{"id":2139,"date":"2019-02-16T01:25:56","date_gmt":"2019-02-16T01:25:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scda.dojiggyengage.com\/?p=2139"},"modified":"2019-02-16T01:25:56","modified_gmt":"2019-02-16T01:25:56","slug":"dr-doris-wethers-blazed-a-trail-for-newborn-testing-for-sickle-cell-disease","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sicklecelldisease.org\/2019\/02\/16\/dr-doris-wethers-blazed-a-trail-for-newborn-testing-for-sickle-cell-disease\/","title":{"rendered":"Dr. Doris Wethers Blazed a Trail for Newborn Testing for Sickle Cell Disease"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, Inc. (SCDAA) celebrates the life and work of Dr. Doris L. Wethers who died at the age of 91 on January 28, 2019.<\/div>\n
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Dr.\u00a0Wethers\u2019\u00a0research and advocacy\u00a0efforts\u00a0helped lead to mandatory testing of all newborns for sickle cell\u00a0disease.\u00a0She\u00a0broke racial barriers in the medical world when she became the\u00a0first black chief of a medical department\u00a0in 1965 as the\u00a0director of pediatrics at Knickerbocker Hospital in West Harlem.\u00a0She was later director of pediatrics from 1969 to 1974 at Sydenham Hospital (which was shuttered in 1980) and then, until 1979, at St. Luke\u2019s Hospital Center (now Mount Sinai St. Luke\u2019s). She became St. Luke\u2019s first black attending physician in 1958.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Dr. Wethers opened sickle cell\u00a0disease\u00a0programs at all three hospitals, conducted research and helped draft landmark legislation in New York to require screening of infants for the disorder. Over the course of her career at the hospitals, the average life expectancy of children born with sickle cell rose from about 18 to 50.\u00a0The increase was attributed largely to early detection, infection prevention through the use of penicillin and other breakthroughs that helped mitigate pain and prolong life.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
In 1987, Dr. Wethers was the chair\u00a0of a National Institutes of Health panel that recommended routine testing for newborn babies regardless of race or ethnicity. New York was the first state to mandate such testing, in 1975, and all states provided for universal screening by 2006.<\/div>\n
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SCDAA thanks Dr. Wethers for being a trailblazer\u00a0for women and for people of color\u00a0in the medical field and for her tireless efforts, as a true pioneer,\u00a0to serve those living with sickle cell disease.\u00a0Rest in peace, Dr. Wethers, knowing that your work advanced sickle cell treatment and helped to improve the quality of life for those living with this life-threatening disease.\u00a0SCDAA sends its condolences to Dr.\u00a0Wethers\u2019\u00a0family and friends. You are in our thoughts and prayers.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
(This statement includes excerpts from the February 7, 2019\u00a0New York Times\u00a0article,<\/div>\n
\u201cDr. Doris Wethers, 91, on Front Lines Against Sickle Cell, Dies.\u201d)\u00a0Photo credit: Courtesy of the New York Times.<\/div>\n
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Click here to read the full article<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, Inc. (SCDAA) celebrates the life and work of Dr. Doris L. Wethers who died at the age of 91 on January 28, 2019. Dr.\u00a0Wethers\u2019\u00a0research and advocacy\u00a0efforts\u00a0helped lead to mandatory testing of all newborns for sickle cell\u00a0disease.\u00a0She\u00a0broke racial barriers in the medical world when she became the\u00a0first black chief of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2011,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2139","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nDr. Doris Wethers Blazed a Trail for Newborn Testing for Sickle Cell Disease - Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Inc.<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sicklecelldisease.org\/2019\/02\/16\/dr-doris-wethers-blazed-a-trail-for-newborn-testing-for-sickle-cell-disease\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dr. Doris Wethers Blazed a Trail for Newborn Testing for Sickle Cell Disease - Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Inc.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, Inc. (SCDAA) celebrates the life and work of Dr. Doris L. Wethers who died at the age of 91 on January 28, 2019. Dr.\u00a0Wethers\u2019\u00a0research and advocacy\u00a0efforts\u00a0helped lead to mandatory testing of all newborns for sickle cell\u00a0disease.\u00a0She\u00a0broke racial barriers in the medical world when she became the\u00a0first black chief of […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.sicklecelldisease.org\/2019\/02\/16\/dr-doris-wethers-blazed-a-trail-for-newborn-testing-for-sickle-cell-disease\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Inc.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-02-16T01:25:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.sicklecelldisease.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Dr.Deloris-inthenews-header.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"250\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.sicklecelldisease.org\/2019\/02\/16\/dr-doris-wethers-blazed-a-trail-for-newborn-testing-for-sickle-cell-disease\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.sicklecelldisease.org\/2019\/02\/16\/dr-doris-wethers-blazed-a-trail-for-newborn-testing-for-sickle-cell-disease\/\",\"name\":\"Dr. Doris Wethers Blazed a Trail for Newborn Testing for Sickle Cell Disease - 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