Organizational Histories > Commanders of the U.S. Army Medical Department

RONALD R. BLANCK, Surgeon General, 1 October 1996-30June 2000, was sworn in as the thirty-ninth Surgeon General of the Army.He also serves as the Commander of the United States Army Medical Command,headquartered at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, with over 46,000 military personneland 26,000 civilian employees worldwide.

General Blanck was awarded a Bachelor of Science in 1963 from JuniataCollege and his Doctor of Osteopathy from the Philadelphia College of OsteopathicMedicine in 1967.

After entering the Army in 1968, General Blanck was initially assignedas a general medical officer, U.S. Army Vietnam. Following an assignmentas a general medical officer at Fort Myer, Virginia, General Blanck completeda residency in Internal Medicine at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in1973, and is board certified in Internal Medicine. He then served as AssistantChief of the General Medicine Service and the Assistant Chief, Departmentof Medicine, at Walter Reed. Later assignments included: Assistant Deanof Student Affairs, Uniformed Services University School of Medicine; Chief,Department of Medicine, Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas;and Chief, Medical Corps Career Activities Office, Office of The SurgeonGeneral. General Blanck served as Commander, U.S. Army Hospital, Berlin,and as Commander, Frankfurt Army Regional Medical Center, Frankfurt, Germany.He went on to become the Director of Professional Services and Chief, MedicalCorps Affairs, Office of The Surgeon General, Falls Church, Virginia. Mostrecently he served as Commander of Walter Reed Army Medical Center andthe North Atlantic Regional Medical Command (NARMC).

A graduate of the Army War College, General Blanck also served as ClassPresident. He is a Fellow and past Governor of the American College ofPhysicians, and an active member of the Association of Military Surgeonsof the United States, the American Osteopathic Association, the Associationof Military Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons, and the American MedicalAssociation.

General Blanck has held many academic positions throughout his career,to include: Assistant Professor of Medicine (Clinical), Georgetown University;Associate Professor of Medicine, Uniformed Services University School ofMedicine; and Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of Texas HealthScience Center at San Antonio; Distinguished Professor of Military andEmergency Medicine, Uniformed Services University School of Medicine; andAdjunct Professor, University of North Texas Health Science Center at FortWorth. He has published many scientific articles.

His military awards include the Distinguished Service Medal, the DefenseSuperior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star, and the MeritoriousService and Army Commendation Medals.