Alumni

1946
Felix E. Demartini, former president and CEO of Presbyterian Hospital and professor emeritus of clinical medicine at P&S, died Nov. 7, 2016. Under his leadership, the hospital began an expansion, including the construction of the Allen Pavilion and Milstein Hospital Building. He previously served as vice chair of the Board of Trustees of Presbyterian Hospital, in which capacity he was responsible for all scientific and health programs and professional staffing at the hospital. Dr. Demartini was a former governor of the Downstate Areas for the American College of Physicians. He served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps. Dr. Demartini pursued some of the first studies on the effects of diuretics on the excretion of uric acid. A onetime star athlete, he was captain of the football team as an undergraduate at Columbia College. Retiring to Vero Beach, Fla., he served for a number of years on the board of directors of the Indian River Memorial Hospital. Among his extra-medical activities, he was an avid golfer and served as president of Hawk’s Nest Golf Club in Vero Beach. Preceded in death by his wife, Mildred, he is survived by a daughter, two sons, including Paul Demartini'77, nine grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren. 

1948
Melvin Grumbach, a legend in pediatric endocrinology, died of a heart attack on Oct. 4, 2016, at age 90. Dr. Grumbach, the Edward B. Shaw Distinguished Professor of Pediatrics Emeritus and former chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of California San Francisco, was credited with bringing international acclaim to pediatrics at UCSF. Author of close to 400 scientific papers, he was best known for his landmark research on the biological mechanisms of sexual differentiation, growth, and puberty. Early on in his career, applying insights from the then new field of cytogenetics and working as a junior member of the faculty in the Department of Pediatrics at P&S in the 1960s, he and a collaborator studied the hormonal regulation of growth from the fetus through puberty. His lab was the first to reveal the biomedical subtleties of hypothalamic control. He did not shy away from weighing in on the emotionally charged issue of gender identity, rejecting the then commonly held view that anatomy alone should dictate assigned gender to children born with ambiguous genitalia and promoting a more complex appreciation of gender identity and a deeper engagement with patients and their parents in the often delicate decision-making process. His last published paper, co-authored when he was 86, “Advice on the Management of Ambiguous Genitalia to a Young Endocrinologist from Experienced Clinicians,” appeared in the journal Seminars in Reproductive Medicine. He served as a captain in the U.S. Air Force Medical Corps. A past president of the American Pediatric Society and the Endocrine Society, Dr. Grumbach received many honors, including the UCSF Medal (that school’s highest honor), the Koch Award, the Borden Award for Research of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the John Howland Medal of the American Pediatric Society, and the American Academy of Pediatrics Lifetime Achievement Award in Medical Education. Preceded in death by his wife, Madeleine Francis Grumbach’51, he is survived by two sons and five grandchildren. 

1953
Norman Bank, professor emeritus of medicine (nephrology) at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and one of the founding fathers of nephrology, died Sept. 17, 2016. Author of more than 100 peer-reviewed articles, Dr. Bank was best known for his studies of sickle cell anemia and kidney function. He served in the U.S. Army Air Force. Following a stint on staff at the New England Medical Center, where he and his colleagues were credited with contributing to the birth of the medical specialty of nephrology, he was named professor of medicine at Albert Einstein, where he served for more than two decades as chief of the nephrology division at Montefiore Medical Center. His laboratory at Montefiore was credited with major contributions in the area of mechanisms of proximal tubule, acidification, K+ secretion due to non-reabsorbed distal anions, post-obstructive diuresis, glomerular hyperfiltration in diabetes, renal salt and water retention in chronic bile duct obstruction, parathyroid hormone modulation of proximal tubular phosphate and bicarbonate transport and potassium transport by the remnant kidney. Dr. James Scheuer, former chief of the Department of Medicine at Montefiore, recalled Dr. Bank as “a wonderful model of how a smart, successful leader should operate.” Of Dr. Bank’s research he wrote: “Many of us conducted research and were ‘productive.’ Looking back, very few of us made important original contributions. Norm did!” In the words of another longtime colleague at Einstein, Dr. Joel Neugarten, “Norman Bank truly ranks among the pioneers and patriarchs of the field of nephrology. Norman mastered the [then] recently developed technique of kidney micropuncture and employed these newly acquired skills to make seminal contributions to our rapidly expanding understanding of how the kidney works.” A past president of the New York Society of Nephrology, in 1977 Dr. Bank was honored with the Distinguished Service Award of the National Kidney Foundation. He subsequently received the service award from the American Society of Nephrology. Following his retirement and appointment as professor of medicine emeritus at Einstein, he continued to be active, shepherding the development of a computer research database for the Kidney and Urologic Foundation of America. He also wrote several children’s books, including “Evil Spirits at Camp AgoNee” and “Arnold the Fearless,” and remained an active member of a writing group sponsored by the Scarsdale Library. He is survived by his wife, Ronee I. Herrmann’54, a daughter, and a son, David Bank’95. His family contributed to the creation of a scholarship fund in the Bank family name at P&S.

Stanley Edelman, a retired surgeon, athlete, and philanthropist, died Dec. 30, 2016. He was a longtime member of the faculty in the Department of Surgery at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, where he taught house staff. As chair of the board of directors of the Henry Nias Foundation, he oversaw its support of cultural and educational programs in New York, including significant support for student financial aid at P&S and Mount Sinai and a professorship in his name at both institutions. He was an active and loyal alumnus, serving as chair of his class for many years. In his free time Dr. Edelman trained for and ran in more than 35 New York marathons, staying fit by running against athletes many years his junior. A World War II veteran, Dr. Edelman saw combat in the Battle of the Bulge, surviving the downing of his plane behind enemy lines. His service was recognized by the French Legion of Honor Medal. He is survived by his wife, Ginny, a son, two daughters, four grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. 

1954
David H. Barnhouse, a retired urologist, died Oct. 1, 2016. He was 87. Dr. Barnhouse served for some years as a medical missionary with the Presbyterian Church in India, where he taught surgery at the Christian Medical College in Ludhiana, Punjab. Returning to the United States, he trained and switched specialties to urology, pursuing a private practice in Pittsburgh, Pa. After retiring from medical practice in 1993 he became an ordained Episcopalian priest assisting at the Church of the Ascension in Pittsburgh. His other interests included travel, choral music, opera, and jigsaw puzzles. Survivors include his wife, Mary, three children, and four grandchildren. 

Paul Keating, a retired cardiologist, died Sept. 18, 2016. He served during World War II in the 2nd Battalion, 274th Regiment of the 76th Division of the U.S. Army, a regiment that was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for outstanding performance in combat for surviving bitter cold and dearth of food and water and destroying two German SS battalions while liberating 250 American prisoners of war in Wingen, France. Dr. Keating earned a Bronze Star and a Chevalier of the French Legion of Honor. A longtime member of the cardiac clinic at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center, Dr. Keating was co-founder of the coronary care unit at Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern, N.Y., where he earned the Sister Joseph Rita Award for Medical Excellence. Preceded in death by his wife, Patricia, and a son, he is survived by two daughters, four sons, and 14 grandchildren. 

Paul Mayer, a retired orthopedic surgeon, died Nov. 7,2016. He served in the U.S. Air Force during World War II. Clinical professor of orthopedic surgery and adjunct professor of biomedical engineering at the University of Miami School of Medicine, he pursued a private orthopedic practice in Miami, where he was a past president of the Miami Orthopedic Society. Dr. Mayer also served as chairman of the board of Victoria Hospital, as a member of the board of directors and chief of orthopedic surgery of the Miami Heart Institute, and as chief of orthopedics at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital. A scholarship for excellence in biomedical engineering was established in his name by the Alliance for Engineering in Medicine and Biology, of which he was a past president. Survivors include his wife, Dr. Joan Mayer, four daughters (three of them doctors), and five grandchildren. 

James W. Rathe, a retired internist, died Nov. 12, 2016. He served in the Army Corps of Engineers, stationed in Heidelberg, Germany. Dr. Rathe pursued a private practice in internal medicine in Waverly, Iowa, and maintained an affiliation with Rohlf Memorial Clinic. He was a board member and past president of the Iowa Heart Association. Preceded in death by his wife, Evelyn, he is survived by a daughter, two sons, four grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. 

Donald R. Reisfield, a retired obstetrician/gynecologist, died Nov. 6, 2016, at age 90. He served in the armed forces during World War II, saw combat in the Pacific, and was stationed in occupied Japan, where he learned to speak Japanese. A clinical member of the faculty of Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Dr. Reisfield pursued a private ob/gyn practice for many years in New Brunswick, N.J., delivering more than 10,000 babies. He was affiliated with Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and St. Peter’s Hospital. In his free time he pursued various sports, and as a member of the Napoleonic Society of America published papers on the impact of medical issues on Napoleon Bonaparte. Survivors include his wife, Gray, a daughter, three sons, eight grandchildren, and a great-grandchild.

1956
Burton J. Lee III, a retired oncologist and former chief of the medical unit at the White House and personal physician to President George H.W. Bush, died Nov. 25, 2016. He was 86. Dr. Lee volunteered for the Marine Corps and subsequently served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, stationed in Stuttgart, Germany. From 1989 to 1993, he served as White House physician. He had previously served for more than three decades as an oncologist on the staff of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where he ran the lymphoma section and developed treatment protocols for Hodgkin’s disease and multiple myeloma that have since become standard. He was the principal or contributing author on 141 research papers. Retiring to Florida, he remained active in medicine, serving first as volunteer physician at, and later member of the board of, the Whole Family Health Center in Vero Beach. He was commissioner of public health for Indian River County for many years and was instrumental in founding Alcohope, a nonprofit alcohol treatment recovery center in Vero Beach. In 2005, in the wake of news reports of prisoner abuse by U.S. military at Abu Ghraib Prison in Iraq and at Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba, Dr. Lee took a bold stand, publishing an op-ed piece in the Washington Post officially opposing torture and abuse in the interrogation of prisoners by U.S. forces, a practice that had been tolerated and even sanctioned during the administration of George W. Bush. He responded in no uncertain terms: “America cannot continue down this road. It demonstrates weakness, not strength. It is a reaction of government officials overwhelmed by fear who succumb to conduct unworthy of them and of the citizens of the United States.” Dr. Lee was descended from a long family line of P&S graduates, including his paternal grandfather, Burton J. Lee Sr.’1898, a pioneer in cancer care; an uncle, Hugh Auchincloss Sr.’1905, founder of the breast and hand surgical services at Presbyterian Hospital; a cousin, Hugh Auchincloss Jr.’42, a well-known breast surgeon; and another cousin, Elizabeth Auchincloss’76. A loyal alumnus, Dr. Lee was a generous supporter of his medical alma mater, to which he remained eternally devoted. Survivors include his wife, Anne, two daughters, a son, three stepdaughters, and five grandchildren.

1957
Raymond D. Mutter, a retired internist, died Nov. 29, 2016. He served in the U.S. Army, stationed in Germany. Dr. Mutter was affiliated for many years with Phelps Memorial Hospital in Tarrytown, N.Y., and served as a member of the board of directors of the Tarrytown Ambulance Service. He is survived by his wife, Mary Elise, two daughters, and a son. 

1960
Sheila Horn Bisaillon, a biochemist and administrator, died Nov. 18, 2016. Dr. Bisaillon, a native of Montreal, Canada, was a member of the family medicine faculty at McGill University and medical director of Queen Elizabeth Hospital of Montreal Centre, an affiliate of McGill. She subsequently served as medical judge in a Quebec provincial Appeal Court in Health Law. Preceded in death by two former husbands and a son, she is survived by two sons, a daughter, a stepson, and nine grandchildren. 

1965
Keith Brodie, a distinguished psychiatrist, former president of Duke University, and past president of the American Psychiatric Association, died Dec. 2, 2016. He was 77. During his tenure at the helm of Duke, Dr. Brodie helped raise the school’s profile from that of a respected regional contender to one of the nation’s top research universities. He launched new interdisciplinary academic initiatives, including a School of the Environment, the Levine Science Research Center, and the Sanford Institute for Public Policy. He also helped push faculty diversity with a black faculty initiative and a program for preparing minorities for academic careers and promoted increased faculty participation in governance. Among other notable accomplishments, he doubled Duke’s endowment, substantially increased the level of corporate giving, and helped boost the undergraduate and graduate applicant pool. Dr. Brodie came to Duke as a professor and chair of the Department of Psychiatry and director of psychiatric services at Duke University Medical Center. He was subsequently named James P. Duke Professor of Psychiatry and served as chancellor for three years before taking the reins as president. A leader, according to Dr. Brodie, who summed up his philosophy in an alumni profile in Columbia Medicine, “is someone who takes people where they might not have thought they wanted to go or might not have thought they had the capacity to go. But, of course, they’re very happy when they get there.” He previously taught in the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford University. Co-author of more than 70 scientific papers, co-author of a book, “Modern Clinical Psychiatry,” and co-editor of “Controversy in Psychiatry,” “Critical Problems in Psychiatry,” “Signs and Symptoms in Psychiatry,” and “American Handbook of Psychiatry,” his research focused on biochemical substrates of mood disorders. Upon his retirement, he authored yet another book, “The Research University Presidency in the Late 20th Century,” based on interviews conducted with former and current academic leaders. A star in psychiatry, he had been the youngest president of the American Psychiatric Association. He also was chairman of the board of mental health and behavioral medicine at the Institute of Medicine, now called the National Academy of Medicine. He was the recipient of two honorary degrees and many other encomia, including the Distinguished Alumni Award from P&S and the William C. Menninger Memorial Award from the Institute of Pennsylvania Hospital. The Keith and Brenda Brodie Recreation Center at Duke was named for him and his wife, Brenda, a 1965 graduate of the Columbia School of Nursing, who survives him. He is also survived by a daughter, three sons, and four grandchildren. 

1966
David C. Lowance, a retired nephrologist, died Sept. 9, 2016, from complications of Parkinson’s disease. He joined his father in an internal medicine practice at the Lowance Clinic in Atlanta, Ga., where he was also affiliated with Piedmont Hospital. Dr. Lowance helped to establish a kidney transplant program in Atlanta and joined Lifelink of Georgia, a not-for-profit organization devoted to the recovery of organs and tissue for transplantation therapy. Survivors include his wife, Lynn, two daughters, a son, and three stepchildren. 

1969
Mark E. Josephson, professor of medicine at Harvard and founding director of the Howard Thorndike Electrophysiology Institute and Arrhythmia Services at Beth Israel/Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, died Jan. 11, 2017. Considered one of the “fathers” of the field of electrophysiology, he attained international prominence for designing new procedures that make possible the selection of appropriate drugs for treatment of potentially lethal arrhythmias and for developing surgical procedures to address arrhythmias not treatable by drugs. He was the author of more than 450 peer-reviewed articles and the widely respected book, “Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology Techniques and Interpretations.” He received many honors, including the Distinguished Teacher Award from the North American Society for Pacing and Electrophysiology, a Columbia University Medal of Excellence, the Paul Dudley White Award from the American Heart Association, and the 2017 Distinguished Scientist Award (Basic Domain) of the American College of Cardiology. He served as a military medical officer during the Vietnam War. Dr. Josephson was particularly proud of having helped train and mentor more than 250 cardiac electrophysiology fellows in the course of his career. Preceded in death by his wife, Joan, he is survived by two daughters and three grandchildren. 

1970 PSY
Anne E. Bernstein, a member of the clinical psychiatry faculty at P&S and Weill Cornell Medical College, died Oct. 31, 2016, at age 79. In addition to her private practice and teaching, she was active with the American Medical Women’s Association, mentoring and promoting the careers of women in medicine. She is survived by her husband, Richard K. Bernstein, MD, four daughters, two sons, and four grandchildren. 

1972
Michael F. McGuire, former chief of plastic surgery at St. John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, Calif., died Nov. 14, 2016. He was a member of the clinical faculty in surgery at UCLA. Dr. McGuire was a past president of the California Society of Plastic Surgeons and the American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities. He launched the Foundation for Surgical Reconstruction, committed to raising funds to cover reconstructive surgery for uninsured patients or those denied coverage.

1975
Harvey W. Topilow, a retina vitreous surgeon in private practice, died Jan. 6, 2017. Dr. Topilow was a member of the clinical faculty in ophthalmology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He is survived by his wife, Lorena, and two daughters. 

1979
Celia Beth Blumenthal, a child psychiatrist and acupuncturist, died May 25, 2016, after a long battle with ovarian cancer. Dr. Blumenthal was an attending at Mount Sinai Hospital. She is survived by three children. 

1985
Henry S. Lodge, an internist specializing in geriatric medicine and author of a best-selling book series, “Younger Next Year,” died March 10, 2017, of prostate cancer. He was 58. According to Dr. Lodge, humans remained hunters and gatherers by nature and so did their best when in motion. The message spoke to aging Baby Boomers, and the book, a wake-up call to exercise and healthy eating, sold millions. The book also inspired a PBS special “Younger Next Year: The New Science of Aging,” in which Dr. Lodge expounded on the biological impact of motion and emotion on the body and the brain. Robert Burch Family Professor of Medicine at P&S, Dr. Lodge was chair and chief executive of New York Physicians, a multispecialty medical practice, and also contributed health-related articles to Self magazine. He came from a distinguished Massachusetts family. His grandfather, Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., was a Massachusetts senator and later ambassador to the United Nations. Dr. Lodge is survived by two daughters and his companion, Laura Yorke. A loyal P&S alumnus, Dr. Lodge supported the endowment of a scholarship fund in his name. 

OTHER ALUMNI DEATHS
Lawrence Crane’42
Robert Comly Wilson III’44
Frank Rees Smith’62