Carmen Estrada Fuentes

Colombian physician who pioneered public health initiatives in Latin America during the cholera pandemic of 1880s

Carmen Estrada Fuentes (1852-1912) was a visionary doctor who transformed public health in Colombia during the 19th century. As the first woman to graduate from the National University of Colombia's medical school (1875), she developed the Sanitation and Education Program that reduced cholera mortality by 70% in Bogotá during the 1880s pandemic. Her innovative approach combined medical care with community education, establishing the first mobile health clinics in Latin America. Estrada also founded the Red Cross of Colombia in 1883, which became a model for disaster response across the region. She authored Public Health in the Andes (1889), the first comprehensive epidemiology textbook published in Spanish. Despite facing opposition from male colleagues, Estrada's work influenced modern public health policies and inspired generations of Latin American medical professionals. Her legacy is commemorated through the Carmen Estrada Public Health Museum in Bogotá.