By Jennifer Wider, MD
Clubhouse is a new social networking app that has taken hold during the pandemic, at a time where many people feel isolated, longing for social interaction. The app allows its users to congregate in audio chat rooms and discuss a variety of topics ranging from health and wellness, building personal brands to the recent Megan Markle interview with Oprah Winfrey.
At the close of talks arranged by the Women Matter Club on Clubhouse to celebrate International Women’s Day, doctors from across the globe were discussing challenges that they faced practicing healthcare in 2021. When the conversation halted as one of the doctors, Thandeka Mazibuko, MD, radiation oncologist and researcher, facilitated bringing Dr. Melissa Freeman onto the app and into the room.
Melissa Freeman, MD is currently practicing medicine in Harlem, New York but she’s not your average doctor. Dr. Freeman is a 94 year old, African American woman whose grandfather was born as a slave, and freed as an eleven year old boy. She was born in the Williamsbridge section of the Bronx, attended the High School of Music and Art and graduated from Howard University College of Medicine in 1955. She has been practicing for 65 years.
“Having Dr. Melissa Freeman in our room was uplifting and a blessing,” says Dr. Lola Adeyemi MPH, MLA Public/Preventive Medicine Specialist and Co-founder & COO Magna Carta Health and organizer of the Women’s Day event. “It was like icing on a cake to the 18 hour International Women’s Day celebrations by the Women Matter Club on Clubhouse.”
It isn’t an everyday occurrence that a nonagenarian, or a person between the ages of 90-99 uses social media apps: “I was surprised when Dr. Freeman joined our stage on Clubhouse last night but then I was quickly reminded why one of her superpowers is her ability to adapt to changes in order to share her knowledge and help heal the community,” said Dr. Adebola Dele-Michael, a board-certified Dermatologist, Diplomate of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, and an assistant clinical professor of dermatology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
But Freeman has always been a pioneer. She received her medical degree in 1955, a time in American history when it was challenging for women to become doctors, let alone an African-American woman. She came from a very strong family and is a role model for women doctors everywhere, especially doctors of color.
“My father was a wonderful man , he wanted us all to be educated against all odds. Even though he passed away before I was honored with a medical degree from Howard University in 1953, I know I made him proud for being one of the few women of color to have graduated as a medical doctor and still practicing In Harlem at 94 years of age,” Freeman said.
Her presence on Clubhouse touched those who listened to her. “Women of Color in medicine are no longer afraid to use their voices, and raise it to fight against bias and injustice. This is due to many of those that have come before us, such as Dr. Melissa Freeman and so we honor her and everything she exemplifies.” said Dr. Lola Adeyemi.
“Dr Melissa Freeman is a role model to me because of her commitment to community service. She is an innovator in the field of medicine and she continues to be an agent of change,”adds Dele-Michael.
Dr. Melissa Freeman continues to serve her community and inspire those around her. “I continue to work as a medical doctor in New York State because people of color are suffering from easily preventable diseases like hypertension, diabetes and now COVID-19,” Freeman explains. “To have lived in this era of a pandemic at 94 years of age has taught me so much and encouraged me to continue serving my people, I will always be here in New York City attending to my community of Harlem with pride and dignity.”
