Dr. Juana Munoz practiced medicine the old-fashioned way.
“Her hands were her instrument,” said her nephew, Fernando R. Munoz, who lives in Atlanta. “She would feel and touch and then make an initial diagnosis.”
Dr. Munoz, who was a pediatrician in the south Fulton County area, also believed in treating the sick, regardless of their ability to pay, her nephew said.
A native of Havana, Cuba, Dr. Munoz’s interest in medicine dates back to her teenage years, said her sister Ina Soles, who lives in Warner Robins.
“From the beginning, my sister was interested in helping the sick since our father died at a relatively young age of unknown reasons,” she said, through a translator. “Even before finishing her secondary education, Juana had already decided on studying medicine. This was an unusual choice, being a woman in the 1940s, in Cuba, but since her main desire was to help the sick, she relentlessly pursued her goal.”
When Dr. Munoz came to the United States in 1957, she didn’t plan to stay. She was coming to fulfill a residency requirement for her medical degree but intended on returning to her native of Cuba to work at a children’s hospital. The Cuban Revolution changed all of that, she said in a 1997 Atlanta Journal Constitution article.
“Then the evil came and Castro ruined my plans,” she said.
With a limited command of the English language, Dr. Munoz began a 40-year medical career in the metro Atlanta area, and beyond.
Juana Delores Munoz, of Atlanta, called Lola by many, died Sunday of undetermined causes. She was 91. A funeral Mass has been planned for 11 a.m. Thursday at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church and burial will follow. A.S. Turner & Sons is in charge of arrangements.
Dr. Munoz, who graduated from the University of Havana Medial School in 1953, worked at St. Joseph's Hospital from 1957 until 1960 and spent time treating patients at the state hospital in Milledgeville, before she went into private practice, her nephew said.
She eventually opened her own pediatrics practice in the south Fulton County area. During that time, she treated the children of many Cuban exiles, her nephew said. Many sought her out because they knew she would help them even if they had no money.
“So many came to America with literally the clothes on their backs,” Mr. Munoz said. “There was no money to pay her, but that wasn’t her concern. She wanted the children to be well.”
Max Munoz said he used to enjoy watching his sister work with her little patients.
“You know sometimes children can be difficult to handle, but she did not have any problems,” he said. “It was magic, I tell you.”
Dr. Munoz retired from private practice in 1997, but she didn’t leave medicine for good. In 2001, she assumed the role of full-time care giver for her two terminally-ill sisters, until they died in 2005, the family said.
Dr. Munoz had a commitment to all of her patients, whether they were family or not, her brother said
“I am most proud of her dedication to heal,” he said. “She will be missed very much.”
About the Author
