Introduction
Fletcher Pearl Riley McBroom (16 March 1926 – 2004) was an American cardiologist. She was instrumental to the development of cardiovascular treatment and preventative medicine. McBroom was the first black doctor to be accepted to the UCLA Medical Center.
Early life and education
She earned her B.A. at University of Chicago in 1946 and B.S. from Columbia University in 1949. In 1953 she earned her M.D. from the College of Physicians and Surgeons.
Career
McBroom interned at Bellevue Medical Center in New York City in 1954-55. She completed her residency at Columbia University Research Wing and UCLA Medical Center in 1955-57 and went on to her Fellowship in Cardiology at University Southern University, 1957-58.
From 1958-1962 she was a NIH Grants Research fellow, and at the same time was a Board Member at the Frederich Douglass Child Development Center and the Sidoha Yoda Foundation at University of Chicago. In 1960 as the heart specialist in Cedars of Lebanon Hospital she developed a new method to observe how atherosclerosis affects coronary blood vessel tissues. She later practiced with her husband Dr. Marcus S. W. McBroom at Ross Medical Center Los Angeles, where they completed a two-year study on the effect that male and female hormones may have on coronary heart disease.