It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of Robert H. Jones, MD, Professor Emeritus of Surgery, on January 26, 2022. Dr. Jones was the Mary and Deryl Hart Distinguished Professor of Surgery and a prolific cardiothoracic surgeon and clinical investigator until his retirement in 2014. We have lost a treasured member of the Duke community, but his legacy will live on.
Dr. Jones received his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University in 1965, and became one of the first Duke University surgical residents taught by Dr. David C. Sabiston, Jr. His residency was interrupted by military service when Dr. Jones served as a Captain in the Air Force. He then completed his residency and joined the Duke Department of Surgery as an Assistant Professor in 1975.
Dr. Jones’ career at Duke spanned 40 years as a cardiac surgeon, clinical investigator, resident educator, and an agent of change in the provision of cardiac care here at Duke and around the world. Beginning as a Howard Hughes Investigator, he made a number of seminal contributions in the field of lung scanning and nuclear cardiology imaging. His major interest was in the treatment of patients with coronary artery disease, where he was instrumental in the employment of patient data from the Duke Cardiovascular Disease Databank and the Duke Cardiac Research Institute to develop evidence that has guided surgeons and cardiologists through decades of change. From this platform, he obtained NIH funding for the STICH trial, which compared medical therapy to surgical therapy for coronary artery disease. This trial ultimately enrolled over 2,000 patients worldwide, following them for a decade, and publishing outcomes in more than 50 manuscripts to date.
As his academic career flourished, he was selected as the inaugural recipient of the Mary and Deryl Hart Distinguished Professorship, created to honor the founder of Duke’s Department of Surgery. As a professor, Dr. Jones was an accomplished surgeon performing thousands of Coronary Artery Bypass operations and training scores of surgical residents. He emphasized the integration of science and clinical decision making within everyday practice.
Dr. Jones published more than 250 manuscripts that have provided the evidence base used in that everyday practice. His research also focused on harmonizing the roles of surgeons and cardiologists in order to strengthen collaboration between specialties.
Dr. Jones co-founded the Heart Center in 1989 as the first service line within Duke Hospital and promoted joint research and joint clinical practice. This directly led to the concept of Heart Team decision making that is now embodied in all national and international guidelines for the treatment of coronary disease.
Dr. Jones’ legacy is embodied in the thousands of recipients of his generous teaching and mentorship in the clinical, research, and administrative communities.
This legacy is best summed up by the inscription on his retirement gift: “Physician, Surgeon, Scholar, Mentor, Leader…and so much more!”
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 am on March 5th at the Cole Mill Road Church of Christ.