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V102 No 4 BULLETIN American College of Surgeons
72 |
1995 to join Texas Children’s
Hospital and Baylor College
of Medicine, and thereby went
to work for Dr. DeBakey, not
Dr. Cooley. In many personal
meetings with Dr. DeBakey, I
never heard anything from him
but compliments for Dr. Cooley.
These two giants were simply
too large in their personalities,
in their determination to lead
the developing field, to work
in the same hospital. But they
quietly respected and admired
one another. Each also personally
benefited from the attention.
As a talented, bold
competitor, Dr. Cooley never
hesitated to act when he saw
an opportunity—and the world
was the beneficiary. His list
of surgical “firsts” is inspiring
and spanned the spectrum
of congenital, vascular, and
acquired cardiac repair. Among
them, I count the first successful
human heart transplant in the
U.S. in 1968 and, one year later,
the world’s first total artificial
heart implantation as equivalent
in scope to Neil Armstrong’s
footsteps on the moon. These
accomplishments, among
others, led to Dr. Cooley being
awarded the Presidential Medal
of Freedom by President Ronald
Reagan and the National Medal
of Science and Technology by
President William Clinton.
Dr. Cooley, the physician
Dr. Cooley’s consistent and
enduring career successes were
the result of his adherence to his
core identity as a physician. He
never lost sight of his purpose.
Despite the notoriety, the
awards, the public attention, he
remained a dedicated physician
throughout life. Dr. Cooley
traveled the world, met with
dignitaries, received awards, and
would then get up on Monday
morning bright and early and
go take care of patients. As a
surgeon leader, he remained
true to the principle of putting
the patient first. He was on the
front line, in the trenches, doing
the hard work every day. He
embodied a physician-leader
lifestyle for us all to emulate.
He was an example for all in
medical leadership. He became
a Fellow of the ACS in 1952 and
was a Governor (1965−1968). He
also was a prominent member
of the International Society of
Surgery, Society for Vascular
Surgery, Society of Thoracic
Surgeons, American Association
for Thoracic Surgery, Society of
University Surgeons, Western
Surgical Association, Southern
Surgical Association, and
American Surgical Association.
Author, investigator, speaker,
and a paradoxical celebrity
Dr. Cooley was a prolific
author, contributing to more
than 1,400 peer-reviewed
journal articles and numerous
textbooks. He chronicled
his incredible life in 100,000
Hearts: A Surgeon’s Memoir.*
He was a stickler for proper
punctuation and grammar.
He was a highly sought-after
lecturer, and this meant traveling
the globe. His accomplishments
attracted worldwide attention
and resulted in amazing
accolades—from professional
*Cooley DA. 100,000 Hearts: A Surgeon’s
Memoir. Austin, TX: Briscoe Center
of American History, 2012.
Dr. Cooley receiving the Presidential Medal of
Freedom from President Reagan in 1984.
Dr. Cooley receiving the National Medal of Science
and Technology from President Clinton in 1999.
