Catherine Bearce Nowak, MD

Dr. Nowak has over 30 years of experience caring for children born with rare diseases and physical or intellectual challenges. Particular areas of interest include dysmorphic syndromes, cleft lip/palate, overgrowth disorders, autism spectrum disorders and conditions with intellectual disability. She received her medical degree from McGill University and completed residency in Pediatrics at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. Dr. Nowak then completed a fellowship in Clinical Genetics at The National Birth Defects Center. After practicing clinical genetics for 8 years at The Feingold Center for Children, Dr. Nowak served as the Chief of the Division of Genetics at UMass-Memorial for four years before returning to The Feingold Center. She also practiced clinical genetics at Boston Children’s Hospital for 11 years.

Dr. Nowak spent much of her career at The Feingold Center for Children, the brainchild of Dr. Murray Feingold, who saw the importance of spending in-depth time with families to truly listen to parents’ concerns and to get to know the whole child rather than focus only on diagnosis. The mission of the Feingold Center was to work collaboratively with families of children with rare disorders to coordinate their multiple specialty appointments and to address issues such as insurance coverage, educational/therapy concerns as well as the social and emotional needs of the entire family. A network of satellite clinics allowed care close to home. After Dr. Feingold passed away and The Feingold Center closed, Dr. Nowak continued this “Feingold Model of Care”. In 2022, Dr. Nowak joined the Division of Genetics and Metabolism as Clinical Director and brought with her The Murray Feingold Coordinated Genetic Service supported by a grant from The Genesis Foundation for Children.

Dr. Nowak has been named as a Top Doctor in Boston and has also been recognized as an Exceptional Woman in Medicine. She is the Medical Director of the Mother-to-Baby MA program that educates the public and the medical community about the importance of avoiding potentially harmful exposures during pregnancy. She serves as the medical advisor to The Genesis Foundation for Children.

Dr. Nowak’s professional mission is to improve the lives of her patients and ease the difficulties experienced by parents and caregivers juggling their child’s complex needs.