Wegman, Myron E., 1908-

Physician and educator; administrator with the World Health Organization; secretary-general with Pan American Health Organization of the World Health Organization, 1957-1960; dean of the School of Public Health and professor of pediatrics and communicable diseases in the Medical School of the University of Michigan, 1960-1974.

Myron Wegman, Dean of the University of Michigan School of Public Health from 1960 to 1974 and Professor of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases in the Medical School was born on July 23, 1908 in Brooklyn, New York. He was educated at the City College of New York (BA 1928), Yale University (MD 1932), and Johns Hopkins University (MPH, 1938).

His career began in 1936 with the Maryland State Health Department, Bureau of Child Hygiene. He spent a year, 1941-1942, at the School of Tropical Health in San Juan, Puerto Rico and then worked at the New York City Health Department while teaching part time at Johns Hopkins University, Columbia, and Cornell. In 1946 he took the position of professor and head of Pediatrics for Louisiana State University Medical School. From 1952 to 1960, Wegman held several positions in the World Health Organization (WHO), including chief of education and training, secretary-general, and consultant to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

When Wegman became Dean of the University of Michigan School of Public Health in 1960, he was a well-established figure in the field of public health and a respected specialist in child health care. Wegman's work reflects a concern for the best possible health care for the greatest number of people, a position which was cause for worry for many administrators and medical care professionals because it implied a substantial financial commitment and institutional restructuring. While at the University of Michigan, Wegman served on the Commission on the Reduction of Excess Hospital Capacity. Here he was given the difficult task of targeting hospitals for bed reduction. Dr. Wegman also headed the push to implement HMOs at the university, a proposal vigorously resisted by administrators.

Dr. Wegman served on numerous committees and boards, often assisting with project implementation. He was one of the developers of Project HEADSTART. He helped to develop three health planning organizations; he was President of the Comprehensive Health Planning Council of Southeastern Michigan and member of the Michigan State Public Health Advisory Council. He was active in the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Board of Preventative Medicine, and the American Medical Association among other health organizations. His annual reports on world infant mortality in the journal, Pediatrics, from 1950 to 1997, gave him international repute as an authority on child health.

Among the many honors he received during his career were: the Sedgwick Medal, the highest award of the American Public Health Association, Man of the Year from the City College of New York, the Clifford G. Grulee Medal from the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Bronfman Prize from the American Public Health Association. On his eightieth birthday, the Myron E. Wegman Endowed Scholarship Fund was begun in tribute to his many professional accomplishments.

In retirement with emeritus status, Wegman pursued many professional activities as a consultant, public speaker, and advisor. In 1990 he was coordinator for the university's collaboration with the Autonomous University of Madrid. He died April 12, 2004.