Mississippi lost a giant in health care this week.
Retired OB-GYN, author and anti-abortion advocate Dr. Freda Bush passed away on Sunday.
Memories of her flooded social media following her death. Many called her “an inspiration” and a leader who stood up for her faith, her family and her friends.
“She was an accomplished physician and an even better mother,” her son shared. “Her favorite scripture is relevant even during this time…Romans 8:28. Thank you for your love and example of a life well lived.”
Bush graduated from the University of Mississippi Medical School and completed her residency at the University of Tennessee in Memphis. In 1987 she began practicing in Jackson and was a Clinical Instructor in the Department of OB-GYN and Department of Family Medicine at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Dr. Bush went on to become President and CEO of the Medical Institute for Sexual Health in 2012. She was a member of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Dr. Bush was an early leading voice for the Mississippi Personhood Amendment more than a decade ago. That initiative failed but her advocacy didn’t wane. She took her message across the country, often speaking specifically to African-American communities.
“It’s not reproductive justice for a woman to end her child’s life,” Bush said when challenging New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Abortion Expansion Act. “It is injustice, both to her and her baby as well as to her family and to the community.”
During her nearly 40 years on health care, Bush co-authored two books, HOOKED, New Science on How Casual Sex is Affecting Our Children and Girls Uncovered, New Research on What America’s Sexual Culture Does to Young Women with Dr. Joe S. McIlhaney. She was a contributing writer to Faith Matters: How African American Faith Communities Can Help Prevent Teen Pregnancy published by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. Dr. Bush also published articles in the Journal of Medical Regulation, Mississippi State Medical Association Journal, Christianity Today, Charisma Magazine and Christian Living Metro Jackson.
Bush was part of the Mississippi Governor’s Blue Ribbon Task Force on Teen Pregnancy Prevention and served as Chair of the Medical Advisory Subcommittee. She also once served as a Presidential appointee to the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS (PACHA).
Dr. Bush lent her voice and expertise to the Physician’s Resource council for Focus on the Family and was a medical advisor for Heartbeat International and CareNet while serving as Medical Director to the Center for Pregnancy Choices in Metro Jackson.
“Her great work as an [OB-GYN], Community Leader, Author and Speaker paled in comparison to the lives she influenced for Christ and the hearts she touched along the way,” wrote Cassandra Weathersby. “Two of the most important things she showed me was how to love God no matter what [was] going on around me or even in me. The other, was a confirmation of His word that I am fearfully and wonderfully made. The seeds she planted in my life and my Daughter’s life are still blooming today.”
For the past four years Dr. Bush has been battling the repercussions of the West Nile virus.
Frank Corder
