George Rosen

George Rosen (1910–1977) was an American physician, public health administrator, journal editor, and medical historian. His major interests were of the relationship of social, economic and cultural factors upon health.

Early life and education Rosen was born in New York City to immigrant parents from Eastern Europe. He was educated in local public schools and graduated from the City College of New York in 1930.

Writing career From 1938 to 1944, with the help from Sigerist, Rosen began to submit articles and later editor of The Ciba Foundation Symposium, a historical brochure financed by the drug company and distributed to physicians. In 1944, he took over the editorship until the publication was discontinued in 1950.

Rosen published articles and books on public health and the history of medicine, and the sociological, economic, and cultural aspects on health. By the time he died in 1977, he had a bibliography of nine books and approximately 200 articles. While Rosen was still in the Army, he and two associates founded the Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences. Rosen was the editor between 1946 and 1952, and he remained on the Editorial Board. He was also the editor of the American Journal of Public Health from 1957 to 1973, served on the Editorial Board, and was known for his erudite editorials on a wide variety of topics.

The George Rosen papers are in the Yale University archives.

In 2014 the American Association for the History of Medicine established in his honor the George Rosen Prize with funding from his daughter, Susan Rosen Koslow. The prize is awarded to the author or coauthors of a historical monograph on public health or social medicine.

Works Rosen, George. The Reception of William Beaumont’s Discovery in Europe, by Dr. George Rosen. New York, Schuman’s, 1942. Rosen, George. The History of Miners’ Diseases: A Medical and Social Interpretation. New York, Schuman’s, 1943. Rosen, George, ed. Herbs and Herbals. Summit, NJ: Ciba Pharmaceutical Products, 1943. Rosen, George. The Specialization of Medicine with Particular Reference to Ophthalmology. New York, Froben Press, 1944. Rosen, George. Fees and Fee Bills: Some Economic Aspects of Medical Practice in Nineteenth Century America. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1946. Rosen, George, and Beate Caspari-Rosen. 400 Years of a Doctor’s Life. New York, Schuman, 1947. Rosen, George. A History of Public Health. New York, MD Publ., 1958. Rosen, George. Victor Robinson: A Romantic Medical Historian. [Philadelphia, Temple Univ. School of Medicine, 1959]. Anderson, Odin W., and George Rosen. An Examination of the Concept of Preventive Medicine. New York, 1960. Rosen, George. Madness in Society: Chapters in the Historical Sociology of Mental Illness. London, Routledge & Paul, 1968. Rosen, George. From Medical Police to Social Medicine: Essays on the History of Health Care. New York: Science History Publ., 1974. Rosen, George. Preventive Medicine in the United States, 1900-1975: Trends and Interpretations. New York: Science History, 1975. Rosenberg, Charles E., ed. Healing and History: Essays for George Rosen. Folkestone, Eng.: Dawson; New York: Science History Publ., 1979. Rosen, George. The Structure of American Medical Practice 1825-1944. University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, 1983.

Personal life While in medical school Rosen met Beate Caspari and married her in 1933. She was an ophthalmologist. She also assisted Rosen in his historical writings. The couple had two children, Peter and Susan.

Rosen died July 27, 1977, in Oxford, England, where he and Beate were traveling prior to his planned delivery of the keynote address at a major international conference on the history of medicine.