Ruth K. Freinkel, MD

Ruth Freinkel (1926-2014) immigrated from Hamburg, Germany in 1926 and started a new life in the United States with her family. She was one of five women in her medical school class at Duke Medical School (what year) and one of the first female residents in dermatology at Harvard Medical School.

She began her long and prolific career as the first full time member of the newly formed department of dermatology. She was a clinician, teacher and a bench scientists. Her research career focused on acne research, beginning in the study of the effects of antibiotics on acne. She was Editor of the Journal of Investigative Dermatology (1977-1982) and President of the Society for Investigative Dermatology (1984-1985). Northwestern created the Ruth K. Freinkel Professorship in Dermatology, one of the first professorships to recognize the accomplishments of a female faculty.

Photo from Journal of Investigative Dermatology (2014), Volume 134