Valerija Raulinaitis: The First Female Director and Chief of Staff of a VA Hospital

Dr. Valerija Raulinaitis was a trailblazing figure at VA. In October 1962, she made history by becoming the first female Chief of Staff at a VA hospital. Just nine years later, she again broke barriers by becoming the first woman to be named Director of a VA hospital. These appointments were representative of a career in medicine that spanned over three decades and exemplified perseverance, patience, and a complete commitment to her profession.

Raulinaitis was raised in Lithuania and knew from a young age that she wanted to become a doctor. She attended medical school in Kaunas and completed a residency in pediatric care. In 1938, she began practicing general medicine. However, Raulinaitis and her family were forced to flee Kaunas in 1944 due to the risk of Soviet occupation. Her medical degree was among the few possessions she took with her.[1] The family traveled to Austria and then to Germany, where they found housing in a displaced persons camp. For four years after the war, Raulinaitis practiced medicine in several of these camps, providing care for the sick and wounded.

In 1949, Raulinaitis emigrated to the United States and learned English while studying for her medical certification exams. She took a laboratory technician job at Harper Hospital in Detroit, Michigan, followed by a year-long internship at Iowa Lutheran Hospital in Des Moines. During this internship, one of the doctors suggested that she consider psychiatry, emphasizing that “a patient must be seen as a total personality” and that they “may have emotional illnesses as well as physical illnesses.” This sparked an interest in Raulinaitis, and, in her words, she “became progressively more interested in the psychiatric approach.”[2]

Raulinaitis joined Woodward State Hospital in 1951 as a staff physician and was promoted to clinical director within three years. In 1954, she transferred to the VA hospital in Downey, Illinois, as a resident in psychiatry. She went on to lead the hospital’s Women’s Neuropsychiatric Service and served as unit chief for a new treatment program in which patients were placed in fixed patient groups for the duration of their stay. This program was so successful that it was expanded to other VA hospitals.

Raulinaitis’s reputation as a respected medical professional no doubt influenced her nomination as Chief of Staff at Downey in 1962. When asked whether she anticipated any resentment over her new position, specifically due to her gender, she laughingly replied that she did not.[3] Rather, she looked forward to the new responsibilities and noted that she appreciated how “supervising the treatment of all patients presents a persistent challenge.”[4]

Raulinaitis’s career continued to gain renown. In 1963, just a year after becoming Chief of Staff, she was one of ten female VA employees honored at a luncheon in Chicago, where VA Administrator John Gleason, Jr. paid tribute to her accomplishments.[5] In 1970, she was made a fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and was also one of that year’s recipients of the Federal Woman’s Award. She and the other recipients were invited to the White House to meet President Richard Nixon, who, just over a year later, would appoint Raulinaitis as the first female Director of a VA hospital. She officially took office as the Director of the Leech Farm Road VA Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the spring of 1971.

However, that position would not be her last. She served as Director at Leech Farm Road for two years before transferring to Tacoma, Washington, to serve as Director of the American Lake VA Hospital.[6] Then, in 1975, she was named Director of the Fresno VA Hospital in California, where she supported a partnership between VA, Valley Medical Center, and the University of California, San Francisco, to set up a new medical school in Fresno. Raulinaitis herself served as the assistant dean of the school.[7] Citing a desire to return to patient care, she stepped down as Director of the Fresno VA Hospital in 1976 and was reassigned as Chief of the Medical Staff.[8]

Raulinaitis later retired and moved to California, where she passed away on February 26, 2004. Her life and career continue to serve as an inspiration for all women in the medical field, but especially at VA.

---

[1] “1st Wom[a]n VA Director in U.S.: ‘Knew Struggles of War Years,’” Republican and Herald (Pottsville, PA), November 6, 1971.

[2] Henry Bushnell, “Psychiatrist is Guided by Common Sense,” Chicago Tribune, December 5, 1963.

[3] “Lithuanian Doctor Becomes Chief of Staff at Downey and Boys! Doctor is a Lady,” Bridgeport News (Chicago, IL), October 17, 1962.

[4] Bushnell, “Psychiatrist is Guided by Common Sense.”

[5] “Honor Women in VA Work,” Chicago Tribune, November 16, 1963.

[6] “Woman Heads VA Hospital Here,” News Tribune (Tacoma, WA), September 18, 1973.

[7] “Med School: In Sight,” Fresno Bee, July 13, 1975.

[8] “Moore Will Succeed Dr. Raulinaitis as Head of Fresno VA Hospital,” Fresno Bee, March 18, 1976.