Dan Oseran, M.D.
Executive Medical Director
Providence Heart Institute Oregon
Jennifer Burrows, RN
Chief Executive
Providence Oregon
Today we’ve learned of the passing of a true pioneer in cardiac care: Albert Starr, M.D.
Dr. Starr helped develop the first successful artificial heart valve in the world, used in hundreds of thousands of patients. He personally performed more than 5,000 valve surgeries across half a century of practice, and helped create Providence Heart Institute. His passion for medicine and for educating the next generation of physicians and caregivers was unmatched. In 2007, Dr. Starr received the Albert Lasker Clinical Medical Research Award for his contribution to medicine.
But the history of Dr. Starr is best told through the new lives he gave his patients. “Dr. Starr has saved my life twice in the last 12 years,” wrote one woman, who received two valve replacements. “He has given me the joy of meeting four grandkids.”
“I remember the night before the surgery you came to talk to me,” wrote another former patient, who had mitral-valve replacement in 1991. “You told me you were as steady as a rock … Thank you for a good life because of that valve.”
Parents of babies Dr. Starr operated on also wrote in with messages of thanks. “Dr. Starr operated on our 2-year-old,” wrote a Vancouver man, who also noted that at the time of his writing, his son was an Eagle Scout, has a private pilot’s license and was going into his third year of college, studying physics. “Thank you for making this all possible!”
Providence’s world-class heart care has its roots in the life and work of Dr. Starr. His commitment to educating the next generation of physicians and leaders helped lead advancement into new levels of treatment. He extended that influence globally with his long history of training heart surgeons from around the world, enabling them to take the most contemporary surgical techniques back to their home countries.
Dr. Starr also had the foresight to create and develop a huge clinical database tracking heart surgery patient outcomes over the years. Access to that longitudinal data has been incredibly valuable over the years.
Our thoughts are with his family, friends, colleagues and patients around the world who are forever grateful for his life and his gifts.
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