Pictured: Dr. Tom Kosasa and Bill McCorriston
By Elaine Evans, JABSOM Development Director
Punahou classmates Dr. Tom Kosasa (John A. Burns School of Medicine OB-GYN Professor Emeritus) and Hawai’i attorney William “Bill” McCorriston share more than high school memories. They both loved Bill’s dad, Dr. Colin McCorriston, who passed away in 2001. Coincidentally and many years apart, Dr. Kosasa and Dr. McCorriston trained at the same residency program at Harvard (they are still the only two Hawai’i residents to have done so).
Dr. Kosasa’s admiration for the elder McCorriston began when they worked together at Kapiʻolani Medical Center for Women and Children, where Dr. McCorriston delivered most of the more than 10,000 babies – three generations of some families – during his career.
To honor Dr. McCorriston and at the same time provide support for the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Women’s Health (OB-GYN), Kosasa and McCorriston family members established the Colin C. McCorriston, MD Endowed Professorship in the department earlier this year. Though Dr. Kosasa has earned emeritus status in the department, he still follows in Dr. McCorriston’s footsteps by regularly teaching Hawai`i’s future obstetricians – JABSOM medical students and residents.
Photo album from UH Med Flickr.
Kosasa Endowed Chair of the OB-GYN Department Dr. Ivica Zalud said, “This extraordinary gift will help us support, reward, and retain talented faculty and enable us to enhance the research, education, and community outreach missions of our department.”
Three of the five McCorriston siblings, Fred, Bill and Kitty joined host Dean Hedges at the Pacific Club in June for a celebratory dinner and the chance to give Dr. Kosasa a warm mahalo for honoring their father in such a meaningful way.
In his toast that evening, Dean Hedges noted, “Many patients today who have never heard of Colin McCorriston are benefitting from his influence on the hundreds of physicians he trained during the course of his seventeen years of teaching at JABSOM. We are honored that Tom (Kosasa) and the McCorriston family have entrusted us with his legacy.”
About JABSOM OB-GYN
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Physicians with JABSOM OB-GYN Department provide coverage for multiple hospitals in Hawai‘i including Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women and Children, The Queen’s Medical Center and Pali Momi Medical Center.
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JABSOM OB-GYN physicians provide high quality care to women facing heath problems though their life span, including complications and high-risk pregnancies. This dedicated group also provides essential services to many under-insured patients in Hawai’i.
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In addition to directly serving Hawai‘i’s families, the UH Department of Obstetrics-Gynecology & Women’s Health creates its clinical learning environment for medical students, residents & fellows through its University Health Partners of Hawai’i (UHP) practice, giving all learners the robust real-world experience they need. The department has 37 physicians, including four who are part-time and three professors emeritus. Another 107 OB-GYN physicians in Hawai`i are volunteer faculty. Specialty training is offered in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Family Planning and Maternal Fetal Medicine.
About University Health Partners of Hawaiʻi (UHP)
University Health Partners of Hawaiʻi is the faculty practice plan of the John A. Burns School of Medicine and is aimed to support the educational, research and community service activities of JABSOM. The practice plan includes more than 100 participating physicians. UHP (formerly known as UCERA) physicians provide services for multiple hospitals in Hawai‘i including Kapi‘olani Medical Center, The Queen’s Medical Center, Kuakini Medical Center and Pali Momi Medical Center.
Giving
To find out how you can support the students and programs at JABSOM, please contact Elaine Evans at (808) 692-0991 or elaine.evans@uhfoundation.org. You can also make a gift online at www.uhfoundation.org/givetojabsom
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An enduring gift creates an endowed chair in OB-GYN
Dr. Zalud leads department which aided 1/3 Hawaiʻi births last year