A beloved and respected children’s health advocate and medical pioneer, Helen Elizabeth Nash, M.D. passed away Thursday, October 4 at her home in St. Louis. She was 91.
Dr. Nash blazed trails as an African-American woman training for and starting a medical practice in the 1940s. She opened her medical practice in 1949 in the St. Louis black business district, breaking through racial barriers in the St. Louis medical community and serving as a pediatrician to three generations of children during the 45 years of her practice.
In 1949, Dr. Nash became the first African-American woman to join the attending staff at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and in 1977 she became the first to become president of the medical staff.
“Dr. Helen Nash was a trailblazer for serving the underserved in St. Louis,” said Jade D. James, MD MPH President, Mound City Medical Forum. “She truly served from the heart and her impact remains a thread in the fabric of healthcare in St. Louis.”
Along with being a “first” is dealing with anger, resentment and prejudices of others. Petite in stature, Dr. Nash was a powerhouse who stood up for who mattered most – patients.
“She had very high standards and, being one who was never shy about speaking her mind, did not hesitate to challenge anyone who for any reason failed to meet those standards,” said Will Ross, M.D., MPH, associate dean for diversity and associate professor of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine. “Through Dr. Nash I learned to never compromise my principles, to elevate those around me so they might reach their fullest potential, and to always give back to the community that gave so much to her.”
“Helen Nash was bigger than life. She was a consummate pediatrician, a mentor to her patients (and many of their parents) and a stalwart of doing the absolute best for her patients and families,” said Alan Schwartz, M.D., Ph.D., the Harriet B. Spoehrer Professor and chair of the Department of Pediatrics at WUSTL School of Medicine and St. Louis Children’s Hospital pediatrician-in-chief. “She set a high bar and spent her life helping patients exceed it. Generations of St. Louisans are all the better for Helen’s presence, engagement and resolve. We miss her deeply.”
Larry J. Shapiro, M.D., executive vice chancellor for medical affairs and dean of Washington University School of Medicine, said he met Dr. Nash while serving as a physician in training at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.
“I learned firsthand that she was an outstanding clinician and a great teacher,” Shapiro said. “There are many physicians across the country who are grateful for her wisdom and mentorship. I am one of them.”
A national historic figure, Nash along with Dr. Park White at Washington
University helped usher in the post-modern era of neonatal care. After visiting neonatal care units across the country, Dr. Nash designed a ward for premature infants that included individual bassinets and provided more strict attention to hygiene and air-conditioning. The two were instrumental in reducing the premature infant death rate at Homer G. Phillips Hospital by making relatively simple improvements in hygiene and equipment.
Long before social determinants of health became standard fare for public health practitioners, Dr. Nash treated her patients’ illnesses in the broader context of their family, economic, social, and environmental situations.
“She became an early proponent of providing family planning services to the
African-American community and an active member of the Health and Welfare
Council of Metropolitan St. Louis and the Board of the Developmentally
Disabled,” Ross said. “She promoted more team practice with staff nurses, and trained countless students, residents, and faculty at both the Homer G. Phillips Hospital and St. Louis Children’s Hospital.”
Dr. Helen Nash was part of a three generation legacy of physicians, which included her father, her brother and her niece.
“Dad and Helen were role models for me coming up, and it’s really great to know that she’s lived a wonderful life and touched so many lives in St.
Louis,” Nash’s niece, pediatrician Dr. Alison Nash said last year in an interview for The American.
Dr. Helen Nash was born August 8, 1921 in Atlanta, Georgia, the third of six children born to Dr. Homer E. Nash, Sr. and Marie Antoinette Graves Nash.
She earned a bachelor’s degree from Spelman College in Atlanta in 1941 and a medical degree from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee in 1945.
She completed her internship and pediatric residency, including chief residency at Homer G. Phillips Hospital in St. Louis and joined the medical staff upon completion.
In 1964, she married James Abernathy and together they shared their love of travel, boating, and caring for their dogs until his death in 1980. She enthusiastically explored many hobbies including photography, music, cooking, reading, and collecting.
Dr. Nash was also a patron of the arts, including the St. Louis Symphony, and she was a board member and contributor to the Missouri Botanical Gardens, where she served on its Board of Trustees for more than two decades.
“Her advocacy for the health and well-being of children and emphasis on education as crucial to human development were demonstrated in her service and generous support as a Garden Trustee,” said Dr. Peter Wyse Jackson, president of the Missouri Botanical Garden. “While Dr. Nash will be deeply missed, we celebrate her accomplishments and their impact over many years in the St. Louis community.”
Dr. Nash received numerous awards and recognitions throughout the years, including a Doctor of Humane Letters in 1992 from Webster University; the
Lifetime Achievement Award in Health Care by the St. Louis American Foundation in 1996 and last month, the St. Louis Gateway Classic Sports Foundation 2012 Lifetime Achievement & Walk of Fame Awards.
In 1993, Dr. Nash retired as professor emeritus (clinical) of Pediatrics from WUSTL. After her retirement, she served as its Medical School dean of minority affairs from 1994 to 1996. Each year since, the School of Medicine as bestowed the Dr. Helen E. Nash Academic Achievement Award to a student who has exhibited to an unusual degree the qualities of industry, perseverance, determination, and enthusiasm.
“Her contributions to neonatology and pediatrics, public health and civil rights have made our lives and our community richer,” Ross added. “What a life, what a legacy.”
Dr. Helen Nash is survived by her brother, Dr. Homer E. Nash, Jr., sister,
Mrs. Dorothy Shack, nieces, Cheryl Chisholm, Terrell Mann (Steve), Karen
Reynolds (Stanley), Sherry Heard, Lauren Nash Ming (Leo), Dr. Alison Nash
(Clarence Dula), and Tracey Nash-Huntley (David Huntley); nephew, Hailu Shack, fifteen grand nieces and nephews; two great-grand nieces; friend and caregiver, Ethel Ellis; former office staff members and a host of other friends and associates.
A memorial service will be held on October 27, 2012 at 2:00 p.m. at All Saints’ Episcopal Church, 5010 Terry Avenue in St. Louis.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the St. Louis Symphony, the Missouri Botanical Garden or the St. Louis Children’s Hospital Foundation.
