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Remembering: Warren Pearse, M.D.

Warren Pearse, M.D., at the Warren H. Pearse Building in Washington, D.C., headquarters of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

Warren Pearse, M.D., chairman of the UNMC Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology from 1962-1971, died Nov. 16 at the age of 88.

What others are saying

“Dr. Pearse was a great friend and mentor. Warren had a tremendous impact on my life. It was Warren who recruited me for a position at the university in 1964. Dr. Pearse sat on many boards. I was honored to have Dr. Pearse sit on the board of the company I later founded. Dr. Pearse, Dr. Dunlop, and I made a trip to Trinidad to study preeclampsia – what an experience! We later published an article on our findings. It was one of the many fond memories I have of Dr. Pearse. I am not alone in saying he is dearly missed.”
-Wayne Ryan, Ph.D., chairman, CEO and founder of Streck Labs and a longtime supporter of UNMC

A physician, academician, and scholar, Dr. Pearse’s career evolved around the advancement of women’s health care. He was a founding member of the Olson Center for Women’s Health Advisory Committee at UNMC, beginning in 1993 and serving for at least a dozen years before his health didn’t allow him to travel back to Omaha.

“Dr. Pearse was truly a giant in obstetrics and gynecology,” said Carl Smith, M.D., professor and chair of the UNMC Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. “Always a superb gentleman, he was an effective ambassador for our specialty and an advocate to improve women’s health. A master of language, he was funny and articulate. He will be greatly missed.”

After leaving UNMC in 1971, Dr. Pearse moved to Richmond, Va., to become dean of medicine at the Medical College of Virginia. In this capacity, his path crossed with a junior faculty member by the name of Harold M. Maurer, M.D.

“Dr. Pearse was a superb dean,” said Dr. Maurer, who is chancellor emeritus at UNMC after serving as chancellor from 1998-2014. “He knew his faculty extremely well and readily acknowledged their achievements publically.

“I recall presenting a paper on the use of phenobarbital in pregnant women to lower the serum bilirubin in their babies at birth. It was the first-ever presentation on this subject and was abstracted in JAMA. Dr. Pearse sent me a small handwritten note, which I remember today. It read, ‘good press, Hal.’ I never knew he even knew my name. This recognition by him spurred me on early in my career.”

In 1975, Dr. Pearse was named executive director of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). With nearly 58,000 members, ACOG is the nation’s leading group of physicians providing health care for women. He served as head of ACOG for 18 years.

In 1981, Dr. Pearse oversaw ACOG’s move to Washington, D.C., so that the organization could have more access to health care policy makers. Upon his retirement in 1993, ACOG’s headquarters building was renamed the Warren H. Pearse Building in his honor.

Memorials are preferred to The History Library, ACOG, 409 12th Street SW, Washington D.C. 20024.

2 comments

  1. Terry smith says:

    Susan, so sorry to hear of losing your Father.
    Terry Smith
    Omaha Westside, 1974

  2. Ashley Coopland says:

    A genuinely great man

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