World-renowned American surgeon Dr Jay L. Grosfeld was conferred with an Honorary Fellowship of RCSI this evening at the College’s Postgraduate Conferring Ceremony.

Born in the mid 1930s in New York City, Dr Grosfeld attended undergraduate school at Washington Square College in New York and continued with his medical studies at New York University School of Medicine, where in graduated in 1961. He was a general surgery resident at NYU and Bellevue Hospitals before spending two years in the Army. After army service he completed a paediatric Fellowship in Ohio State University and Columbus Children’s Hospital before returning to his home state of New York in 1970 to take up the position of assistant Professor of Surgery at NYU.

In 1972 Dr Grosfeld moved to Indianapolis where he was appointed Professor and Director of paediatric surgery at Indiana University and was the first surgeon-in-chief of the Riley Children’s Hospital. He was a true pioneer of paediatric surgery and took that discipline from a very underdeveloped service to a level where he set the standard for surgical care of infants and children throughout the mid west of America. His colleagues at Indiana University recognised a true leader and he was appointed Chairman of the Department of Surgery at Indiana University School of Medicine and was thus the first paediatric surgeon so honoured. Dr Grosfeld led the Department of Surgery from 1985 until his retirement as Chairman in 2003.

In his citation, Mr Patrick J. Broe said: “Jay’s first professional love was always paediatric surgery in which discipline he was recognised as a superb and sensitive clinician as well as a master surgeon. In a more general sense, he is an outstanding teacher, a talented administrator and a great surgical leader. Jay’s career conveys a life of unstinting service to his fellow man through unselfish dedication to surgery in general and more specifically to paediatric surgery and his surgical career is characterised by a generosity of spirit.”

Approximately 170 students were conferred with postgraduate awards at the ceremony including Intercollegiate Board Speciality Diplomas in general surgery, otolaryngology, paediatric surgery, trauma and orthopaedic surgery, cardiothoracic surgery and plastic surgery. 

At the conferring ceremony, Professor Frank Keane, President of RCSI congratulated new Members and Fellows on their success in reaching this exciting milestone in their careers and wished them all the very best as they continued to strive for their goals.