Her seven-decade career at the University of Rochester reshaped how clinicians support mothers and infants.
Ruth Lawrence ’49M (MD), a pediatrician and internationally recognized leader in breastfeeding science, died in October. She was 101.
During more than 70 years at the University of Rochester Medical Center, Lawrence helped transform breastfeeding from a marginal topic into a respected field of clinical practice and research. She was the founding director of the Breastfeeding and Human Lactation Study Center and author of Breastfeeding: A Guide for the Medical Profession, the definitive physician’s reference first published in 1979 and now in its ninth edition.
“Dr. Lawrence’s work reshaped how we understand and support infant feeding, and her legacy lives on in every clinician, nurse, and researcher who carries forward her vision,” says Kathy Parrinello, president and CEO of Strong Memorial Hospital.
A graduate of Antioch College and one of few women admitted to medical school in the 1940s, Lawrence earned a medical degree from URochester in 1949 alongside her husband, Robert Lawrence ’49M (MD). After becoming Yale University’s first female intern, she returned to Rochester to direct the well-baby and preemie nurseries at Strong Memorial Hospital. In 1958, she founded the region’s Poison Control and Drug Information Center—only the second in the nation at the time.
Over her distinguished career, Lawrence authored more than 200 research papers, helped establish URochester’s neonatal and pediatric intensive care units, and mentored generations of clinicians. In 2022, the Medical Center created the Division of Breastfeeding and Lactation Medicine—one of the first such divisions in the world—in recognition of her lifelong work.
Her many honors include the AAMC Humanism in Medicine Award, the Susan B. Anthony Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Macy-György Award from the International Society for Research on Human Milk and Lactation.
- Read a full tribute to Lawrence’s life and legacy.
