Colorado Women Innovators in Health Care
Celebrating Colorado Women's Hall of Fame inductees and their accomplishments
Visionary and trailblazing women have impacted healthcare and medicine in Colorado for more than a century. Come and discover their legacy, as tall as the Rocky Mountains they stand beside.
Dr. Susan AndersonColorado Women's Hall of Fame
“Doc Susie” Anderson treats lumberjacks, railroad workers, and ranchers in Fraser. During the 1918 flu epidemic, she was in great demand due to her reputation for saving pneumonia patients.
Denver’s first black woman physician, Dr. Justina Ford specialized in obstetrics. She has a traveling practice for people of color as she is not accepted by the medical community for many years.
Frances Wisebart JacobsColorado Women's Hall of Fame
The founder of United Way, Frances Wisebart Jacobs* also founded National Jewish Hospital. She is the only woman featured in the sixteen stained glass windows in the Colorado Capitol dome.
In 1904, Louie Boyd founded the Colorado State Trained Nurses Association. As their lobbyist, she wrote the bill to require licensure for nurses in the state and became the first licensee.
Florence SabinColorado Women's Hall of Fame
Physician Florence Sabin* made important discoveries about the human circulatory system and, after retirement, got the Sabin Health Laws enacted to improve public health in Colorado.
Frances McConnell MillsColorado Women's Hall of Fame
The first woman toxicologist in the region, Dr. Frances McConnell-Mills served as a key witness in court trials and had an esteemed reputation for her blood work and poison analysis.
Doreen PollackColorado Women's Hall of Fame
Doreen Pollack developed Auditory-Verbal Therapy, a protocol that allows children who are deaf to listen and talk. She founded the Listen Foundation to provide funding for therapy for deaf children.
Mary Ann KerwinColorado Women's Hall of Fame
An advocate for maternal health and women's empowerment, Mary Ann Kerwin co-founds La Leche League and co-writes a book to encourage women around the world to breastfeed their babies.
Elnora GilfoyleColorado Women's Hall of Fame
Occupational therapist Elnora M. Gilfoyle worked with dysfunctional and battered children and later helped pass the law giving all children the right to an education.
Dr. Terri FinckelColorado Women's Hall of Fame
Dr. Terri H. Finkel’s research in immunology and clinical applications has enhanced our knowledge of auto-immunity, AIDS, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and cancer.
Sue MillerColorado Women's Hall of Fame
Sue Miller fought fear and public ignorance about breast cancer through the establishment of a fashion show where all models were breast cancer survivors which evolved into the Day of Caring.
As CEO and Medical Director of Denver Health and Hospital Authority, Patty Gabow was nationally recognized for increasing healthcare access for all citizens of Colorado, especially women and children.
Loretta FordColorado Women's Hall of Fame
Loretta Ford* founded the nurse practitioner movement. Today, hundreds of thousands of nurse practitioners provide quality care worldwide, especially in rural and underserved areas.
Marion DownsColorado Women's Hall of Fame
The “Mother of Pediatric Audiology” Marion Downs fought tirelessly for newborn infant screening and early intervention for those with hearing issues, fitting infants with hearing aids by six months of age.
Dr. Philippa MarrackColorado Women's Hall of Fame
A groundbreaking researcher on T-cells and superantigens, Philippa Marrack’s* research has shaped medicine’s understanding and treatment of autoimmune diseases like AIDS, diabetes, MS, and lupus.
Laura HersheyColorado Women's Hall of Fame
Laura Hershey demonstrated that a woman with the most significant disability could have a successful career, enjoy a fulfilling family and home life, and travel the world.
Kristi AnsethColorado Women's Hall of Fame
Kristi Anseth is a pioneer in the biomedical engineering field who is producing the next generation of biomaterials that are tissue substitutes able to restore, maintain, or improve tissue function.
* Also an inductee into the National Women’s Hall of Fame
www.cogreatwomen.org
Curator
Jill S. Tietjen, P.E., co-author of Her Story: A Timeline of the Women Who Changed America and Hollywood: Her Story, An Illustrated History of Women and the Movies. A Colorado Women's Hall of Fame Inductee.
