Allan Rosenfield (April 28, 1933 – October 12, 2008) was an advocate for

women's health Women's health differs from that of men in many unique ways. Women's health is an example of population health, where health is defined by the World Health Organization as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not mer ...

during the worldwide

AIDS pandemic The global epidemic of HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) began in 1981, and is an ongoing worldwide public health issue. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), as of 2021, HIV/AI ...

as dean of the

Columbia Mailman School of Public Health The Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health is the public health graduate school of Columbia University. Located on the Columbia University Medical Center campus in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, the school i ...

Early life

Rosenfield was born in

Brookline, Massachusetts Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton, A ...

on April 28, 1933. He received a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in biochemistry from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

in 1955. In 1959, he graduated from

Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons (VP&S) is the graduate medical school of Columbia University, located at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan. Founded i ...

with his

M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. ...

degree.Segleken, Roger
"Dr. Allan Rosenfield, Women’s Health Advocate, Dies at 75"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', October 16, 2008.

Career

After receiving his medical degree, he worked in

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

with the

Population Council The Population Council is an international, nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The Council conducts research in biomedicine, social science, and public health and helps build research capacities in developing countries. One-third of its res ...

in the 1960s, in a country with a severe lack of physicians and a 3.3% annual

population growth Population growth is the increase in the number of people in a population or dispersed group. Actual global human population growth amounts to around 83 million annually, or 1.1% per year. The global population has grown from 1 billion in 1800 to ...

rate, providing advice to the ministry of public health on reproductive, maternal and child health issues. In the six years he spent in Thailand, he started a family and learned the Thai language. At the time, IUDs and birth control pills were only available by prescription from a doctor. This meant that the most effective types of birth control were not available to 99% of the Thailand population. The national family planning program Rosenfield helped develop trained auxiliary midwives to prescribe birth control. Thailand's annual population growth rate dropped to 0.8% by the year 2000. His work with the Population Council also took him to other countries in Asia and Africa, where he first realized the difficulties of lowering birthrates in poor countries. He was a leader in promoting the view that necessary steps for controlling population growth and achieving economic development were the provision of reproductive health programs and the raising of the status of women.

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

hired him in 1975 as a professor of

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...

and obstetrics and gynecology, and as director of the university's new Center for Population and Family Health. In this role, he focused the Center both on efforts in establishing community-based programs in the

Upper Manhattan Upper Manhattan is the most northern region of the New York City borough of Manhattan. Its southern boundary has been variously defined, but some of the most common usages are 96th Street, the northern boundary of Central Park ( 110th Street), ...

surrounding the school and in programs with a global reach. Until he was appointed dean of the Mailman School of Public Health in 1986, Rosenfield worked on a hands-on basis on the programs he had initiated, including the clinics for adolescent men and women, and clinics in local intermediate and high schools. In 1985, Rosenfield and Deborah Maine had the article ''Maternal Mortality — A Neglected Tragedy: Where is the M in MCH?'' published in ''

The Lancet ''The Lancet'' is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal and one of the oldest of its kind. It is also the world's highest-impact academic journal. It was founded in England in 1823. The journal publishes original research articles, ...

'', drawing attention to deaths of women in the third-world in pregnancy and childbirth. Efforts were made to improve access to health care for pregnant women in response to the article by international health groups. Rosenfield worked with the

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), a merging of the William H. Gates Foundation and the Gates Learning Foundation, is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was l ...

to create more than 85 "safe motherhood" programs worldwide. In 2000, at the

International AIDS Conference The International AIDS Society (IAS) is the world's largest association of HIV/AIDS professionals, with 11,600 members from over 170 countries , including clinicians, people living with HIV, service providers, policy makers and others. It aims to r ...

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, Rosenfield followed up on his calls for improved access to maternal care, leading to the creation of the MTCT-Plus Initiative to help prevent

mother-to-child transmission A vertically transmitted infection is an infection caused by pathogenic bacteria or viruses that use mother-to-child transmission, that is, transmission directly from the mother to an embryo, fetus, or baby during pregnancy or childbirth. It can ...

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

. By the time of his death, the initiative had brought comprehensive health care to hundreds of thousands of women and infants throughout the world. Rosenfield was national chairman of the

Planned Parenthood Federation of America The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reven ...

in 1985 and 1986. In 2006, he received the "Maggie" Award, highest honor of the Planned Parenthood Federation, in tribute to their founder,

Margaret_Sanger Margaret Higgins Sanger (born Margaret Louise Higgins; September 14, 1879September 6, 1966), also known as Margaret Sanger Slee, was an American birth control activist, sex educator, writer, and nurse. Sanger popularized the term "birth control ...

. He also served as chairman of the Program Board of the

American Foundation for AIDS Research amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research, known until 2005 as the American Foundation for AIDS Research, is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to the support of AIDS research, HIV prevention, treatment education, and the advocacy of ...

. Rosenfield was an honorary member of the National Board of Public Health Examine

an entity that provides the first and only core certification for public health professionals and graduates of CEPH-accredited institutions. The main building of the Mailman School of Public Health on West 168th Street was named for Rosenfield in 2006, with Columbia's president, Lee C. Bollinger, noting that "over the last three decades at Columbia, Allan has not only inspired and trained generations of public health leaders, he has helped define what a school of public health should be."

Personal life

Rosenfield had been diagnosed with both

amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most comm ...

(ALS) and

myasthenia gravis Myasthenia gravis (MG) is a long-term neuromuscular junction disease that leads to varying degrees of skeletal muscle weakness. The most commonly affected muscles are those of the eyes, face, and swallowing. It can result in double vision, dro ...

in 2005, two separate diseases that affect motor nerve functions. After he received these diagnosis, tributes came from around the world, including a song dedication by

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by his stage name Bono (), is an Irish singer-songwriter, activist, and philanthropist. He is the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Born and raised in Dublin, he attended M ...

at a U2 concert.Perez-Pena, Richard
"Frail and Ill, but Still Focused on Global Health"
''

'', June 12, 2006. Accessed November 2, 2008. Rosenfield died of ALS at age 75 on October 12, 2008 at his home in

Hartsdale, New York Hartsdale is a hamlet located in the town of Greenburgh, Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 5,293 at the 2010 census. It is a suburb of New York City. History Hartsdale, a CDP/hamlet/post-office in the town of Green ...

, and is survived by his daughter, his son, and his wife Clare.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rosenfield, Allan 1933 births 2008 deaths People from Brookline, Massachusetts American public health doctors Columbia University faculty Deaths from motor neuron disease Neurological disease deaths in New York (state) People from Hartsdale, New York Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons alumni Harvard College alumni Members of the National Academy of Medicine