Rosa Lee Nemir, MD (July 16, 1905 - April 27, 1992) was an American physician working as a pulmonary and

pediatrics Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until th ...

specialist. She is recognized as one of the first women in America to achieve a complete professorship in pediatrics.

Early life and education

Born in the city of Waco, Texas to Mr. and Mrs. David Nemir, Nemir attended Austin High School and graduated in 1922 with straight A's, receiving a university scholarship. She graduated in 1926 from the University of Texas and went on to further her education four years later at

Johns Hopkins University Medical School The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (JHUSOM) is the medical school of Johns Hopkins University, a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1893, the School of Medicine shares a campus with the Johns Hopkins Hospi ...

in 1930.

Career

Nemir is recognized as one of the first women in America to achieve a complete professorship in pediatrics, and as a former president of the American Medical Women's Association (1963-1964), she encouraged other American women to pursue careers in medicine and healthcare. Nemir served as the vice president of the Medical Women's International Association (MWIA) on behalf of North America, medical director for the Judson Health Center's Adolescent Girls Clinic, officer for the

Young Men's Christian Association YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

(YMCA), manager for the Brooklyn chapter of the

American Red Cross The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the desi ...

, head director of the Pediatric Laboratories at Gouverneur Hospital and Bellevue Children's Chest Clinic, and board member for the Brooklyn Kindergarten Society, Willoughby House Settlement, and Irvington House for Children. During her professional career, Nemir worked at New York University's medical school and Belluvue Hospital Center until the onset of her lung fibrosis. The central interest of her research centered around acquiring knowledge on tuberculosis and how to cure this disease. Through studies conducted on tuberculosis patients, Nemir investigated the interaction between

steroids A steroid is a biologically active organic compound with four rings arranged in a specific molecular configuration. Steroids have two principal biological functions: as important components of cell membranes that alter membrane fluidity; and a ...

and the disease, and she was also the first professional to administer the drug rifampin to treat TB in children. Additionally, Nemir analyzed the effects of rifampin in a thirty year study following a set of TB patients from their childhood into adulthood. After years of data collection and research, rifampin is a standardized drug used to treat tuberculosis (often in combination with other drugs)

Personal life

Residing in Brooklyn during the latter years of her life, Nemir died on April 27, 1992 at

Tisch Hospital NYU Langone Health is an academic medical center located in New York City, New York, United States. The health system consists of NYU Grossman School of Medicine and NYU Long Island School of Medicine, both part of New York University (NYU), and ...

of New York University (NYU) in Manhattan at the age of 86. The cause of her death was from

lung fibrosis Pulmonary fibrosis is a condition in which the lungs become scarred over time. Symptoms include shortness of breath, a dry cough, feeling tired, weight loss, and nail clubbing. Complications may include pulmonary hypertension, respiratory failu ...

. Her husband E. J. Audi died two decades prior in 1968. At the time of her death, she had three surviving children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nemir, Rosa Lee American pediatricians 1905 births 1992 deaths American women pediatricians 20th-century American physicians 20th-century American women physicians People from Waco, Texas Physicians from Texas University of Texas alumni Johns Hopkins School of Medicine alumni Deaths from pulmonary fibrosis