Mayo Alumni Magazine 2012 Spring - MC4409-0312 - Mayo Clinic

Mayo Alumni 

mayo.edu/alumni | Spring 2012 

INNOVATION INTO


Spring 2012 

Features 

2 “Innovation Into Action” 

At the Mayo Clinic Alumni Association 67th Meeting in Florida, 

participants learned about advances in medicine, research and 

health care delivery systems. 

4 Speaker Highlights 

Speakers at the 67th Meeting included Daniel Brat, M.D., Ph.D., 

John Woods, M.D., Ph.D., Ceci Connolly, Andre Terzic, M.D., Ph.D., 

Mary Grealy, Claire Bender, M.D., and Mike Harper, M.D. 

About the Cover 

INNOVATION INTO 

Mayo Clinic’s new Center for 

Regenerative Medicine is a prime 

example of turning innovation into 

action — the theme of the recent 

Mayo Clinic Alumni Association 

biennial meeting. At the meeting, 

Andre Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. (CV ’95) 

(pictured on the cover), medical 

director of the Center for 

Regenerative Medicine, spoke 

about how this rapidly evolving 

field of medicine will help repair 

damaged heart muscle. 

According to Dr. Terzic, 

regenerative medicine is a gamechanger. 

“It has the potential 

to offer definitive, affordable 

health care solutions that treat 

the underlying causes of diseases 

rather than only manage 

symptoms,” he says. “Our 

approach has the ability to turn 

promising laboratory discoveries 

into proven treatments — and 

make them available to patients 

— more effectively and efficiently 

than most anywhere else.” 

12 Awarding Excellence 

Award recipients at the 67th Meeting included C. Robert Stanhope, 

M.D., Larry Vukov, M.D., John Wheat, M.D., S. Ann Colbourne, 

M.D., Lee Joseph McGhan, M.B., B.Ch., and Peter Gloviczki, M.D. 

18 Advancing an Ideal 

Wyatt Decker, M.D., vice president and CEO of Mayo Clinic in Arizona, 

sets his sights on the future of health care. 

20 Twenty-five years of Caring 

Mayo Clinic in Florida celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2011. 

21 Mayo Clinic Distinguished Alumni Award 

2011 recipients included Richard Brubaker, M.D., Gene Hunder, M.D., 

Keith Kelly, M.D., and Guillermo Ruiz-Argüelles, M.D. 

Mayo Update 

24 Board of Trustees news, obituaries 


Print or digital? 

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we offer both. The print version has pass-along value, 

making it easy to save and share with family members 

and patients. The digital version has extras you won’t 

find elsewhere — video interviews and event clips, 

photo galleries and Mayo Clinic historical information. 

Download the free Mayo Alumni app (for iPad) in 

the iTunes strore. Scan the code at right to go directly 

to the download page. The Spring 2012 issue will be 

live and digital on May 17th.

New Mayo Clinic 

Alumni Association president 

Eric Grigsby, M.D. 

Medical Director 

Napa Pain Institute 

Napa, Calif. 

Eric Grigsby, M.D. (S ’86, ANES ’88), was elected the new president of the Mayo 

Clinic Alumni Association at the group’s biennial meeting in Jacksonville, Fla. 

Dr. Grigsby is founding medical director of the Napa Pain Institute and chief 

executive officer of Neurovations, a Napa, Calif., based company specializing in 

pain and neuroscience research and clinical education. 

A native of Knoxville, Tenn., Dr. Grigsby received an undergraduate degree 

from Boston University and a medical degree from Boston University Medical 

School. He had five years of postgraduate training in general surgery, anesthesiology 

and pain management at Mayo Clinic in Rochester. Currently, he is enrolled in 

The Duke MBA—Global Executive program through the Fuqua School of Business. 

Dr. Grigsby and his wife, Mary Rocca, D.M.D., operate a foundation, HealthRoots, 

which provides care to underserved groups, most recently in Malawi, Africa. 

At the recent Mayo Clinic Alumni Association meeting, Dr. Grigsby led the 

organization’s board in voting unanimously to establish the Mayo International 

Humanitarian Endowment to support programs that provide care to underserved 

patient populations around the world. 

Dr. Grigsby succeeds Mark Laney, M.D. (PDN ’89), president and CEO of 

Heartland Health in St. Joseph, Mo. 

Eric Grigsby, M.D., in Malawi, Africa.

2 Mayo Alumni 

InnovatIon Into Action

Mayo Clinic Alumni Association 67 th Meeting • September 2011 • Florida 

The Mayo Clinic Alumni Association 67th meeting at Mayo Clinic 

in Florida attracted 310 alumni and their guests from 26 states 

and six countries. 

The meeting theme, “Innovation Into Action,” did not disappoint. 

Participants learned about advances in medicine, research and health 

care delivery systems that expanded and stimulated their thinking 

about the future of medicine, engaged them in interactions with fellow 

alumni and sparked them to return home to innovate. Highlights 

of talks are included in the pages that follow. 

Visit the Mayo Clinic Alumni Association blog, 

alumniblog.mayo.edu, 

for more coverage of the 6 7 

th meeting. 

Spring 2012 3

MAyO CLINIC 

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION 

67 TH MEETING 

2011 

Speaker 

h i g h l i g h t s 

The tradition of scientific presentations at Mayo Clinic Alumni Association biennial 

meetings is complemented by a lecture program that highlights individuals who 

have expertise in medical specialties or areas of research. 

Raymond Pruitt Lectureship 

Honors Raymond Pruitt, M.D., the first dean of Mayo Medical School 

Lecturer demonstrates qualities admired in Dr. Pruitt — integrity, 

scholarship, humility and the empathy of the truly concerned 

Daniel Brat, M.D., Ph.D. 

Professor and Vice Chair, 

Translational Programs 

Department of Pathology and 

Laboratory Medicine 

Emory University School of Medicine 

Mechanisms of Progression in 

Glioblastoma: Role of Genetics, 

Hypoxia and Stem Cells 

Daniel Brat, M.D., Ph.D. (MMS ’94, 

PHAR ’94), reviewed his lab’s 

research on glioblastoma over the past 

decade. He uses multiple approaches, 

including traditional cell biology of 

gliomas grown in culture, animal 

models of disease, human specimens, 

and newer bioinformatics approaches 

that utilize molecular data sets. Dr. Brat’s 

main interest has been in determining 

the molecular switches that lead to 

the rapid and fatal progression of 

glioblastoma. 

Dr. Brat has focused on the 

emergence of necrosis, together with 

its severe hypoxia (low oxygen content) 

and angiogenesis (new vessels) since 

these are the two critical features that 

emerge and drive tumor growth in 

this disease. 

Dr. Brat emphasized his current 

work with the National Cancer Institute’s 

Cancer Genome Atlas project 

(TCGA), which includes a rich array 

of molecular data that can be probed 

using sophisticated bioinformatics and 

systems biology approaches. TCGA 

studies have suggested that the presence 

of necrosis and hypoxia lead to the 

activation of a specific yet small set of 

transcription factors (CEBP-beta and 

CEBP-delta) that account for the transition 

to an aggressive transcriptional 

form of glioblastoma (the mesenchymal 

class). They appear to be aggressive 

and resistant to therapy. 

Dr. Brat’s work also has challenged 

the idea that tumors become hypoxic 

and necrotic by simply “outgrowing 

their blood supply.” He has advanced 

the hypothesis — supported it with 

his own research — that blood vessels 

within malignant gliomas become 

dysfunctional and occluded, thereby 

leading to the rapid onset of severe 

hypoxia and necrosis. 

4 Mayo Alumni

The Doctors Mayo Society 

Lifetime Achievement Distinguished Lecture 

Established to highlight significant achievement by a Mayo alumnus/alumna 

John Woods, M.D., Ph.D. 

Emeritus Professor of Surgery 

College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic 

Lessons Learned in Attitude 

and Integrity 

John Woods, M.D., Ph.D. (S ’66, 

PLS ’68), shared the lessons he has 

learned about integrity and attitude in 

five decades at Mayo Clinic, treating 

more than 20,000 surgical patients. 

He said his parents instilled in him 

the importance of integrity from the 

earliest age, but he still describes himself 

as “very much a work in progress.” 

“I’ve learned a lot through errors 

and mistakes. In fact, more from 

mistakes than I have through my 

successes,” said Dr. Woods. He also 

pointed out the importance of learning 

from others’ mistakes and the role of 

honesty in integrity. 

“As a professor, I saw how costly it 

was to doctors’ careers when they had 

discrepancies and inaccuracies in 

publications. It took years to recover,” 

he said. “I once canceled a national 

presentation when I discovered some 

errors in my statistics. Another time, I 

had already presented when I learned 

about a statistical error. I felt honorbound 

to correct the mistake, so I sent 

a letter to the attendees of the meeting, 

pointing out the inaccuracy and 

providing the correct information.” 

Dr. Woods described the importance 

of fairness as a component of integrity. 

“Giving recognition to others for their 

contributions can be a pleasurable 

experience and may even encourage 

others to contribute,” he said. 

He also discussed the importance 

of attitude. He cited the example of a 

patient who requested a referral to a 

different oncologist because the 

previous one lacked compassion. 

“Under the care of the new oncologist, 

the patient expressed gratitude for the 

warm bedside manner,” said Dr. Woods. 

“Attitude can be a stumbling block, 

and arrogance can be palpable. The 

physician’s attitude can make a great 

difference to the patient. A good 

bedside manner can be learned even 

when it is not a natural part of the 

physician’s armamentarium.” 

Dr. Woods highlighted the indomitable 

spirit of patients who have made 

significant impressions on him — 

patients with significant deformities 

who regarded the obstacles they faced 

as opportunities. 

“Many of my patients have 

inspired me with their memorable 

attitudes,” he said. “Despite many 

years of medical procedures and 

disfiguring conditions, they didn’t 

consider themselves handicapped. I 

never heard them complain. I believe 

their attitudes contributed to their 

healing and survival. 

“The Mayo Clinic perspective 

is that we should give every patient 

the very best. Being human, we not 

infrequently fail. But in my 60 years 

of practicing surgery — 50 of those 

years here at Mayo — despite failures, 

I continue to pray and hope to be 

positive in my attitude and to live 

with integrity.” 


iPad app extra 

Judd-Plummer Recognition Award 

Established to honor two early, distinguished members of Mayo Clinic medical staff — 

E. Starr Judd, M.D., chief of the surgical staff, and Henry Plummer, M.D., chief of the Division of Medicine 

Presented to an outstanding physician, surgeon, scientist or educator 

Ceci Connolly 

Senior Adviser, McKinsey Center 

for Health Reform 

Ceci Connolly led a panel discussion 

about efforts to transform health 

care delivery through the use of health 

care information technology. The 

discussion ranged from an overview 

of megatrends in health care and 

information technology to case studies 

about using health information 

technology to improve care. 

Panelists included: 

• Jamie Ferguson, Vice President, 

Health Information Technology 

Strategy and Policy, Kaiser 

Permanente — Discussing the 

work of the Care Connectivity 

Consortium 

• Christopher Chute, M.D., Dr.P.H. 

(EPID ’88), Professor of Medical 

Informatics, Mayo Clinic — 

Discussing work in southeast 

Minnesota in managing diabetes 

and childhood asthma through a 

Beacon grant 

Connolly is a senior adviser in the 

McKinsey Center for Health Reform, an 

independent economic research group 

focused on high-quality, affordable 

health care. She frequently advises 

public and private sector leaders on the 

implications of the Affordable Care Act, 

stakeholder management and crisis 

communications. 

Previously, Connolly was a 

nationally recognized journalist, author 

and television commentator. As the 

health policy reporter at The Washington 

Post, she chronicled enactment of 

President Obama’s Affordable Care 

Act and was the lead author of 

Landmark: The Inside Story of America’s 

New Health-Care Law and What It Means 

for Us All. 

• Abdul Bengali, Chair, Information 

Technology, Mayo Clinic — 

Discussing five trends in health care 

and information technology 


MAyO CLINIC 


67 TH MEETING 

2011 

Research 

h i g h l i g h t s 


Regenerative medicine no longer ‘science fiction’ 

Mayo’s first-of-its-kind center explores causes, cures of congenital and acquired disease 

Andre Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. 

Mayo Clinic Center for Regenerative 

Medicine 

Regenerative Medicine 

for Heart Repair 

Boosting the body’s ability to 

heal is the basis for regenerative 

medicine. This rapidly evolving 

field of new medicine is increasingly 

recognized as an important component 

of the practice of medicine. Regenerative 

medicine can use stem cells to help 

repair damaged heart muscle after a 

heart attack or even implant cells to 

replace those damaged by Parkinson’s 

disease or other chronic degenerative 

diseases, such as diabetes or bone and 

cartilage destruction. 

“It’s no longer science fiction,” said 

Andre Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. (CV ’95), 

medical director for the newly established 

Mayo Clinic Center for Regenerative 

Medicine. “Stem cells are unique 

seeds. If properly planted, guided and 

nurtured, they can give rise to very 

specific organ parts. It is now possible 

for stem cells to repair portions of 

organs and, in some cases, even help 

fix a diseased organ.” 

Dr. Terzic said a key principle in 

understanding regenerative medicine 

is to recognize how organs self-heal. 

“We now know that it is not just 

skin and liver that have a high ability 

to self-regenerate,” he said. “The heart 

and brain also have an innate capacity 

to heal. We don’t die with the same 

heart we’re born with; 50 percent or 

more of the heart muscle is rejuvenated 

during our life span.” 

Harnessing the body’s natural 

ability to heal provides a unique 

blueprint to address congenital and 

acquired diseases, according to 

Dr. Terzic. “As the world’s population 

ages — by 2025, more than 20 percent 

of the population in the Northern 

Hemisphere will be over age 60 — 

chronic diseases are becoming more 

prevalent in the population and require 

new solutions,” he said. 

Dr. Terzic added that today’s primary 

therapies for patient management are 

based on drug therapy and devices, which 

address symptoms rather than the root 

cause of a disease. “Regenerative 

medicine offers solutions not currently 

available to the medical profession and, 

ultimately, to patients,” he said. “It 

provides the opportunity to go after the 

causes of disease and possibly offer cures.” 

Regenerative medicine broadens 

the reach of current practices such as 

transplant medicine. “Rather than 

waiting for a donor to replace an entire 

organ, it’s possible to regenerate a part 

of the organ that is defective,” said 

Dr. Terzic. 

He shared a case study trial 

conducted using Mayo Clinic technology 

where bone marrow stem cells derived 

from patients were guided to become 

cardiac tissue, implanted in the injured 

heart, leading to significant long-term 

benefit. “These initial steps have 

generated broad interest worldwide,” 

he said. 

The Mayo Clinic Center for 

Regenerative Medicine “provides a 

catalyst to advance health care and 

address many of the questions both 

providers and patients may have on 

regenerative solutions,” said Dr. Terzic. 

The ability to use regenerative technologies 

is “becoming increasingly a 

reality across disciplines of medicine 

and surgery. Propelled by innovative 

science, this emerging field is poised 

to advance rapidly and offer tangible 

benefit to our patients.” 


MAyO CLINIC 


67 TH MEETING 

2011 

Research & Practice 

For answers to health care reform, pass the Mayo 

Healthcare Leadership Council sharing private-sector innovations that benefit patients while reducing costs 

Mary Grealy 

President, Healthcare Leadership 

Council 

Washington, D.C. 

Innovation to Create a Health- 

Value Health Care System 

Mary Grealy, president of the 

Healthcare Leadership Council 

(HLC), told Mayo alumni: “Mayo is an 

example of what the health care system 

should be about. There’s no problem 

we can’t solve if we could just find a 

way to ‘Mayo-ize’ the entire system. 

There are many lessons we can learn 

from what Mayo has done and what 

is under way.” 

The Healthcare Leadership 

Council, based in Washington, D.C., 

is a consortium of companies and 

organizations from all sectors of 

health care, with a shared vision of a 

health care system that is defined by 

accessibility, affordability, quality and 

information. Mayo Clinic is a longtime 

member. Former President and CEO 

Denis Cortese, M.D., and former 

CEO Robert Waller, M.D., served as 

president of the council. 

Grealy commented that while 

health care reform has been viewed 

as a battle, it’s really just a warm-up 

of things to come. 

“There is a battling over budgets in 

a way I have never seen before,” she said. 

“Deficit reduction is a primary focus and 

is part of the debate every day. There’s 

no question health care is going to play 

a significant role in these discussions. 

The question is whether the impact will 

be for the better or for worse.” 

Grealy added that potential solutions 

— those that involve improved quality 

metrics at a lower cost — will most 

likely be found in health care innovations 

put forth by the private sector. 

HLC published a value compendium 

of evidence-based innovations it has 

been sharing with Congress, the 

Institute of Medicine and the Centers 

for Medicare & Medicaid Services in 

an attempt to show how ideas that 

are working at institutions such as 

Mayo Clinic could be applied on a 

broader basis. 

She pointed to an example in 

the compendium: Mayo’s Total Joint 

Database, the most comprehensive 

database on joint replacements in the 

world, which contains information 

about every total joint implant 

performed at Mayo Clinic since 1969. 

Variables in total hip replacement, 

such as surgical technique, can affect 

the long-term outcome of the surgery 

— one of Mayo’s top reimbursement 

claims billed to Medicare. 

The Total Joint Database allows 

Mayo physicians to determine which 

surgical practices and implant models 

are most effective, based on historical 

data. Prior to surgery, information such 

as a patient’s level of pain and joint 

function is documented. During 

surgery, the approach, implant model 

and design, and fixation method are 

recorded. Postoperatively, patients are 

evaluated after one, two and five years, 

and then at five-year intervals. 



A panel discussion moderated by Ceci Connolly (left), senior advisor of the McKinsey Center 

for Health Reform, included (from left) Richard Presutti, D.O. (FM ’97), Department of Family 

Medicine, Mayo Clinic in Florida; Sherine Gabriel, M.D. (I ’86, RHEU ’88), Division of 

Rheumatology, Mayo Clinic in Rochester; Robert Nesse, M.D. (FM ’80), chief executive officer, 

Mayo Clinic Health System; and Mary Grealy, president of the Healthcare Leadership Council. 

The evidence-based decision model 

helps increase efficiency and reduce 

waste. And the outcomes speak for 

themselves: at Mayo, the overall success 

rate of hip replacement at 10 years is 

greater than 90 percent, and there is an 

80 percent chance the implant will last 

for 20 years. 

“Innovation is helping patients 

every day,” Grealy said. “In fact, it’s 

happening in every sector of health care. 

We’re not just talking about devices 

and pharmaceuticals. Health care 

organizations like Mayo are providing 

innovative services, procedures, and 

product and information structures 

they have developed to make better 

quality health care that is more 

efficient. 

“Dr. Robert Waller has said, 

‘Providing quality, we can reduce the 

cost.’ That’s a message we continue 

to share.” 


MAyO CLINIC 


67 TH MEETING 

2011 

Education 

Claire Bender, M.D. 

Dean, Mayo School of Health Sciences 

Mayo Clinic, Rochester 

Training Health Care Providers 

of the Future 

Claire Bender, M.D. (PT ’71, I ’77, 

R-D ’80), dean of Mayo School of 

Health Sciences, spoke about a new 

model of blended learning being 

employed by the School of Health 

Sciences to add value and efficiency 

to health care provider education. 

This model is a departure from 

traditional classroom-only instruction, 

and uses tools that include simulation 

and online learning. The model is 

being applied to three programs to 

study its effectiveness — clinical 

neurophysiology technician, histology 

technician and phlebotomy technician. 

“We are working with internationally 

known outside educators to ensure this 

model succeeds at reducing costs and 

provides flexible options for students 

while maintaining quality and integrity 

in our educational programming,” said 

Dr. Bender. “This model may provide 

opportunities for Mayo employees 

who want to go back to school and 

still work without giving up their 

employment. We are responding to 

the charge to innovate. We want to 

make a difference in health care 

provider education.” 

Mark your calendar 

Mayo Clinic Alumni Association International Scientific Education Program 

Course headquarters 

Dan Jerusalem Hotel 

Oct. 22-25, 2012 

Jerusalem 

Pre-conference tour, Jerusalem 

Oct. 19-22 

Registration materials 

mailed soon. 

Post-conference tour, northern 

and eastern Israel and Jordan 

Oct. 26- Nov. 5 


MAyO CLINIC 


67 TH MEETING 

2011 Practice 

C. Michel (Mike) Harper Jr., M.D. 

Executive Dean for Clinical Practice 


Mayo Clinic: Knowledge 

to Delivery 

Mike Harper, M.D. (I ’83, N ’86), 

executive dean for Clinical 

Practice at Mayo Clinic, spoke about 

Mayo Clinic’s care process model for 

central venous catheters (CVC) as an 

example of integration and knowledge 

management — key factors in delivering 

high-quality, affordable care. 

“The size and complexity of our 

practice has resulted in best practices 

being less well defined and difficult 

to diffuse,” he said. “The risk in that 

environment is care that is more 

variable, fragmented, lower quality, 

less safe and more costly.” 

CVC protocols varied across Mayo 

Clinic, and CVCs were identified as a 

source of intermittent sentinel events 

and higher infection rates. 

A work group developed a Mayo 

standard of care for CVC, including a 

common protocol — called a care 

process model — with guidelines for 

education, training and credentialing. 

The central line care process model 

was codified and the information was 

added to AskMayoExpert, an online 

tool that provides a central repository 

for providers to access best practices. 

“When we measured the outcomes 

of this standardization, the result was 

dramatic,” said Dr. Harper. Since 

implementation, Mayo Clinic has had 

zero sentinel events related to CVC, 

he noted. Mayo also has seen a greater 

than 40 percent reduction in infection 

rates related to central lines. 

“Our core business is about generating, 

organizing, sharing and applying 

knowledge in a way that enhances 

high-value health care delivery,” said 

Dr. Harper. “Continuing to integrate 

and apply best practices will result in 

a higher standard of care.” 

Mark your calendar 

Mayo Clinic Alumni Association 

68th Meeting 

Sept. 25-28, 2013 

Rochester, Minn. 


MAyO CLINIC 


67 TH MEETING 

2011 

A w A r d i n g 

E x c E l l E n c E 


Humanitarian Award and 

Professional Achievement Award 

Presented by Mayo Clinic Alumni Association to alumni nominated by their peers, 

to recognize significant contributions to humanity and to the medical profession 

Humanitarian Award 

C. Robert Stanhope, M.D. 

Consultant, Division of Gynecologic 

Surgery 

Department of Obstetrics and 

Gynecology 

Professor of Obstetrics and 

Gynecology 


Robert Stanhope, M.D. (OBG ’82), 

C. was awarded the 2011 Mayo Clinic 

Alumni Association Humanitarian 

Award for a lifetime of dedication and 

devotion to helping vulnerable people 

in the clinic, in the community and 

around the world. 

He says his most satisfying efforts 

have been serving with short-term 

mission groups in Haiti, Mongolia, 

Honduras, Kenya and Guinea, West 

Africa. In Guinea, he is part of a team 

that is building obstetrical and surgical 

services in a medically poor region of 

the country. 

“It has been a blessing to have 

opportunities to serve men and women 

with dire medical needs in low-income 

and low-resource countries around the 

world and to be part of a compassionate, 

caring medical community at Mayo 

Clinic,” he says. 

Dr. Stanhope is cofounder of the 

Good Samaritan Medical and Dental 

Clinics and chair of the Rochester 

Medical Relief Mission Group. He has 

served on the boards of the Salvation 

Army, United Way, Gamehaven 

Council Boy Scouts of America, 

Seasons Hospice and Autumn Ridge 

Church. He is one of two Rochester 

residents to receive the Distinguished 

Eagle Award and also is a recipient 

of the Edward Henderson, M.D., 

Leadership Award from the Zumbro 

Valley Medical Society. 

Dr. Stanhope was appointed to the 

Mayo Clinic staff in 1982 as a consultant 

in Gynecologic Surgery. He completed 

a fellowship at M.D. Anderson Hospital 

and Tumor Institute and a residency 

in obstetrics and gynecology at the 

University of Texas Southwestern− 

Parkland Memorial Hospital. 

Dr. Stanhope, a native of Milwaukee, 

received his medical degree from the 

Medical College of Wisconsin and 

undergraduate degree from the 

University of Wisconsin in Madison. 

He served in the U.S. Army, including 

service in Vietnam as a medical 

adviser. There, he built a maternity 

center for the wives of Vietnamese 

servicemen. The center was named 

Khu Ho Sanh Stanhope. 



Humanitarian Award 

Larry Vukov, M.D. 

Consultant, Department of 

Emergency Medicine 

Associate Professor of Emergency 

Medicine 


Larry Vukov, M.D. (I ’80), was 

awarded the 2011 Mayo Clinic 

Alumni Association Humanitarian 

Award for his work leading mission 

trips in underserved nations and for 

his contributions to community-based 

mission service for Mayo Clinic 

patients. 

Every year for the last 21 years, 

Dr. Vukov has spent two weeks leading 

teams of medical and nonmedical 

volunteers from First Baptist Church 

and other churches on trips to rural 

Kenya to build and develop Hope 

Centers. These centers consist of a 

church, primary school, medical clinic 

and feeding center. Dr. Vukov has 

overseen the development of seven 

centers that educate and feed more 

than 2,000 children and clinics that 

provide health care for as many as 

15,000 people. The mission trips, 

which have included many Mayo staff, 

residents, students and nurses, are in 

conjunction with Special Ministries, an 

organization for which Dr. Vukov is a 

board member. Dr. Vukov also has led 

or participated in short-term mission 

trips to Honduras, Costa Rica, Tanzania, 

and Guinea, West Africa. 

“I am grateful to have been richly 

blessed with a loving and understanding 

wife and children, a mission-minded 

prayerful church, and an organization 

like Mayo Clinic that has provided 

the means and support to serve the 

underserved and care for those in 

need,” he says. 

Dr. Vukov was appointed to the 

Mayo Clinic staff in 1980 as the third 

member in the Section of Emergency 

Medicine. He completed a fellowship 

and residency at Mayo. A native of the 

Chicago area, Dr. Vukov received his 

medical degree from Loyola Stritch 

School of Medicine in Maywood, Ill., 

and his undergraduate degree from 

North Central College in Naperville, Ill. 

C. Robert Stanhope, M.D., with a Maasai 

patient, in Narok, Kenya, during a 2009 trip. 

Larry Vukov, M.D., in Tanzania, East Africa, 

in 1998 with a Kenyan missionary. 

C. Robert Stanhope, M.D., and Larry Vukov, 

M.D., in Guinea, West Africa, in 2009. The 

physician colleagues were conducting a medical 

clinic in a remote village near Kankan. 



Professional Achievement Award 

John Wheat, M.D. 

Professor of Community & 

Rural Medicine 

Professor of Internal Medicine 

University of Alabama School 

of Medicine, Tuscaloosa 

Regional Campus 

John Wheat, M.D. (I ’83), was awarded 

the 2011 Mayo Clinic Alumni 

Association Professional Achievement 

Award for his work helping rural 

students interested in rural medicine 

to enter medical school and become 

primary care physicians with the 

training necessary to serve rural 

populations. 

Dr. Wheat’s focus has been on 

“growing our own” physicians through 

recruiting and training Alabamans to 

become primary care physicians and 

return to their own or other underserved 

rural communities in the state. 

He created a pipeline of programs 

— middle school through medical 

school — to help rural students prepare 

for and sustain their commitment to 

careers in rural health and medicine. 

Since 1993, students from every county 

in the state have entered this pipeline, 

including 471 high school students, 

154 Rural Medical Scholars (medical 

John Wheat, M.D. (center), with family medicine residents and medical students 

from The University of Alabama College of Community Health Sciences. 

students who began the program as 

premed graduate and senior undergraduate 

students) and 98 minority 

high school graduates. Sixty percent 

of medical students finishing the 

pipeline have entered rural practice 

in Alabama. 

“No single individual in the 

modern era has done more to address 

the shortage of primary care physicians 

in Alabama than Dr. Wheat,” says 

Holley Midgley, former executive vice 

president, Alabama Academy of Family 

Physicians. “Alabama will continue to 

receive the dividends from his work for 

many decades.” 

Last year, Dr. Wheat was inducted 

into the Alabama Healthcare Hall of 

Fame. He was named the 2007 

Distinguished Educator by the 

National Rural Health Association. 

Other recognitions include the 

Stueland Scholar Award from the 

National Farm Medicine Center, 

Ira L. Myers Award from the Alabama 

Public Health Association and a 

commendation from the Alabama 

Family Practice Rural Health Board. 

Dr. Wheat practices at the University 

of Alabama’s University Medical 

Center in Tuscaloosa. He completed a 

fellowship at the University of North 

Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a residency 

at Mayo Clinic. He received his medical 

degree from the University of Alabama 

School of Medicine and a master’s degree 

in public health from the University of 

North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His 

undergraduate degree is from the 

University of Alabama. 



The Plummer Society Award for Excellence 

Presented by The Plummer Society to an alumnus or alumna, nominated by his or her peers, to honor excellence 

and unique contributions to practice, education, research or administration in Internal Medicine and subspecialties 

S. Ann Colbourne, M.D. 

Director, Division of General 

Internal Medicine 

Professor of Medicine 

University of Alberta, Canada 

Ann Colbourne, M.D. (I ’93, ADGM 

S. ’94), was recognized with The 

Plummer Society Award for Excellence 

for her contributions to health care 

delivery, policy and patient care. 

A professor of medicine and 

director of the Division of General 

Internal Medicine at the University 

of Alberta, Canada, Dr. Colbourne’s 

clinical passion is diabetes care, with 

emphasis on health promotion and 

disease prevention. She leads a 

thriving telehealth initiative for 

insulin pump patients in 

Newfoundland, Canada, and is 

formalizing linkage with a primary 

care network in Alberta to explore 

issues in clinical care delivery and 

to enhance diabetes care. 

Dr. Colbourne’s medical career 

spans the continuum from a district 

medical officer for four nursing stations 

in southeast coastal Labrador through 

health services leadership in policy 

and practice. Her internal medicine 

specialty practice progressed from a 

solo internal medicine practice in 

northern Newfoundland and Labrador 

to university-affiliated practices in 

St. John’s, Newfoundland, and 

Edmonton, Alberta. 

For the Alberta Health Services, 

Dr. Colbourne is associate zone medical 

director, Edmonton zone division chief 

and site service chief of medicine at the 

University of Alberta Hospital. In her 

provincial capacity as medical director 

of care transformation, Alberta Health 

Services, Dr. Colbourne works with 

clinical teams, middle managers and 

decision makers to transform care 

processes toward an interprofessional 

integrated plan of care for all patients 

and families. 

As physician lead for chronic 

disease prevention and management, 

Dr. Colbourne has health policy 

experience with the Newfoundland 

Labrador Ministry of Health. She 

also has extensive local, regional 

and national committee experience, 

including pharmacy and therapeutics, 

health technology assessment 

(Canadian Agency for Drugs and 

Technologies in Health), health services 

and quality of care. 

Dr. Colbourne completed a residency 

in Internal Medicine at Mayo Clinic 

and received her medical degree from 

Memorial University in Newfoundland, 

Canada. She has a master’s degree 

from the University of Oxford in the 

United Kingdom, where she was a 

Rhodes Scholar. She has bachelor’s 

degrees from Memorial University 

and the University of Oxford. She is 

a fellow of the Royal College of 

Physicians and Surgeons and a fellow 

of the American College of Physicians. 

As part of her residency at Mayo 

Clinic, S. Ann Colbourne, M.D., 

worked on a project comparing 

the population of Olmsted 

County, Minnesota, with 

northern Newfoundland and 

Labrador, Canada. Here, in 1993, 

she collected samples for a 

measles seroprevalance study 

from a patient in a coastal 

Labrador community. 


The Priestley Society W. Deprez Inlow Award 

Presented by The Priestley Society to a general surgery resident for excellence in research 

On Resident Education Day in February, six general surgery residents from Arizona, Florida and Rochester compete 

in an academic competition. Each resident presents a research project via teleconference to staff physicians, who 

ask questions and rate the presentations. The resident with the highest score wins the W. Deprez Inlow Award — 

an all-expenses-paid trip to The Priestley Society meeting and the honor of presenting the first paper at the event. 

Lee Joseph McGhan, M.B., B.Ch. 

Resident, Division of General Surgery 

Department of Surgery 

Mayo Clinic, Arizona 

L 

ee Joseph McGhan, M.B., B.Ch. 

(PRES ’09, S ’14), completed a 

preliminary residency in General 

Surgery at Mayo Clinic in Arizona and 

a year of research, investigating the 

role of the androgen receptor in 

triple-negative breast cancer. Currently, 

he is a categorical resident in General 

Surgery. His research interests include 

breast oncology, management of the 

axilla in breast cancer patients, staging 

of gastric cancer, hormone receptor 

expression in breast cancer, and 

melanoma. He plans to pursue a 

fellowship in surgical oncology. 

Dr. McGhan’s work has led to 

multiple oral plenary presentations 

at national meetings, including the 

American Society of Breast Surgeons 

and the Society for Surgery of the 

Alimentary Tract. He also has been 

accepted to present at the annual 

meetings of the Society of Surgical 

Oncology, Southwestern Surgical 

Congress and American College of 

Surgeons. His publications have been 

featured in journals including Annals 

of Surgical Oncology and Journal of 

Gastrointestinal Surgery. 

He received his bachelor of medicine 

and bachelor of surgery degrees from 

the University of Wales College of 

Medicine in Cardiff. He is a native of 

South Wales, United Kingdom. 

The Priestley Society is a Mayo Clinic Alumni Association society for surgeons 

who trained at Mayo Clinic or who are current or former members of the 

Mayo Department of Surgery staff. The society was named for James T. 

Priestley, M.D., a prominent Mayo Clinic surgeon who had significant 

enthusiasm for teaching residents the care of patients and the craft of surgery. 

The W. Deprez Inlow Award was established in 2004 by a gift from the 

extended family of Robert and Robbie Inlow in honor of Dr. Robert Inlow’s 

father, W. Deprez Inlow, M.D., who trained in surgery at Mayo Clinic 

from 1919−1921. 


ReMine Lecturer 

Presented by The Priestley Society to a speaker at the pinnacle of his or her career who represents the heart 

and soul of the Society, as nominated by the Executive Committee 

Peter Gloviczki, M.D. 

Consultant, Division of Vascular and 

Endovascular Surgery 

Professor of Surgery 


Peter Gloviczki, M.D. (VASS ’83, 

S ’87), has an extensive clinical 

practice that includes all areas of 

vascular surgery. He has a special 

interest in aortic, mesenteric and 

renovascular surgery, aortic endografts, 

critical limb ischemia, reconstruction of 

large veins, endoscopic perforator vein 

surgery, surgery for varicose veins and 

chronic venous insufficiency and 

lymphatic microsurgery. 

Dr. Gloviczki joined the Mayo 

Clinic staff in 1989, and was chair of the 

Division of Vascular and Endovascular 

Surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester 

from 2000−2010 and director of the 

Mayo Clinic Gonda Vascular Center 

from 2002−2010. He mentored 70 

categorical vascular surgery fellows 

and 25 research fellows. 

Dr. Gloviczki is president-elect of 

the Society for Vascular Surgery and 

past president of the World Federation 

of Vascular Societies, American Venous 

Forum, Society for Clinical Vascular 

Surgery, International Union of 

Angiology, Vascular Disease Foundation, 

American Venous Forum Foundation, 

Midwestern Vascular Surgical Society 

and Gulf Coast Vascular Society. He 

is editor-in-chief of Vascular and 

Endovascular Surgery and Perspectives 

in Vascular Surgery and Endovascular 

Therapy. He is on the editorial boards 

of several other journals and has 

co-edited multiple editions of textbooks. 

He has authored more than 

300 full-length peer-reviewed original 

articles and more than 150 book 

The ReMine Lectureship 

was established in 2005 to 

honor William J. ReMine, 

M.D., a gastrointestinal 

surgeon who practiced at 

Mayo Clinic in Rochester 

for 31 years. 

chapters or reviews. He has given 

more than 400 presentations, many at 

national and international meetings. 

He was a co-director of the Mayo Clinic 

International Vascular Symposia, 

organized in Budapest and Paris. 

He is a fellow of the American 

College of Surgeons and was the sixth 

Carl W. Hughes Distinguished Lecturer 

of the Society for Military Vascular 

Surgery. He received the Merit Medal 

of the Brazilian Society of Angiology 

and Vascular Surgery. For his 

contributions to French medicine, he 

received the Medal of the City of Paris. 

Dr. Gloviczki completed a residency 

and fellowships at Mayo Clinic, and 

residencies at Hospital St. Michel and 

Hospital St. Joseph, both in Paris, France. 

He completed a fellowship in vascular 

surgery and a residency in general 

surgery at Semmelweis University in 

Budapest, Hungary. He received his 

medical degree from Semmelweis 

University. 


Advancing 

An Ideal 

In his new role as Mayo’s leader in Arizona, 

Wyatt Decker, M.D., is poised to help 

Mayo Clinic shape the future of health care. 

Wyatt Decker, M.D. 

Wyatt Decker arrived in Rochester, Minn., in 1986 to 

embark on a medical career. Had he not selected Mayo 

Medical School for his education, his father — a physician 

himself — might have argued against his career choice. 

“My father felt many medical schools were focused less 

on the needs of the patient and more on acquiring research 

grants, while their doctors obsessed over building their 

careers,” says Dr. Decker (MMS ’90, I ’93), recounting his 

father’s views of increasingly selfish motivations in the field 

of medicine. 

Twenty-five years later, Dr. Decker is poised to defend 

and advance the ideals dear to his father’s heart. In 

May 2011, Dr. Decker was named vice president and CEO 

of Mayo Clinic in Arizona. “Mayo Clinic, as a nationally 

Vice President and CEO, Mayo Clinic, Arizona 

Consultant, Department of Emergency Medicine, 

Mayo Clinic, Arizona 

Professor of Emergency Medicine, College 

of Medicine, Mayo Clinic 

Postgraduate: M.B.A., Kellogg School of 

Management, Northwestern University 

Residency: Emergency Medicine, Denver Health 

and Hospitals, Denver; Internal Medicine, Mayo 

School of Graduate Medical Education, Rochester 

Medical school: Mayo Medical School 

Undergraduate: University of California Santa Cruz 


ecognized leader in health care, is 

in a position to help shape the future 

of how patients are cared for, how 

physicians and nurses are educated, 

and how medical research is conducted,” 

he says. “Combined, these influences 

will determine how medical care in 

our country is practiced.” 

Mayo Clinic in Arizona is shaping 

the way patients are cared for in many 

ways, including innovative e-health 

initiatives designed to provide Mayo 

expertise in rural communities. The 

Mayo Clinic Telestroke Program, which 

began in 2007, connects rural hospital 

emergency departments with stroke 

specialists at the Mayo Clinic Hospital 

in Phoenix via telemedicine. Using a 

digital video camera and Internet 

telecommunications, vascular neurologists 

at Mayo Clinic perform live 

real-time audiovisual consultations to 

diagnose patients with acute strokes 

and prescribe clot-busting therapies 

(thrombolytics) immediately, before 

long-term disabilities develop. This 

program has been very effective at 

reducing and even eliminating longterm 

stroke disabilities in patients who 

have limited access to health care. 

Dr. Decker sees great opportunities 

for Mayo Clinic to lead the nation during 

the shifting political and economic 

landscape that is moving the United 

States toward a national health care 

system. “There’s a lot of uncertainty 

nationally about where the medical 

profession, patient care and reimbursement 

models are headed,” he says. “Our 

country has a wonderful history and 

culture of innovation and independence. 

Health care is a complex issue, and 

there probably is no single solution that 

fits for all individuals. We have many 

strengths in our health care here in the 

United States, which includes Mayo 

Clinic. It would be a shame to implement 

a system that reduces health care to a 

mediocre level. We need to look to 

those organizations providing truly 

superb care to see how we can raise the 

bar across the board and provide truly 

outstanding medical care to all of our 

nation’s citizens.” 

Triple-Decker 

Dr. Decker’s career has involved 

working at all three Mayo Clinic 

campuses. He developed the 

Emergency Medicine Residency 

Program at Mayo Clinic in 

Rochester and served as its 

inaugural director from 1997 to 

2003. He became the first chair 

of the Department of Emergency 

Medicine at Mayo Clinic in 

Rochester in 2000. During that 

eight-year tenure, he transformed 

care in Rochester and in Jacksonville, 

where he shepherded the Emergency 

Department at Mayo Clinic in 

Florida through the transition from 

outsourced, contracted physicians 

to a full-time Mayo Clinic staff 

model of care and into the new 

hospital, simultaneously serving 

as the department chair in Florida 

for three years. Today, he calls 

Mayo Clinic in Arizona home. 


1 9 8 6 - 2 0 1 1 

Mayo Clinic in Florida celebrated its 25th anniversary 

in October. More than half a million patients from 

all 50 states and 143 countries have come to Mayo Clinic 

in Florida for care. 

“The past 25 years have been filled with tremendous 

medical breakthroughs for our patients,” says William 

Rupp, M.D. (ONCL ’08), chief executive officer of Mayo 

Clinic in Florida. “Our model of care combines research 

and education on the same campus where we provide 

patient care, with all three disciplines working together 

to develop medical innovations that ultimately save and 

improve our patients’ lives.” 

The 1986 expansion into northeast Florida marked the 

first time Mayo Clinic established a location outside of 

Rochester, Minn. Since opening its doors in Jacksonville, 

Mayo has grown from one four-story building to three 

main patient care buildings, a hospital, two research 

buildings and a collection of freestanding centers, 

administrative buildings and support facilities. 

Mayo Clinic in Florida started with 35 physicians 

and 145 support staff, and today has approximately 

4,900 employees and an annual impact of $1.6 billion 

on the Florida economy. 

SIGNIFICANT MILESTONES 

1997 Treating tremor with the first deep brain 

stimulation procedure 

1998 Discovering the first genetic cause for 

frontotemporal dementia 

1999 Identifying a new risk-factor gene for 

Parkinson’s disease 

1998 — Performing more than 3,800 organ transplants, 

2011 including liver, heart, lung, kidney and pancreas 

transplants and multi-organ procedures 

2001 Developing a pioneering lab model to study 

Alzheimer’s disease 

2002 Being designated a Comprehensive Cancer 

Center by the National Cancer Institute 

2008 Opening Mayo Clinic hospital on the Jacksonville 

campus to fully integrate inpatient and 

outpatient care 

2010 Offering the area’s first robotic surgery for 

less-invasive partial knee replacement surgery 

2011 Opening a simulation center where physicians 

in training can learn new skills in a risk-free 

environment 

2011 Opening the Gabriel House of Care to help 

transplant and cancer patients with extended-stay, 

affordable lodging during treatment 

2011 Opening a new $3.8 million, 10,000-square-foot 

freestanding Sleep Center 


Mayo Clinic Distinguished Alumni Award 

2011 Recipients 

honoring ExcEllEncE in pAtiEnt cArE, rEsEArch And EducAtion 

T 

he Mayo Clinic Board of Trustees established the Mayo Clinic 

Distinguished Alumni Award in 1981 to acknowledge and show 

appreciation for the exceptional contributions of Mayo alumni to the field of 

medicine, including medical practice, research, education and administration. 

Individuals who have received the award have been recognized nationally 

and often internationally in their fields. 

The 2011 Mayo Clinic Distinguished Alumni Awards were presented 

on Oct. 27, 2011. 

The 2011 Distinguished Alumni Award recipients are (from left) Keith Kelly, M.D., 

Gene Hunder, M.D., Guillermo Ruiz-Argüelles, M.D., and Richard Brubaker, M.D. 




Richard Brubaker, M.D. 

Emeritus Professor, Ophthalmology, College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic 

Paved the way to fundamental 

understanding of mechanisms of 

ocular physiology and glaucoma 

The research of Richard Brubaker, 

M.D. (OPH ’70), revolutionized 

the understanding and treatment of 

glaucoma. His investigations on 

aqueous humor dynamics led to a 

greater understanding of normal and 

abnormal physiology, leading to new 

drugs for the treatment of glaucoma. 

He designed and built a scanning laser 

fluorophotometer to measure aqueous 

flow, and was able to ascertain the 

mechanism of function of new drug 

therapies because of his perfusion 

models and profound understanding 

of aqueous circulation. His invention 

is now standard in ocular physiology 

laboratories and glaucoma clinical 

research units around the world. 

Mayo Clinic, 1970−2000, consultant, 

Department of Ophthalmology, 

Professor of Ophthalmology 

Residency (Ophthalmology): 

Massachusetts Eye and Ear 

Infirmary 

Medical school: Harvard 

Medical School 

Graduate: Harvard Business 

School 

Undergraduate: Davidson 

College, North Carolina 

Native of: Georgia 

Gene Hunder, M.D. 

Emeritus Professor, Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic 

Gene Hunder, M.D. (I ’63), is the 

single most-recognized and 

respected individual for work done 

in giant cell arteritis and polymyalgia 

rheumatica. Dr. Hunder almost singlehandedly 

defined the clinical spectrum 

of giant cell arteritis and was a major 

force in naming the disease. He made 

wide-reaching contributions to the 

understanding of the disease target 

tissues and clinical complications, 

and refined the therapeutic approach. 

Today’s work in these disorders is built 

on his foundations. Current Contents 

identifies him as one of the world’s 

most cited authors. 

Internationally recognized icon 

in rheumatology 


Division of Rheumatology, 

Professor of Internal Medicine 

Fellowship: Strong Memorial Hospital/ 

University of Rochester Medical 

School, Rochester, N.y. 

Residency (Internal Medicine, 

Rheumatology): Mayo School 

of Graduate Medical Education 

Medical school: University 

of Minnesota Medical School, 

Minneapolis 

Graduate (M.S.): University 

of Minnesota, Minneapolis 

Undergraduate: University 

of Minnesota 

Native of: Lake City, Minn. 


Keith Kelly, M.D. 



Emeritus Professor of Surgery, College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic 

World-renowned expert in 

gastrointestinal motility 

Keith Kelly, M.D. (PHyS ’67), 

is an internationally known 

gastrointestinal surgeon and expert 

in gastrointestinal motility. He was 

instrumental in starting much of 

Mayo’s clinical program on continenceproducing 

operations after total 

colectomy — first the Koch pouch and 

then the ileoanal anastomosis. Mayo 

Clinic became the pre-eminent surgical 

center for total proctocolectomy with 

ileal pouch and anastomosis due to 

Dr. Kelly’s pioneering work. He was an 

NIH-funded researcher in basic science 

for most of his career at Mayo Clinic 

and was recognized with the NIH 

Merit Award for distinguished service. 


Department of Surgery, Professor 

of Surgery 

Fellowship: University of 

Amsterdam, The Netherlands; 


Residency (Surgery): University of 

Washington School of Medicine 

and Affiliated Hospitals, Seattle 

Medical school: University 

of Chicago 

Graduate (M.S.): University 

of Washington, Seattle 

Undergraduate: University 

of Illinois, Urbana 

Native of: Chicago 

Guillermo Ruiz-Argüelles, M.D. 

Director General, Centro de Hematologia y Medicina Interna de Puebla, Clinica Ruiz 

Director, Teaching and Research Division, Laboratorios Clinicos de Puebla, Clinica Ruiz 

Professor of Hematology, Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla and Universidad de las Americas Puebla 

Internationally recognized hematologist 

Guillermo Ruiz-Argüelles, M.D. 

(HEM ’83), is an internationally 

recognized hematologist who has 

made significant contributions to the 

management of patients with leukemia, 

lymphoma and aplastic anemia. He was 

the first scientist to show the feasibility 

of outpatient stem cell transplantation 

in hematologic malignancies — 

chronic myelogenous leukemia, in 

particular. He started a low-intensity 

bone marrow transplant program, with 

modifications designed to meet the 

needs of patients in developing countries 

with limited resources. The outcomes 

of the transplanted patients are 

comparable to the results obtained 

with imatinib mesylate. 

Fellowship (Hematology): Mayo 

School of Graduate Medical 

Education 

Residency (Internal Medicine, 

Hematology): Instituto Nacional 

de la Nutricion Salvador Zubiran/ 

Universidad Nacional Autónoma 

de México 

Medical school: Universidad 

Autónoma de San Louis Potosi, 

Mexico 

Undergraduate: Instituto 

Militarizado Orienta, Puebla, Mexico 

Native of: Puebla, Mexico 


Mayo Update 

Board of Trustees news 

The Mayo Clinic Board of Trustees 

welcomed a new member and 

re-elected another at its quarterly 

meeting in November. 

New trustee 

Randolph Steer, M.D., Ph.D. 

Independent biotechnology consultant 

Re-elected trustee 

Tom Brokaw 

Journalist 

For more information, visit 

http://www.mayoclinic.org/news2011- 

jax/6534.html. 

Obituaries 

Perren Baker, M.D. (OR ’53), 

died Nov. 5, 2009. 

Luis Bonilla, M.D. (TS-G ’95, CS ’98, 

S ’08, TS ’11), died Dec. 26, 2011. 

Mark Callahan, M.D. (I ’81, CV ’84), 

died Dec. 28, 2011. 

John Cameron, M.D. (S ’44), 

died Nov. 19, 2011. 

Franklin Ellis, M.D. (S ’46, TS ’53), 

died Sept. 25, 2011. 

Henry Helmholz Jr., M.D. (PHYS ’42), 

died Jan. 7, 2012. 

Lowell Henderson, M.D. (I ’44), 

died Jan. 7, 2012. 

Emerson Moffitt, M.D. (ANES ’57), 

died April 30, 2011. 

Jean Rey-Bellet, M.D. (N ’54), 

died Dec. 8, 2011. 

Burton Sandok, M.D. (N ’69), 

died Dec. 21, 2011. 

Geraldine St. Onge, M.D. (I ’70, GI ’72), 

died Dec. 28, 2011. 

David Utz, M.D. (U ’58), 

died Oct. 30, 2011. 

Horst Zincke, M.D. (U ’74), 

died Sept. 30, 2011. 

Complete obituaries and the Update section, 

with alumni and staff news, are available on 

the Mayo Clinic Alumni Association website, 

alumniconnections.com/olc/pub/MAYO/. 

Correction 

In the print edition of the winter issue 

of Mayo Alumni, the year in which 

Louis Wilson, M.D., died was incorrect. 

Dr. Wilson died in 1943. 

Mayo Clinic remembers Luis Bonilla, M.D., and David Hines 

The Mayo Clinic community was deeply saddened to learn of 

the loss of Luis Bonilla, M.D. (TS-G ’95, CS ’98, S ’08, TS ’11), 

a Mayo Clinic cardiac surgeon, and David Hines, a Mayo Clinic 

procurement technician. They were on board a helicopter 

flight from Mayo Clinic in Florida, along with the pilot, 

E. Hoke Smith, to procure a heart for a Mayo Clinic transplant 

patient when the helicopter crashed. There were no survivors. 

“This is a great loss to Mayo Clinic and the transplant 

community,” says John Noseworthy, M.D. (N ’90), Mayo 

Clinic president and CEO. “We know that our transplant 

procurement staff put themselves at risk each day to offer 

the hope of a lifesaving transplant to some of our patients in 

greatest need. As we mourn this tragic event, we will remember 

the selfless and intense dedication they brought each day to 

making a difference in the lives of our patients.” 

Luis Bonilla, M.D. 

David Hines 


Mayo Clinic Alumni 

Association Officers 

Eric J. Grigsby, M.D., Napa, Calif. 

President 

Juan M. Sarmiento, M.D., Atlanta 

President-Elect 

Susheela Bala, M.D., San Bernardino, Calif. 

Vice President 

Eric S. Edell, M.D., Rochester, Minn. 

Secretary-Treasurer 

Mark Laney, M.D., St. Joseph, Mo. 

Past President 

Karen D. Herman, Rochester, Minn. 

Director 

Executive Editor — Karen Trewin 

Editorial Assistant — Emily DeBoom 

Advisory Board — Melissa Abrams, Steven Altchuler, M.D., Ph.D., 

Brigitte Barrette, M.D., Karen Barrie, Eric Edell, M.D. (chair), Karen Herman, 

Richard Hurt, M.D., Ryan Ledebuhr, Margaret Lloyd, M.D., Lonzetta Neal, M.D., 

Steven Rose, M.D., Karen Trewin, Alexandra Wolanskyj, M.D. 

Executive Committee 

Peter C. Amadio, M.D., Rochester, Minn. 

Sarah Y. Boostrom, M.D., Rochester, Minn. 

(MCR-MSGME Representative) 

Christopher L. Boswell, Rochester, Minn. 

(MMS Representative) 

Terrence L. Cascino, M.D., Rochester, Minn. 

Diane F. Jelinek, Ph.D., Rochester, Minn. 

Siong-Chi, Lin, M.D., Jacksonville, Fla 

Lonzetta Neal, M.D., Rochester, Minn. 

Meghan M. Painter, Rochester, Minn. 

(MGS Representative) 

Daniel L. Roberts, M.D., Scottsdale, Ariz. 

David K. Teegarden, M.D., Bullard, Texas 

Board of Directors 2011–2013 

Carl L. Backer, M.D., Winnetka, Ill. 

Douglas Chyatte, M.D., Mankato, Minn. 

Theresa S. Emory, M.D., Bristol, Tenn. 

Alan M. Freedman, M.D., Great Neck, N.Y. 

David L. Graham, M.D., Urbana, Ill. 

Jennifer Katsolis, D.O, Jacksonville, Fla. 

(MCF-MSGME Representative) 

Christopher Kramer, M.D., Scottsdale, Ariz. 

(MCA-MSGME Representative) 

Kennith F. Layton, M.D., Dallas, Texas 

Kevin G. Madden, M.D., Scranton, Penn. 

Gregory K. Mayer, M.D., Phoenix, Ariz. 

M. Mark Melin, M.D., St. Louis Park, Minn. 

Nicole W. Pelly, M.D., Seattle, Wash. 

Mary M. Reynolds, M.D., Golden, Colo. 

Scott R. Ross, D.O., Colorado Springs, Colo. 

Guillermo Ruiz-Argüelles, M.D., 

Puebla, Mexico 

Marcia J. Sparling, M.D., Vancouver, Wash. 

Mack H. Sullivan, M.D., West Bloomfield, Mich. 

Pamela B. Sylvestre, M.D., Memphis, Tenn. 

Karl F. Tamussino, M.D., Austria 

Burkhard W. Wippermann, M.D., 

Hildeshiem, Germany 

Alumni Center 

507-284-2317 

Karen Herman, director 

507-538-0162 

Email: mayoalumni@mayo.edu 

Website: http://www.mayo.edu 

Physician Referral 

Arizona 800-446-2279 (toll-free) 

Florida 800-634-1417 (toll-free) 

Rochester 800-533-1564 (toll-free) 

mayoclinic.org/medicalprofs/ 

Patient Transportation 

Mayo Clinic MedAir, Mayo One 

800-237-6822 (toll-free) 

mayomedicaltransport.com 

For information 

about alumni meetings 

and receptions, 

visit 

mayo.edu/alumni 

Alumni Philanthropy 

Contact: Robert W. Giere 

Director for Alumni Philanthropy 

800-297-1185 

tdms@mayo.edu 

Mayo Alumni magazine is published quarterly and mailed free of charge to 

physicians, scientists and medical educators who studied and/or trained at 

Mayo Clinic, and to Mayo consulting staff. The magazine reports on Mayo Clinic 

alumni, staff and students, and informs readers about newsworthy activities 

throughout Mayo Clinic. Please send correspondence to: Mayo Clinic Alumni 

Center, Siebens 5-33, Mayo Clinic, 200 First Street S.W., Rochester, MN 55905; or 

via e-mail to deboom.emily@mayo.edu; or telephone 507-284-4660; or fax 

507-284-8713. Send address changes to the Mayo Clinic Alumni Center office 

at the preceding address or e-mail to mayoalumni@mayo.edu. 

Mayo Clinic is committed to creating and sustaining an environment that 

respects and supports diversity in staff and patient populations. 

MC4409rev0412

Division of Public Affairs 

Mayo Clinic 

Rochester, Minnesota 55905 

ADDRESS SERVICE REquESTED 

Find Mayo Clinic 

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Mayo Clinic Proton Beam Therapy Program 

Mayo Clinic has taken another step toward a new era in 

radiation treatment with the groundbreakings for proton beam 

therapy programs in Rochester and Arizona. The Mayo Clinic 

Proton Beam Therapy Program in Rochester will be located 

in the Richard O. Jacobson Building, which broke ground 

in September. The facility in Phoenix broke ground in 

December. The first treatment room for patients will be 

available in 2015. 

At the Arizona groundbreaking, Phoenix Mayor-elect 

Greg Stanton said: “The commitment by Mayo Clinic to build 

this amazing new cancer treatment facility is exactly why our 

region must focus and redouble our commitment to health 

care and biosciences. This new therapy will not only save 

lives, it will create jobs and positive economic impact, and 

will continue the growth of the Phoenix area as a destination 

for health care delivery.” 

Artist’s rendering of Mayo Clinic proton beam therapy 

facilities in Rochester (left) and Arizona (right).

Mayo Alumni Magazine 2012 Spring - MC4409-0312 - Mayo Clinic

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