Josef E. Fischer (1937–2021) was an American surgeon, scientist, and professor at

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...

Biography

A native of Brooklyn, New York, Fischer was a summa cum laude graduate of Yeshiva University and a magna cum laude graduate of

. He completed his internship and surgical residency at

Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts General Hospital (Mass General or MGH) is the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School located in the West End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the third oldest general hospital in the United Stat ...

in Boston, MA. From 1963 -1965 Fischer served as a Research Associate under Nobel Laureate

Julius Axelrod Julius Axelrod (May 30, 1912 – December 29, 2004) was an American biochemist. He won a share of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1970 along with Bernard Katz and Ulf von Euler. The Nobel Committee honored him for his work on the re ...

at the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...

and in 1968 began working as a Teaching Fellow in Surgery and Fellow of the

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. Established in 1913, the society is organized into six geographical regions of both medical and lay volunteers operating in more than ...

. Fischer joined the faculty of

in 1970. He served as head of the Surgical Physiological Laboratory and Chief of the Hyperalimentation Unit at

before assuming the position of Christian R. Holmes Professor and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at University of Cincinnati College of Medicine in 1978. In addition to his responsibilities as chairman, Fischer served as a professor of molecular and cellular physiology and Associate Dean for Community Affairs at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. In 2001 Fischer accepted the position of Chairman of the Department of Surgery and Surgeon-in-Chief at

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston, Massachusetts is a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. It was formed out of the 1996 merger of Beth Israel Hospital (founded in 1916) and New England Deaconess Hospital (founded ...

in Boston, MA and was appointed William V. McDermott Professor of Surgery at

. Fischer recruited 29 surgeons in his first 3 years at Beth Israel Deaconess, which was key in mending the institution's finances, after a 1996 merger resulted in a loss of more than $280 Million for the hospital. Fischer's research expertise includes nutritional support, cachexia, sepsis, enterocutaneous fistulas, and surgical education. In 1999 Fischer was one of 24 surgeons to be recognized by

Archives of Surgery ''JAMA Surgery'' is an international peer-reviewed journal, which began publication in 1920.Kibbe, MD, Melina R. and Howard Bauchner, MD (2020)"Announcing the 100th Anniversary of JAMA Surgery, 1920 to 2020" editorial, JAMA Network, January 8, 202 ...

for having made "significant contributions to surgery in the areas of research, clinical care, and surgical education" in the 20th century. Fischer published over 850 journal articles and edited 21 books including the standard surgical textbook, Mastery of Surgery. He has served on the editorial board for 13 journals including ''The American Journal of Surgery'', ''Journal of American College of Surgeons'', ''Archives of Surgery'', ''Journal of Surgical Research'', and ''Journal of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition''. In 2008, Dr. Carol Warfield sued

, Paul Levy, the former CEO of

, Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians and Fischer for discrimination and retaliation. The parties resolved their dispute in February 2013 when Beth Israel Deaconess paid Warfield $7 million, clarified its policies and procedures for employees to report discrimination, agreed to sponsor a lecture series on women's health and women's achievement in surgery, and named the hospital's pain clinic in Warfield's honor. In reaching the agreement, the Defendants denied any wrongdoing in the matter and there was no judicial finding of wrongdoing on behalf of Fischer. Fischer died in 2021.

Offices

Board of Directors, American Board of Surgery (1991-1997) Vice Chairman, American Board of Surgery (1996) Chairman, American Board of Surgery (1997-1998) Vice President, Halstead Society (1994) President, Halstead Society (1995-1996) President, Central Surgical Association Chairman, Society of Surgery of the Alimentary Tract (2003-2004) President, Society of Surgical Chairs (2000-2003) President, Surgical Infection Society (1995-1996)

American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons is an educational association of surgeons created in 1913.American College of Surgeons Online "What is the American College of Surgeons?"/ref> See also *American College of Physicians The American College o ...

, Board of Governors (1991-1997)

, Board of Regents (2000-2008) Chairman,

, Board of Regents (2006-2008)

Awards

American Surgical Association Medallion for Surgical Research (2008) Distinguished Service Award of the American College of Surgeons (1997)

Selected publications

Fischer JE, Musacchio J, Kopin IJ, Axelrod J. : Effects of denervation on the uptake and beta-hydroxylation of tyramine in the rat salivary gland. Life Sci. 1964;3:413-9. Fischer JE, Bower RH, Atamian S, Welling R. Comparison of distal and proximal splenorenal shunts: a randomized prospective trial. Ann. Surg. 1981;194(4):531-44. Hasselgren PO, James JH, Fischer JE. Inhibited muscle amino acid uptake in sepsis. Ann. Surg. 1986;203(4):360-5. Hasselgren PO, Fischer JE. Muscle cachexia: current concepts of intracellular mechanisms and molecular regulation. Ann. Surg. 2001;233(1):9-17. Evenson AR, Fischer JE. Current management of enterocutaneous fistula. J Gastrointest Surg. 2006;10(3):455-64. Fischer JE. The impending disappearance of the general surgeon. JAMA. 2007;298(18):2191-3.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fischer, Josef E. 1937 births 2021 deaths American surgeons Yeshiva University alumni Harvard Medical School alumni Massachusetts General Hospital residents Harvard Medical School faculty University of Cincinnati faculty Recipients of the Order of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk People from Brooklyn