Helen Murray Free

Helen Murray Free (February 20, 1923 – May 1, 2021) was an American chemist and educator. She is most known for her work on in vitro self-testing systems for diabetes and other diseases.

Early life and education Free was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on February 20, 1923. Her father, James S. Murray, worked as a coal company salesman; her mother, Daisy Piper Murray, died during an influenza epidemic when Free was six.

Free received her early education from the public schools in Youngstown, Ohio, and graduated in 1941 as the valedictorian of Poland Seminary High School. While attending a summer camp at the College of Wooster, she set her heart on attending Wooster. Greatly influenced by her high school English teacher, she originally intended to major in English and Latin in hopes of becoming a teacher; however, these plans soon changed. In December 1941 when Pearl Harbor was bombed, many young men either enlisted or were drafted into the army. As a result of the vacancy within "male-dominated disciplines", women were encouraged to pursue careers in science. Consequently, Free switched her major to chemistry in which she obtained a Bachelor of Science in 1944. Little did she know that they would become lifelong research partners.

The Frees introduced Clinistix (the famous “dip-and-read” test) in 1956. It was the first dip-and-read diagnostic test strip for monitoring glucose in urine. Eventually, they were able to create Multistix, which enabled a urine analysis that combined multiple tests into one strip.

Free also earned a Master of Arts in management (health care administration) from Central Michigan University (1978), and served as an adjunct professor of management at Indiana University South Bend.

By 1975, Free had earned seven patents for her improvements in medical and clinical urinalysis testing. In that year, she and her husband co-authored their second book, Urinalysis in Laboratory Practice, which is still a standard work in the field.

Personal life In 1947 she married Alfred Free, a fellow researcher in urinalysis. Together, they had six children: Eric, Kurt, Jake, Bonnie, Nina, and Penny. Also, she helped raise three stepchildren: Charles, Jane and Barb. In 1996, she received the Kilby Award for lifetime achievement.

Free served as president of the American Association for Clinical Chemistry in 1990. Sixteen years later, she received its prestigious award for Outstanding Contributions to Clinical Chemistry.

Free was elected president of the American Chemical Society in 1993.

Free was inducted into the National Inventor's Hall of Fame in 2000. She was awarded the National Medal of Technology and Innovation a decade later by Barack Obama.

The work of Helen and Al Free in developing diagnostic test strips was designated a National Historic Chemical Landmark by the American Chemical Society on May 1, 2010, at the ETHOS Science Center in Elkhart, Indiana. She was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame one year later.

Patents Free et al., U.S. Patent 3,087,794, " CHEMICAL TEST FOR DIFFERENTIATING LEUCOCYTES FROM ERYTHROCYTES" Free, U.S. Patent 2,912,309, “INDICATOR FOR DETECTING GLUCOSE”