Background
Doctor Robinson was born in Buffalo, New York on July 22, 1909 to William W. and Anna (Hoover) Robinson.
chairman physician president professor
Doctor Robinson was born in Buffalo, New York on July 22, 1909 to William W. and Anna (Hoover) Robinson.
He graduated Northwestern University Medical School (Chicago) in 1935 and completed his post graduate training in medicine at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital (now Brigham and Women's hospital) in Boston, Master of Arts. He joined Memorial Hospital in Worcester, Master of Arts in 1939 and served there in various roles over the ensuing 50 years.
He is considered a pioneer in the field of lipid and atherosclerosis research. He served as an Army physician during World World War II, as Chief of Cardiology and subsequently as Chief of Medicine at UMass Memorial Medical Center. His own private fund raising campaign led to the creation of the Lipid Research Laboratory at Memorial, which he also directed until his retirement in 1989.
He was a professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, which he helped bring to Worcester.
Since his early years at Memorial Hospital and despite the lack of a laboratory or paid staff, Doctor Robinson engaged in research. Over the years, research funding from private and government funds, led to the development of a large research team with access to advanced lipid research equipment.
Doctor Robinson recognized the role of cholesterol and diet in atherosclerotic heart disease and demonstrated that heparin prevents arterial clots. His research led to the identification of lipid-lowering effects of the female hormone estrogen and he performed the earliest studies of estrogen supplementation in men and post-menopausal women.
Doctor Robinson also conducted research on strokes.
His 20-year follow-up study of 1000 stroke patients is still the largest published research on the natural history of strokes. The museum was created through Doctor Robinson’s generosity and successful fund raising efforts, as well as his wife’s vision and more than 20 years of love and dedication to the museum’s daily operation. Even while still working in medicine Doctor Robinson would greet guests and give tours at the Willard Museum.
Doctor Roger West Robinson died at home on November 11, 2010.
The Robinson Fund was created in his memory. The Fund has supported work in cardiovascular research, endocrinology, hematology and headache research and has helped purchase important laboratory equipment.
An annual lecture series on Cardiovascular Disease continues today, in gratitude for his many contributions to the training of generations of medical students and house officers.
Member American Medical Association, American Heart Association, Northeast Heart Association.