Doctor to Patient: The Classic Teachings of William A. Ellis, D.O. Pioneer Health Physician

William Alfred "Bill" Ellis, D.O. (February 25, 1906-September 16, 1986), the son of an inventor, graduated from Philadelphia Osteopathic College in 1931 and spent the next 55 years trying to make people more healthy. Just out of his internship, he was hired by the Musebeck Shoe company, serving as Director of Research and Education. This put the young man on the road for 15 years, visiting stores, working trade shows, lecturing to various groups, instructing in proper methods of fitting shoes, and adjusting customers' feet when necessary. In 1936, after five years of eating poorly and not resting properly, Dr. Ellis had a physical breakdown, fortunately coinciding with America's physical culture movement. With a lot of information available from sources such as Drs. Weston Price and Melvin Page, he began a lifelong study of diet and blood chemistry, discovering the great importance of digestion and protein metabolism to sustained health. Dr. Ellis believed in treating the whole person, restoring balance to a patient's physiology, rather than simply addressing a single complaint and sending the patient on his or her way. Over time, he formulated a comprehensive program to restore individual patients' health while treating them for the specific conditions for which they presented. In addition to a face-to-face clinical analysis, his program included intelligent measures based on the results of four elements: CBC/blood chemistry, urinalysis, diet diary, and a hair mineral analysis, all of which are described in the companion book Doctor to Doctor, available only for licensed health professionals. Dr. Ellis used his program successfully with his own patients in Grand Rapids, Michigan and Tarentum, Pennsylvania for a number of years and gained an international reputation in 1964, when he was the subject of a Prevention magazine article about his success in treating arthritis. When he retired in 1972, Dr. Ellis moved to the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area, where he consulted to over 300 licensed physicians, outlining individual programs for their patients. The submitting physicians performed the clinical examinations themselves and managed their patients' programs over time. Being busy with consultations and traveling on the lecture circuit, during which he regularly exchanged information with other health practitioners, Dr. Ellis never took time to write down the program. However, attendees of his many lectures recorded him, either on audiotape or on paper, and this material, along with his personal notes and references, went into creation of Doctor to Patient. This book is not for self-management of health problems; this is strongly cautioned against. It does, however, contain a lot of information that can make you better prepared to work with your chosen health practitioner to restore and maintain good health. Dr. Ellis was a joy to know, and this book was a pleasure to put together in memory of this exceptional man.