From the CNN profile:
Tony Hansberry, 20, Jacksonville, Florida
Tony Hansberry was likely the only 14-year-old boy making a
difference in gynaecology. Attending a high school with a program geared
towards medicine gave Hansberry the chance to intern at the nearby UF Health
Shands Hospital in Gainesville, Florida. There, he was challenged to improve
how the vaginal cuff (the top of the vagina) is sutured after a hysterectomy.
Typically, the cuff is sewn together with a horizontal stitch to decrease the
risk of infection after surgery, but Hansberry suggested that a vertical stitch
might be faster.
When demonstrating his method on a mannequin, he was able to suture the area three times faster than the traditional method. It proved so much more effective that the supervising doctor still uses his method today, having nicknamed it the "Hansberry Stich."
Now 20, Hansberry is studying chemistry at Florida
Agricultural and Mechanical University. He hopes to become a surgeon someday,
and make a difference in the lives of others.
"That's what I love about the idea of medicine," he
says. "The fact that you can change so many lives with just your
hands."
Read the full article here.