Patrick Brophy Named Chair of Pediatrics at Â鶹ÊÓƵ
Patrick Brophy, M.D., MHCDS, who currently serves as Director of Pediatric Nephrology at University of Iowa Health Care, has been named the next William H. Eilinger Professor and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the Â鶹ÊÓƵ (URMC) and physician-in-chief of Golisano Children’s Hospital (GCH), pending approval by the University Board of Trustees.
Brophy, who comes to Rochester after a national search, will be the 8th Chair of the Department of Pediatrics. His term begins Jan. 1.
“Patrick Brophy has demonstrated exceptional skills as a clinician and as a leader in improving quality and patients’ access to care via technology innovation,” said Mark Taubman, M.D., CEO of Â鶹ÊÓƵand Dean of the School of Medicine and Dentistry. “In his conversations with us, he demonstrated great enthusiasm for the quality of our pediatrics department and he has a compelling vision to take it to the next level in clinical care, research, and education. We are thrilled to have him leading our pediatric efforts, not only as chair of the Department of Pediatrics, but as physician-in-chief of GCH.”
A board-certified pediatric nephrologist, Brophy has spent the past decade at the University of Iowa, where he has served as division director since 2007. He holds the Jean E. Robillard, MD Chair in Pediatric Nephrology and is a professor in the university’s , and serves in several additional roles throughout the institution, including Assistant Vice President of eHealth and Innovation, Vice Chair of Clinical Innovation for the Department of Pediatrics, and Co-Director of the Integrated Special Populations Research Core in the university’s Institute of Clinical and Translational Science.
The founder of the University of Iowa’s Signal Center for Health Innovation, Brophy has led efforts to use technology — particularly telehealth — to reach patients. He maintains a research lab that focuses on kidney development in utero.
Prior to his tenure in Iowa, Brophy spent almost 10 years at the University of Michigan Medical Center, where he served as a clinical and research fellow before joining faculty. He spent his residency at the University of Manitoba after graduating from the University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine.
Brophy emphasizes a robust collaborative approach to clinical care, and said he is looking forward to working with faculty across departments and subspecialties. He also hopes to continue efforts to build an integrated pathway to help children with chronic conditions make the transition to adult care.
In his research, Brophy follows the life-course approach, which includes an emphasis on the social and structural components that affect a person’s well-being, along with basic research, preventive care, and precision medicine.
In Rochester, Brophy will lead a department that has built tremendous momentum under Nina Schor, M.D., Ph.D. His dual role as physician-in-chief also puts him at the head of Golisano Children’s Hospital, which recently completed Phase II of its construction efforts, bringing pediatric inpatient rooms, operating rooms, intensive care services, and neonatal intensive care together under one roof. At various points over the past decade, the children’s hospital has been nationally ranked by U.S. News and World Report in six out of ten subspecialties; in 2017, it made the rankings in Neonatology, Nephrology, and Neurology and Neurosurgery.
When considering the Â鶹ÊÓƵposition, Brophy said that the new Golisano Children’s Hospital building was a major draw, as was the university’s longstanding reputation for pediatric excellence.
“Rochester has a storied history when it comes to child health,” he said. “In training, I saw firsthand how devastating Hib (Haemophilus Influenza Type b) can be. With the development of that vaccine in Rochester — we can’t know just how many children’s lives have been saved as a result.”
The Â鶹ÊÓƵsearch committee, led by Jeffrey Lyness, M.D., Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, and Michael Rotondo, M.D., CEO of UR Medical Faculty Group, received applications from many accomplished candidates. But even in this distinguished pool of applicants, Brophy stood out.
“He is an outstanding, nationally-recognized pediatric nephrologist who has made substantial contributions to patient care, education, and research,” said Lyness. “He has demonstrated abilities to mentor and support colleagues, and to work collaboratively with interdisciplinary teams. And he has proven his leadership skills across the University of Iowa’s regional health care system.”
In announcing the appointment, Taubman thanked the recruitment committee that evaluated and interviewed candidates for the position. In addition to Lyness, members included Nancy Bennett, M.D.; Sarah Betstadt, M.D.; Steven Goldstein; Minsoo Kim, Ph.D.; David Linehan, M.D.; M. Kerry O’Banion, M.D., Ph.D.; Kathy Rideout, EdD, PPCNP-BC; Patricia Sime, M.D.; and Patricia Witzel, R.N.