Temple University School of Medicine - Skull Yearbook (Philadelphia, PA)

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An avid sportsman and devotee of literature and the humanities, Dr. Benson took his undergraduate degree at Yale University and went on to medical school at Northwestern University in Chicago. His vital interest in people necessitated a shift in career plans from general practice and internal medicine to psychiatry. Having further defined his professional goals, Dr. Benson began his psychiatry residency at Temple in 1958, and since completing training in 1961, has become an integral part of the Psychiatry Department. He has been intimately involved with the instruction of house officers, medical students, and other health professionals in psychiatric concepts and modes of therapy. In 1972, Dr. Benson attained membership in the Philadelphia Psychoanalytic Society and in 1976 was appointed full professor of psychiatry at Temple.

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JOHN R. BENSON, M.D. From the beginning John Benson's relationship with the Class of 1980 has been a positive one. The initial encounter was especially propitious. Late in the summer preceding freshman year, the Class of 1980 first assembled fororienta lion, one-hundred eight individuals of disparate back grounds, united only by feelings of self doubt and inadequacy concerning their ability to become competent physicians. The first day’s program did little to allay these fears. As departments outlined assigned readings and suggested texts, apprehension only increased. In this atmosphere of collective anxiety, Dr. Benson first addressed the Class of 1980. It proved to be a particularly appropriate setting. As he recounted personal vignettes of he and his classmates attempting to cope With medical school, bringing to life “the grind”, the jock”, and “the one upsman”, spirits began to rise. Dr. Benson quickly put to rest rumors of a “Temple Pyramid System”. The notion that there were only 90 sophomore slots to be divided among 180 freshman simply was not true. He further dispelled the misconception that individuals with an IQ less than 200 were accepted on a trial basis only. Perhaps Dr. Benson’s greatest triumph occurred in surgery, where, after reliving the episode of suturing himself into the wound, he immediately restored the confidence of all would be surgeons. You all belong here You can and will become M.D.’s. We’re all committed to help you to do that.” With his pledge of support and droll wit, he gave the fledgling class a most precious gift, Hope. Dr. Benson had engendered a sense of cautious optimism within us.

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Members of a truly medical family, Mrs. Benson, a graduate of Western College for Women, will receive her MSW from Bryn Mawr College in May and eventually plans to do marital counseling with her husband. Daughter Linda, 24, attends Hahnemann Medical College, while Paul, 26, is a well known member of the Temple Medical Class of '80. Favorite family activities include competitive tennis, summers on Long Beach Island, and discussions of literature of all types. Dr. and Mrs. Benson particularly enjoy traveling together with Hawaii and the Far East being favorite spots of interest. Recognizing his superior didactic skills and steadfast committment to medical education, the Student Body voted him the Golden Apple Award for excellence in teaching in 1977. In 1979, he received a similar honor, the Lindback Award, from Temple University for distinguished leaching. Dr. Benson has maintained a vital interest in the quality of medical education and the health of medical students and physicians in general. Countless individuals have sought him out for personal guidance. He has given selflessly of his time and energies in numerous lectures and discussions and, of course, a receptive ear to the student perplexed by the problems dealt with in clinical psychiatry. Most of all, however, he taught us to be human, to face the inequities and suffering encountered in medicine, while preserving some perspective, while maintaining a sense of humor. John Benson has taught us to smile. f------ 1 I.J.G. 7