Lila Stein Kroser, MD – Leadership Spotlight

Dr. Kroser’s impact on the Foundation and women in medicine around the world

Lila Stein Kroser, MD was a driving influence and generous catalyst to the establishment of the Women in Medicine Legacy Foundation. As the Chair of the Special Trust Fund, she navigated the Foundation’s launch in Philadelphia. Although she has since passed, her legacy lives on through the Foundation’s programs and initiatives. 

Committed to organized medicine, the empowerment of women physicians, advocacy for women's health issues, and the importance of good patient-physician relationships, Dr. Kroser believed her biggest obstacles in medicine were the lack of encouragement of a male-dominated profession and few women role models in the field. She made great strides in addressing these concerns through her role in the establishment of the Foundation for the History of Women in Medicine, which is promoting women leaders and role models in medicine for future generations.

As one of few women physicians to have held local, state, national, and international presidencies in organized medicine, Dr. Kroser’s leadership opened doors for the Foundation. She was responsible for introducing the Foundation to both national and international audiences.

Dr. Kroser was past president of both the Medical Women's International Association (MWIA) and the American Medical Women's Association (AMWA). She also had the distinction of being the third woman in 150 years to become president of the Philadelphia County Medical Society and was the second woman to serve as president of the Pennsylvania Academy of Family Physicians.

She was a solo-practice local family doctor in northeastern Philadelphia and a leader in national and international medicine. Dr. Kroser’s influence on women in medicine is carried on today as an example for the next generation of women physicians.