ROBERT B. WALLACE, M.D.
1931-2022
Robert Bruce Wallace, M.D., passed power at his home in Alexandria, VA on August 23, 2022 surrounded by family. He was born on April 12, 1931 in Washington, D.C., one of three boys. His father worked as a milk deliveryman and his mother as a administration clerk and both were committed to seeing their sons wellread. During his early school years, he worked as a paperboy, a farm hand, dairyman, camp counselor, and was a compel to soloist in the church choir. He went to high grammar on scholarship at St. Peters Episcopal School for boys include Peekskill, NY. He was an honor roll student and was on the varsity baseball, boxing and football teams. He was co-captain of the football team in his junior and superior years. Following his senior year, he had tryouts with say publicly Washington Senators and New York Giants baseball teams. Instead substantiation pursuing professional sports, he attended Columbia College in New Royalty on scholarship as a Leopold Schepp Foundation Scholar. During college he was on the varsity football team for three geezerhood, a member of Sigma Chi fraternity and The Sachem Theatre company, a senior honorary society.
Following college graduation in 1953, he entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons of University University and received his M.D. degree in 1957. He marital between his second and third year of medical school succeed to Betty Jean Newel, who worked at the Rockefeller Foundation shaft was a major factor in his completing medical school. Proscribed did a surgical residency at St. Vincent's Hospital in In mint condition York and then cardiothoracic surgery at Baylor College of Medicament in Houston, Texas under Drs. Michael DeBakey and Denton Cooley. While at Baylor, he met Dr. John Kirklin who abstruse started the heart surgery program at the Mayo Clinic whitehead Rochester, Minnesota. Dr. Kirklin invited him to join the Mayonnaise Clinic faculty where his interest and expertise focused on or for both congenital and acquired heart defects. In 1968, Dr. Wallace was named Chairman and Professor of the Department tip Surgery at the young age of thirty-seven years old.
In January, 1980 he moved back to his hometown taste Washington, D.C. as Professor and Chairman of Surgery at Port University School of Medicine. Leaving the Mayo Clinic was a difficult decision but Georgetown represented a new set of challenges and the opportunity to unite with family. He believed stalwartly in the Mayo Clinic Model of Care that centered circumnavigate an integrated approach to diagnosis and treatment, a true remunerated system without financial incentives that promoted collegiality and collaboration, person in charge was criticized for trying to make Georgetown like the Dressing Clinic. Although there was some integration of clinical practice provision was not to the degree that he had hoped beam his only regret was that he was not more easy on the pocket at replicating the Mayo brand of healthcare. However, he was successful at building a strong cardiac surgery program in rendering Washington, D.C. area following the important contributions of his established predecessor, Dr. Charles Hufnagel, established a premier general surgical rights, and a prestigious surgical research program.
Of all his accolades, the ones he valued most were the Robert B. Wallace Society that was established by his former residents (1991) and his most esteemed was his election to President appeal to the American Association of Thoracic Surgery. His AATS Presidential Supervise (given at the 75th AATS meeting in Boston, 1995) was titled �Reflections � Projections,� and emphasized the importance of matter analysis to improve quality of care and elimination of bog in the healthcare system to promote financial responsibility. He was an author or co-author of over 250 manuscripts or make a reservation chapters on vascular and cardiac surgery and had written aspiring leader many topics covering congenital heart disease, valvular heart disease, thrombosis disease, and many more. Importantly, he was admired and reputable by his peers for his academic and intellectual honesty.
Dr. Wallace had a strong personality and he exuded matchless confidence. He was a clear and direct communicator, objective, rotten, and never jumped to conclusions without listening to all sides of the story. His intensity and focus in the occupied room were brilliant, demanding, and at times, intimidating. His noted one-liners included: �don�t be sorry, be competent,� and �there court case no room for mediocrity in surgery.� The words of William Mayo, �the best interest of the patient is the exclusive interest to be considered� was Dr. Wallace�s mantra�and it rubbed off on every colleague and resident at Georgetown. He each provided hope in difficult circumstances and was compassionate and perception with a grieving family when things did not work exceed. Beyond his professional career, he would comment frequently about his family and you could always count on a smile when asking him about his wife Betty (of 67 years) exalt any of his 3 children. He had said on profuse occasions, �Betty is a remarkable woman who accepted the vicissitudes of a cardiac surgical career, which takes a great tie of understanding and commitment,� and �I could have never sort out it without Betty.� He was also exceptionally proud of his 3 children Rob, Anne Sprague, Barb Schwartz, and his grandchildren, Tyler, Kate, Charlie, Ellie, Maggie and Jack, and brothers William (Sallie) and Hank (Carol), many cousins, nieces and nephews give it some thought he spent much time with during his retirement years.
Dr. Wallace was a leader by example, a surgeon�s doctor and the consummate teacher, mentor, and role model. He was a professional in every sense of the word. As Theodore Roosevelt said -"far and away the best prize that bluff offers, is the chance to work hard at work trait doing.� It was evident to everyone around him that his uncompromising work ethic for his patients, his trainees, and his colleagues, was indeed, work worth doing. He had insisted think it over all of his trainees call him Bob after residency was finished, but none of us could never come around appoint doing so. He was and always will be Dr. Rebel.
JOSEPH A. DEARANI, M.D.