John Joseph Conley, MD: Innovator in Head and Neck Reconstructive Surgery
Masoud Saman, MD, with Claude Douge, MD Having completed my surgical internship at Saint Vincent’s Hospital (affectionately known as “Vinny’s”) Manhattan, NY, the year its doors were permanently shut, I feel compelled to ponder the life of a man whose portrait hung by the elevators and whose anecdotes I heard each time my attendings remembered that I was an OTO-HNS resident. The portrait’s subject was the prominent surgeon, musician, and gentleman from Pennsylvania, who spoke with a noble accent and whose charisma enlightened any room: John Joseph Conley, MD. After receiving his medical degree in 1937, Dr. Conley started residency at Kings County Hospital in cardiology. Soon after, he was diagnosed with paroxysmal atrial tachycardia and was advised to switch to a less demanding specialty: otolaryngology. His years during World War II in the U.S. Army Medical Corps in the South Pacific, working alongside plastic and maxillofacial surgery colleagues on reconstructing traumatic head and neck defects, gave him the experience that proved to be instrumental in his rise as a leader and innovator in head and neck and facial surgery upon his return to New York. Dr. Conley was known to be eloquent and captivating. Once as the defendant in a case, he told the court that he would summon himself to the stand as the expert witness. He dressed handsomely and walked with authority. At Vinny’s, he worked with Ricardo Bizi, MD, the son of an Argentine otolaryngologist, and Robert C. Eberle, MD, of Geneva. Among his many unsalaried fellows were Peter Cinelli, MD, and Stanley M. Blaugrund, MD, with whom Dr. Conley chose to have surgery himself. Dr. Conley’s contributions to head and neck surgery and facial plastic surgery ranged from novel techniques and approaches in cancer extirpation, to various flaps in facial reconstruction, and more. He paved the way for the new generation of otolaryngologists interested in these subspecialties. It is upon the shoulders of giants like Dr. Conley that we stand and proudly represent our field. The John Conley, MD Lecture on Medical Ethics was founded in his name, and is delivered during the Opening Ceremony at every AAO-HNSF Annual Meeting & OTO EXPOSM. Celebrate the Specialty’s History with Us Marc D. Eisen, MD, PhD, cordially invites Academy members and their guests to the next meeting and reception of the Otolaryngology Historical Society (OHS), in Vancouver’s historic and elegant Vancouver Club, taking place in conjunction with the 2013 Annual Meeting & OTO EXPOSM. Date: Monday, September 30, 2013 Time: 6:30 pm–8:30 pm Place: Vancouver Club Room: Bar Room III An informal reception will follow a short program of presented papers on a variety of historical topics about the specialty. Program Marc D. Eisen, MD, PhD, president, Otolaryngology Historical Society Welcome and Introductions P. Ryan Camilon, BA, University of South Carolina Medical School “Vestibular Experiments Conducted in Space” Amit A. Patel, MD, University Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey “Thyroglossal Duct Cysts, Elephantitis, and More: the Different Sides of William E. Sistrunk” C. Eduardo Corrales, MD, Stanford University “Otologic Anatomical Advancements in 18th Century England—or Lack of: the Case of William Cheselden” Lanny G. Close, MD, Columbia University “Medical Education in America: the Impact of the Flexner Report over the Past 100 Years” OHS members receive advance notice and a complimentary ticket for the evening reception. To renew your OHS membership dues of $50, please email memberservices@entnet.org. For OHS members who wish to bring a guest, there is a fee of $85 per guest ticket. If you are not an OHS member, but wish to attend this event, there is an $85 fee. Please email ohs@entnet.org for RSVP information.
Masoud Saman, MD, with
Claude Douge, MD
After receiving his medical degree in 1937, Dr. Conley started residency at Kings County Hospital in cardiology. Soon after, he was diagnosed with paroxysmal atrial tachycardia and was advised to switch to a less demanding specialty: otolaryngology.
His years during World War II in the U.S. Army Medical Corps in the South Pacific, working alongside plastic and maxillofacial surgery colleagues on reconstructing traumatic head and neck defects, gave him the experience that proved to be instrumental in his rise as a leader and innovator in head and neck and facial surgery upon his return to New York.
Dr. Conley was known to be eloquent and captivating. Once as the defendant in a case, he told the court that he would summon himself to the stand as the expert witness. He dressed handsomely and walked with authority. At Vinny’s, he worked with Ricardo Bizi, MD, the son of an Argentine otolaryngologist, and Robert C. Eberle, MD, of Geneva. Among his many unsalaried fellows were Peter Cinelli, MD, and Stanley M. Blaugrund, MD, with whom Dr. Conley chose to have surgery himself.
Dr. Conley’s contributions to head and neck surgery and facial plastic surgery ranged from novel techniques and approaches in cancer extirpation, to various flaps in facial reconstruction, and more. He paved the way for the new generation of otolaryngologists interested in these subspecialties. It is upon the shoulders of giants like Dr. Conley that we stand and proudly represent our field.
The John Conley, MD Lecture on Medical Ethics was founded in his name, and is delivered during the Opening Ceremony at every AAO-HNSF Annual Meeting & OTO EXPOSM.
Celebrate the Specialty’s History with Us
Marc D. Eisen, MD, PhD, cordially invites Academy members and their guests to the next meeting and reception of the Otolaryngology Historical Society (OHS), in Vancouver’s historic and elegant Vancouver Club, taking place in conjunction with the 2013 Annual Meeting & OTO EXPOSM.
Date: Monday, September 30, 2013
Time: 6:30 pm–8:30 pm
Place: Vancouver Club
Room: Bar Room III
An informal reception will follow a short program of presented papers on a variety of historical topics about the specialty.
Program
- Marc D. Eisen, MD, PhD, president, Otolaryngology Historical Society Welcome and Introductions
- P. Ryan Camilon, BA, University of South Carolina Medical School “Vestibular Experiments Conducted in Space”
- Amit A. Patel, MD, University Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey “Thyroglossal Duct Cysts, Elephantitis, and More: the Different Sides of William E. Sistrunk”
- C. Eduardo Corrales, MD, Stanford University “Otologic Anatomical Advancements in 18th Century England—or Lack of: the Case of William Cheselden”
- Lanny G. Close, MD, Columbia University “Medical Education in America: the Impact of the Flexner Report over the Past 100 Years”
OHS members receive advance notice and a complimentary ticket for the evening reception. To renew your OHS membership dues of $50, please email memberservices@entnet.org.
For OHS members who wish to bring a guest, there is a fee of $85 per guest ticket. If you are not an OHS member, but wish to attend this event, there is an $85 fee. Please email ohs@entnet.org for RSVP information.