was spent serving the people of Walker County, his heart for missions led him to serve across the world on numerous occasions. For seven consecutive years he participated in various international mission trips to places like Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Liberia and Honduras. Dr. Birdsong sacrificed time with his wife, Pat, and their children to travel to these countries and serve families like he would want someone to serve his own.

 “There have been a couple of cases where I dealt with a situation in my practice in Jasper and a similar situation occurred on the mission field,” Dr. Birdsong says. “I was able to give my recommendations to the doctors on what they should do.” 

 While serving on missions, Dr. Birdsong was able to deliver babies on three different continents. 

Even though his time on the mission field has ended, he still cherishes the opportunities he’s had to serve families and children overseas. His love for children and families knew no bounds surpassing borders and language barriers—his focus on these missions was to love and serve people with knowledge and integrity. 

Since retiring in 2003, Dr. Birdsong has acclimated to a slower pace of life. Retirement has given him more time to spend with his growing family of 6 children, 12 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren. Even now, he remains close with many of his patients and often reflects on the years spent serving Jasper. 

“I loved the work I was doing while I was practicing,” Dr. Birdsong says fondly. “The interaction with the families and getting connected with the families was the best part.”

He recognizes that whether he was in moments of lassitude or joy, his faith was the cornerstone of his practice and he was exactly where he needed to be.

“Jasper has been a very good town for me,” Dr. Birdsong says. “On April 28, 1965, the journey of a lifetime began and didn’t slow down for 38 years. I am very blessed.”

Not bad for a double E.MD. 78