Washington, D.C., October 13, 2008
– Public health lost a great leader this week with the death of Allan Rosenfield, MD. Rosenfield, a longtime member of the American Public Health Association (APHA) and dean emeritus of Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health, passed away Sunday morning after battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Dr. Rosenfield dedicated his more than 40-year career to fighting for the health and well-being of the world’s most vulnerable populations. An obstetrician-gynecologist, Rosenfield is internationally recognized for his innovative public health work on women’s reproductive health and human rights, innovative family planning studies, strategies to address maternal mortality in poor countries, and efforts to address the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
“Dr. Rosenfield was not only a great leader for the public health community, but was also a great advocate for the populations with whom he worked,” said Georges C. Benjamin, MD, FACP, FACEP (E), executive director of APHA. “I join the family, friends, colleagues and admirers of Allan Rosenfield in mourning the loss of one of the giants in our field.”
A tribute to Dr. Rosenfield was published last year in the American Journal of Public Health.