Pierre Rene Grondin, (August 18, 1925 - January 17, 2006) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

cardiac surgeon Cardiac surgery, or cardiovascular surgery, is surgery on the heart or great vessels performed by cardiac surgeons. It is often used to treat complications of ischemic heart disease (for example, with coronary artery bypass grafting); to cor ...

who was one of the first doctors to perform a successful

heart transplant A heart transplant, or a cardiac transplant, is a surgical transplant procedure performed on patients with end-stage heart failure or severe coronary artery disease when other medical or surgical treatments have failed. , the most common proce ...

. He was legendary in his surgical abilities and style and brought many innovations to the Montreal Heart Institute after his post-graduate training with pioneers Michael DeBakey and Denton Cooley in Houston, Texas. He was one of a select few heart surgeons worldwide who participated in the development of open heart surgery using the heart-lung machine in the early 1960s. He performed the first Canadian heart transplantation at the Montreal Heart Institute in May, 1968 shortly after the first successful heart transplant in the world in December, 1967 in Cape Town, South Africa by Dr. Christiaan Barnard.

Education and career

Grondin was awarded a

Doctor of Medicine Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin language, Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a profes ...

degree from the

Université Laval Université Laval is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university was founded by royal charter issued by Queen Victoria in 1852, with roots in the founding of the Séminaire de Québec in 1663 by François de Montmo ...

in 1951, after which he went on to obtain a specialist's certificate in cardiac surgery and a

fellowship A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

from the

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 ...

in San Francisco in 1960. He began his career as a surgeon at the Hôpital Ste-Marie de

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice River, Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence River, Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Sain ...

. In 1971, he joined the faculty of medicine of the

Université de Montréal The Université de Montréal (UdeM; ; translates to University of Montreal) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-de ...

as clinical professor. After nearly 15 years as head of its surgical division, Dr. Pierre Grondin left the Montreal Heart Institute in 1978 to occupy the same position as head of cardiothoracic surgery at St. Francis Hospital in Miami Beach, Florida. He would return to Canada in 1990 to start a cardiac surgery program at the Hotel-Dieu Hospital in Quebec City and in 1995, at the age of 70, retired.

Achievements and later life

Dr. Grondin was one of the pioneers in cardiovascular and thoracic surgery in his locale. In collaboration with other surgeons, he organized the surgery department at the

Montreal Heart Institute The Montreal Heart Institute (MHI) (French: ''Institut de Cardiologie de Montréal''), in Montreal, Quebec, is a specialty hospital dedicated to the development of cardiology, which is affiliated with the Université de Montréal. The MHI is found ...

; he was the department's head from 1963 to 1975. During this time, he was appointed Honorary Professor of the Faculty of Medicine of

Santo Domingo , total_type = Total , population_density_km2 = auto , timezone = AST (UTC −4) , area_code_type = Area codes , area_code = 809, 829, 849 , postal_code_type = Postal codes , postal_code = 10100–10699 (Distrito Nacional) , websi ...

. He was also responsible for agreements between the Université de Montréal and its counterparts in

Liège Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far from b ...

and

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

. In the course of his career, he became the recipient of several prominent awards, including the Prix Lenègre from the Fondation Nativelle in France, and the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

medal. In May 1968, at the Montreal Heart Institute, he performed the first successful heart transplant in Canada. To date, over 300 cardiac transplants have been performed at the Montreal Heart Institute (MHI). Through Grondin's leadership, the MHI built a surgical team that is now known worldwide for its expertise in cardiovascular

pathology Pathology is the study of the causes and effects of disease or injury. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in ...

and its commitment to research and teaching. Grondin died in

Shawinigan Shawinigan () is a city located on the Saint-Maurice River in the Mauricie area in Quebec, Canada. It had a population of 49,349 as of the 2016 Canadian census. Shawinigan is also a territory equivalent to a regional county municipality (TE) an ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

on January 17, 2006, of an esophageal rupture at the age of 80. He is survived by his 5 children: Louis, Jean, Marie-Pierre, Bernard, and Michel.

References

External links

Montreal Heart Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grondin, Pierre 1925 births 2006 deaths Université Laval alumni Canadian cardiac surgeons Officers of the Order of Canada 20th-century surgeons