Dr. John F. Ryan

Dr. John F. Ryan

"Dr. Ryan had a unique career: John attended Cathedral High School where he was senior class president and valedictorian. He then matriculated at Boston College where he was the valedictorian of his class of 1957. During summer breaks from medical school at Columbia University College of Physician and Surgeons, John worked for the Air Force and developed the calibration technique for measuring micrometeorites used in the early satellites and the first moon shot. After graduation, Dr. Ryan interned at St. Elizabeth's Hospital and then spent two years at Vandenburg Air Force Base where, in March of 1965, he was awarded a Commendation Medal for his work in establishing the first intensive care unit in the United States Armed Forces. Following two years at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, John joined Massachusetts General Hospital where he was Chief of Pediatric Anesthesiology until 2002. Also an Associate Professor of Anesthesia at the Harvard Medical School, John influenced the careers of hundreds of residents and fellows‐in‐training while instilling in them his core values of resilience, hard work, and above all, compassionate care." 

Read Dr. Ryan's Full Obituary Here

Read Massachusetts General Hospital's article In Memoriam of Dr. Ryan 

Summary: 

"Dr. John F. Ryan (1935 ‐ ), Associate Professor of Anaesthesia at the Harvard Medical School, influenced the careers of hundreds of residents and fellows‐in‐training while instilling in them his core values of resilience, hard work, and integrity. His authoritative textbook, A Practice of Anesthesia for Infants and Children, remains as influential today as it did when first published decades ago. Although he had had many accomplishments, he identified his experiences caring for patients with malignant hyperthermia and characterizing the early discovery of this condition as his defining contribution to medicine. Based on a series of interviews with Dr. Ryan, this article reviews a remarkable career that coincides with the dawn of modern pediatric anesthetic practice."

King, M.R., Firth, P.G., Yaster, M., Ahmed, Z. and Mai, C.L. (2015), Malignant hyperthermia in the early days of pediatric anesthesia: an interview with anesthesiology pioneer, Dr. John F. Ryan. Paediatr Anaesth, 25: 871-876. doi:10.1111/pan.12697