Mobile Medical Museum

04/24/2026

Catgut sutures?🐱No, they have nothing to do with cats. "Catgut" is actually collagen from the intestines of cattle, sheep or goats. The word "catgut" may be a shortened form of "cattle gut" or it might be a modification of "kitgut," an old word for a fiddle string, made from the same material. Catgut sutures have been used since the 3rd century A.D. In modern times, they are typically used as absorbable sutures that will dissolve inside the body so they don't have to be surgically removed later. This box of catgut sutures dates from the early 20th century. The sutures were stored in glass capsules filled with xylol. The capsule would be sterilized in an autoclave or immersed in boiling water or germicide before the sutures were applied.

04/23/2026

04/22/2026

We're less than a month away from presenting the seventh annual Mobile Community Health Leadership Awards on May 16! Here's another of our outstanding awardees, Denise Riemer!

Denise Riemer has been the Social Services Supervisor and Mental Health Services Coordinator for Mobile County Public School System since 2017. She has a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Southern Mississippi and a B.A. in English and History, magna cm laude, from Louisiana State University.

Prior to moving to Mobile, Riemer served as a legislative aide to U.S. Senator John Breaux (D-LA) in Washington, D.C., in the areas of Education, Human Services, Environment, Energy and Labor.

Riemer has 29 years of social work practice experience, ranging from private outpatient therapy practice to inpatient psychiatric and substance abuse treatment services to school social work and mental health coordination for the largest school system in Alabama.

Riemer has worked for MCPSS from 2003 to the present, starting out as a school social worker and homeless and foster care liaison. In her current position, she is responsible for coordinating, developing and implementing programs to facilitate and strengthen the social, emotional, and academic growth of all students by promoting equal access to educational opportunities through the elimination of barriers.

Denise and her team of fifteen social workers serve as liaisons between students, schools, families and the community through support, advocacy, case management, crisis intervention and referrals to community resources.

From 2011-2025, Ms. Riemer worked with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools as a presenter for the REMS/TA Center on disaster preparedness and recovery for school systems, specifically on the topic of resilience, compassion fatigue and self-care for educators and students.

Denise is married to Ken Riemer, Esq., a local consumer protection attorney. They have a daughter, Haley (age 30), a son, Barrett (age 27), and a golden lab, Cooper (age 12).

04/21/2026

Knife After Death is a podcast hosted by a forensic pathologist and an autopsy technician, exploring topics related to death, decay, forensics and disease. In this episode, they discuss Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, or "broken heart syndrome," life-threatening heart failure caused by extreme emotional or physical stress. Check it out!

32 likes, 9 comments. "Broken Heart Syndrome (Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy)"

04/20/2026

Tour assistant needed Fri 4/24, 9:30-11:30. Pay is $30. DM if interested.

04/16/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Nina Ford-Johnson, who was recently named President of the Medical Association of the State of Alabama! Dr. Ford-Johnson appears in Medicine and the Movement, reflecting on her experience at Meharry Medical College and explaining why she feels it is important for African-American physicians to join and participate in medical associations.

04/15/2026

We're just one month away from the 2026 Mobile Community Health Awards and we can't wait to celebrate the incredible work of all our awardees! Let's meet another member of the Class of 2026, Brenda Rocker.

Brenda E. Rocker has been battling stage four metastasis breast cancer for 28 years. She has survived six different breast cancers, including two that were stage four. She attributes her survival to the grace of God. In 2012, Rocker founded Project Faith Breast Cancer Intervention Program, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization serving uninsured and at-risk women who are under 40 years old. Project Faith BCIP has partnered with USA Children's and Women's Hospital Breast Cancer Center and the Mobile County Health Department to deliver free and low-cost screening mammograms for early breast cancer detection.

04/11/2026

Officials say a fire erupted Friday night at the old Searcy Hospital at Mount Vernon Arsenal, one of the state’s most historic sites.

At least 25 agencies responded to the fire at the Mobile County site, which reportedly started around 8:50 p.m.

The Mount Vernon Historical Society released a statement saying structure on the property was fully involved, and additional structures were affected but had only limited damage.

https://www.al.com/news/2026/04/one-of-alabamas-most-historic-sites-hit-by-fire-friday-night-this-loss-is-deeply-felt.html?utm_campaign=aldotcom_sf&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook

04/10/2026

From our archives: a second edition copy of Medical Inquiries and Observations, upon the Diseases of the Mind, by Dr. Benjamin Rush, the first American text on this subject. Rush was a Philadelphia-based physician and a Founding Father, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. He published this text late in life and based much of it on case studies from his own medical practice. Rush concluded that mental illness was often caused by excessive emotions, excessive sexual behaviors (especially m*sterb*tion), and excessive consumption of "ardent spirits," or hard liquor. Right around the time that the book was published, Rush's own eldest son, John, was institutionalized at Pennsylvania Hospital for his deteriorating mental health. To learn more about Dr. Rush's treatment of yellow fever and his contradictory views on race and slavery, come see our exhibition, Rebel Distempers: Medicine in Colonial and Revolutionary America.

04/08/2026

The 7th annual Mobile Community Health Leadership Awards reception may be sold out, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy hearing about all the amazing work of the 2026 class! Next up we have Debra and Reed Pennington of Bake Blue.

Debra Keevan Pennington is a Mobile County native whose life and work have been shaped by education, family, and a deep commitment to helping others grow. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of South Alabama in 1986, followed by a Master of Education with a specialization in English in 1989.
Debra began her career in education, teaching English in Mobile County Public Schools and later serving as an Instructor of Rhetoric and Composition in the English Department at the University of South Alabama. She later spent 18 years working full-time in her family business, Nibrock, Inc. In 2024, Debra retired to begin a meaningful new chapter alongside her son Reed: helping launch Bake Blue Bakery. In August 2025, the two opened Bake Blue in Spanish Fort under a cottage license. Debra’s vision for this season of life is to help Reed achieve his dream of opening a storefront bakery that not only serves great baked goods, but also creates jobs for adults with disabilities and provides a place of belonging, growth, and connection for families.

Reed McMillan Pennington (age 34) was born in Mobile, Alabama, and has built his life around perseverance, purpose, and community. At age 12, Reed was formally diagnosed with high-functioning autism. In 2006, the Pennington family moved to Spanish Fort so Reed could attend Spanish Fort High School, which offered an autism program in a state-of-the-art setting. There, he became involved in Project Outreach, a service club that connects students with disabilities and their non-disabled peers. After high school, Reed searched for a place of employment where he could truly belong and do meaningful work, he and his mother, Debra, began talking about building something of their own. Out of Reed’s love of baking — and a shared desire to create opportunities for others with disabilities — the dream for Bake Blue Bakery was born.