John C. Greene
| John C. Greene | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 19, 1926 |
| Died | October 13, 2016 |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Dentist, public health administrator |
| Website | jgsucsf |
John C. Greene (July 19, 1926 – October 13, 2016) was an American dentist and public health administrator. He was an Admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and served as the Deputy Surgeon General of the United States under President Carter from 1978 to 1981. He was the highest ranking non-physician public health officer in the history of the US government.
Greene was known for his Oral Hygiene Index (with coauthor Jack Vermillion; Greene Vermillion 1960), which provided a systematic approach to quantifying bacterial plaque on teeth, his role in creating public policy for treating dental patients during the AIDS outbreak in the 1980s, and his work to prevent smokeless tobacco use among professional baseball players (Ernster et al. 1990).
Greene was born in Ashland Kentucky, one of six children, to Norman and Ella Greene. Norman was a postal worker and farmer after retiring as a semi-professional baseball player.
Greene lied about his age in order to join the Navy and served in World War II from 1943 to 1945.
After the war he returned to Ashland Kentucky where he planned to get a degree in electrical engineering. He soon found the field was flooded with other GIs who had the same intention.
While searching for an alternate career path, he met with the local dentist who encouraged Greene to change his plans and become a dentist, influencing his life’s direction.
Greene earned an associate degree in pre-nursing from Ashland Community College. He went on to the University of Louisville School of Dental Medicine where he received a DMD degree in 1952. He received a Masters in Public Health degree from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health in 1961. He received honorary doctorates from 3 universities.
Greene served in the Public Health Service from the time he received his degree in 1961 until his retirement in 1981.
His work took him around the world studying the health impact of the environment on indigenous people in South America, India, and Asia.
He authored more than 100 publications and is known for his Oral Hygiene Index, which provided a systematic approach to quantifying bacterial plaque on teeth. The simplified version of this index is still used by the World Health Organization and in many countries around the world.
He retired with more than 30 years of service.
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