Trailblazing in Medicine: Dr. Salpi Adrouny’s Journey of Compassion and Service
This Women’s History Month, we celebrate the extraordinary journey of Dr. Salpi Adrouny, a trailblazing physician who shattered barriers and redefined what was possible for women in medicine. At a time when female doctors were few and far between, she earned her place at Tulane University’s Medical School in the early 1970s, proving that determination and passion could break through any glass ceiling. Now, decades later, Dr. Adrouny continues to embody the spirit of service, dedicating her expertise and compassion to the patients of Good Samaritan Health Centers of Gwinnett. Her legacy is one of courage, resilience, and an unwavering commitment to healing and service.
Roots in Aleppo: A Family’s Journey to Hope
Dr. Adrouny’s story begins in Aleppo, Syria, where she was born into an Armenian family seeking refuge after the Armenian Genocide.
“I am of Armenian heritage. I was born in the ancient city of Aleppo, Syria, where there was a refugee community of Armenians after the genocide that happened against us 120 years ago in Turkey,” she explained. Like many Armenian families, hers found a temporary haven in Syria.
Her father was a pharmacist and biochemist who, after World War II, recognized the increasing volatility in the Middle East – especially for Christian Armenians. In 1950, determined to secure a better future for his family, he moved to the United States to pursue graduate studies at Emory University in Atlanta. Meanwhile, Dr. Adrouny’s mother, a teacher, stayed behind in Aleppo with three young children until they could join Dr. Adrouny’s father in America four years later.
A New Start in Atlanta
In 1955, Dr. Adrouny, then just ten years old, arrived in Atlanta with her mother, her eight-year-old sister, and her three-year-old brother. Atlanta in the mid-1950s was a city navigating the currents of postwar expansion, cultural shifts, and the civil rights movement. Meanwhile, Dr. Adrouny remembers the sounds of Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash filling the airwaves, and hula hoops were a nationwide craze. It was an era being reshaped by its social fabric. For a young girl from Aleppo, adapting to life in the American South brought a mix of wonder and challenges. This new start, shaped by her parents’ perseverance, instilled in Dr. Adrouny the values of hard work, education, and compassionate service that would guide her throughout her life.
Among the First Women at Tulane Medical School
Dr. Adrouny’s pursuit of higher education began at Newcomb College, the women’s section of Tulane University, where she majored in biology and minored in French. After earning her bachelor’s degree in 1967, Dr. Adrouny was accepted to a teaching assistantship graduate program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the fall of 1967. While at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, she earned a master’s degree in biology and reproductive physiology in 1971.
Yet, her desire to make a direct impact on patients’ lives led her back to Tulane University to study medicine.
When Dr. Adrouny enrolled at Tulane School of Medicine in the early 1970s, women were still a distinct minority in medical programs. The class that preceded hers had only ten women, while her own class saw that number increase to twenty-five – still just a fraction of the incoming students. Her experience, she recalls, was nonetheless supportive. The few women enrolled naturally banded together and found role models in the female professors who had paved the way. This camaraderie and the broader changes brought about by the women’s movement in the 1970s helped encourage Dr. Adrouny to follow her passion for family medicine, a specialty that allowed her to care holistically for people at every stage of life.
A Dedicated Career in Family Medicine
After graduating from Tulane School of Medicine in 1976, Dr. Adrouny completed a three-year Family Practice Residency at St. Luke’s Hospital in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She then worked at a health maintenance organization (HMO), where she could “really see the whole picture in a family.” Delivering babies, managing chronic diseases, and educating patients on preventive care became core pillars of her practice.
Over the years, Dr. Adrouny’s career took her from Milwaukee back to Atlanta, where she continued serving patients in various medical groups. She eventually retired after a decade at Kaiser Permanente, but retirement did not dampen her passion for medicine or her desire to serve.
Serving with Heart at Good Sam Gwinnett
Although Dr. Adrouny officially retired from full-time practice in 2011, her dedication to helping others never wavered. She began volunteering at Good Samaritan Gwinnett in 2012, bringing her wealth of clinical experience to serve a diverse patient population – many of whom face significant barriers to healthcare. From hypertension and diabetes management to women’s health services, Dr. Adrouny loves the variety of care she provides and the opportunity to meet patients “from all around the world.”
“The word ‘doctor’ means teacher, and that’s fundamental to the work that I do,” she says. “One of the most important traits a physician must have is the ability to listen. Communication is such a huge part of healing.”
Dr. Adrouny’s devotion to medicine is inseparable from her Christian faith and her strong family ties.
“I follow the teachings of Jesus… we have to take care of the least amongst us,” she explained.
This passion for helping others resonates with her own family story – escaping hardship in Syria and building a new life in Atlanta.
Honoring a Trailblazer
This Women’s History Month, we celebrate Dr. Salpi Adrouny’s remarkable journey as one of the early women in Tulane’s medical program, her lifelong devotion to family medicine, and her steadfast commitment to serving the most vulnerable in our community. She exemplifies the spirit of resilience, compassion, and service – qualities that inspire us all here at Good Samaritan Gwinnett.
If you would like to learn more about how to support our mission or volunteer alongside remarkable individuals like Dr. Adrouny, please visit our website at www.goodsamgwinnett.org.
