Dr. Robert M. Donaldson is known both at the School of Medicine and the VA Connecticut Healthcare System in West Haven for inspiring generations of clinicians to treat patients with vigor and compassion, both through his leadership and his example.
In honor of Donaldson's contribution to education in the service of patients, the VA center is naming its new education center after the physician, who is the David Paige Smith Professor Emeritus of Internal Medicine and a former deputy dean of the medical school, as well as a former VA Distinguished Physician and chief of medical services at the West Haven facility. A ceremony marking the dedication of the Robert M. Donaldson, Jr., M.D. Education Center will be held at 2 p.m. on Thursday, April 23, on the second floor of Building 2 at the VA center, 950 Campbell Ave., West Haven.
A 1948 graduate of Yale College, Donaldson has been affiliated with both the medical school and the VA center for over two decades. He was chief of medical services at the VA Connecticut Health System 1973-82 and in 1995 was selected as a VA Distinguished Physician by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Only a few physicians each year receive the award, which recognizes outstanding medical professionals who act in both a consulting and teaching capacity to VA and non-VA healthcare facilities, and whose expertise in education, research or clinical care can make a significant contribution to healthcare for veterans and to the broader healthcare community.
As a VA Distinguished Physician, Donaldson focused on improving the quality and quantity of primary care. He is credited with dramatically increasing the primary care program and for making it a priority to teach medical residents how to deliver the best primary care possible.
A gastroenterologist who has also studied and the social and psycho-behavior aspects of medicine, Donaldson was appointed to the Paige Professorship and was named vice chair of the department of internal medicine in 1982. He served as acting chair of the department 1985-87, as deputy dean of the School of Medicine 1987-91 and as acting dean of the school in 1991-92. He also taught medical students and treated patients at Yale New Haven Hospital.
Donaldson's many professional affiliations have included serving on the board of governors of the American Board of Internal Medicine, chairing the advisory committee for the National Institutes of Health training programs in gastroenterology and nutrition, and editing the medical journal Gastroenterology. He became president of the American Gastroenterological Association in 1980; the organization awarded him the Friedenwald Medal in 1987 for his many contributions to the field.
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