Education
Medical School: Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Residency: Montefiore Medical Center (Family Medicine)
Albert Einstein College of Medicine (Obstetrics & Gynecology)
Professional Activity
Nereida Correa, who began her career as a registered nurse, became the first Hispanic woman to be named chair of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center, a large, hospital-based group practice in the Bronx. As a faculty member at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in both obstetrics and gynecology and family practice, she is active in the recruitment and mentoring of students, and in residency education. At Lincoln, she serves as a clinician, mentor, and role model for members of her community. Most importantly, she is able to provide direct patient care, perform surgery, and deliver babies.
Dr. Correa was born in Puerto Rico and grew up on New York's Upper West Side. In high school she knew she wanted to become a physician, but guidance counselors told her that she did not have the "aura" for medicine and should pursue nursing instead. After earning an associate degree in nursing from Bronx Community College in 1966, she worked for fifteen years as a staff nurse in public hospitals, and later as a nurse educator and administrator. As part of New York's City Manpower and Career Development Agency, she trained community residents in nursing while they obtained their high school equivalency diplomas.
Later, as part of the first for staff for the Long Island Physician's Assistant Program, she worked as an instructor and counselor for the initial class of minority students recruited from the Brooklyn area. While working full time, she married, raised a family and completed her education, obtaining a B.S. degree in nursing. She then earned an master's degree in nursing education from New York University in 1979. She was an assistant professor in maternal-child health nursing at Medgar Evers College, part of the city university system, where she developed courses in nursing leadership and cultural diversity. She presented several papers on alternative health practices among Hispanics, and published a paper on home remedies and cultural practices in Hispanic families. At that time her desire to become a physician re-surfaced, and after completing pre-medical studies at Queens College she entered the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Correa graduated with distinction in psychopharmacology and published her research findings. After a residency in family practice greater involvement in women's health led her to complete an additional residency in obstetrics and gynecology.
As a women's health physician in the Bronx, Dr. Nereida Correa has been active in mentoring and promoting cultural sensitivity to diverse ethnic communities. She provided has obstetrics care in Kosovo as part of International Health Outreach, and has done grassroots work in New York City on HIV/AIDS care and women's health problems.
Dr. Correa is a member of the National Hispanic Medical Associatioin Advisory Committee, and is also a member of the Women's, Infants', and Children's National Advisory Committee for the Department of Agriculture and the Women's Health Steering Committee, both part of the Health Resources and Services Administration in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.