Rothert, Frances Catherine, 1897-

Frances Catherine Rothert, M.D., born in 1897 as a native of Indiana but reared in Arkansas, received a bachelor's degree from St. Mary's College at Notre Dame, an M.D. degree from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1922, and a master's degree in Public Health in 1939 from Harvard. She began her medical career as a public health clinician in the Appalachian region of Kentucky. In 1935 she became regional director of the U.S. Children's Bureau, Division of Maternal & Child Health.

In 1944 she returned to Arkansas to become Director, Division of Maternal & Child Health of the Arkansas State Board of Health. She became a clinical faculty member of the UAMS College of Medicine in 1946, serving until her retirement from the health department in 1962. After "retirement," Dr. Rothert served as volunteer medical and public health consultant with Catholic Relief Services for 17 years in Guatemala. Since 1980, she has lived in Hot Springs, AR.