In memoriam: Robert E. Gregory, MD – June 4, 1927-June 7, 2017
Bob Gregory, MD, long-time community pediatrician and founding editor of Staff Bulletin, passed away on June 7. He was 90 years old.
Gregory, who was widely known for his warm sense of humor, was born in Hardinsburg, KY. He grew up in Northern Kentucky and, at age 17, joined the Navy for a two-year stint in 1945. He then attended the University of Kentucky, where he earned his Bachelor of Science degree. After graduating AOA from the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine in 1955, he interned at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania before coming back to complete his residency at Cincinnati Children’s in 1958.
Gregory went into private practice with Marvin McClellan, MD, at Westside Pediatrics on Glenmore Avenue in Western Hills. Two years later, they were joined by Bill Gerhardt, MD. When McClellan left to found Group Health Associates (GHA) in 1977, Gregory and Gerhardt became senior associates in the practice, working together until Gerhardt retired in 1998. Gregory then joined GHA in 1999. He retired from there in December 2008.
Throughout his career, Gregory was generous with his time. He served as president of the Cincinnati Pediatric Society in 1975; medical staff president in 1981; and chairman of the Bylaws committee for 21 years. He provided care for residents of the Bob Hope House, a group home for troubled and abandoned boys in the 1980s and ’90s, and examined newborns at the Catherine Booth Home for Unwed Mothers in Avondale. He was also chairman of the Medical Advisory Committee for the Cincinnati chapter of the March of Dimes in the 1970s.
Gregory was recognized for his service to the medical staff with an inaugural Unsung Heroes Award in 2003. The Cincinnati Pediatric Society honored him as Pediatrician of the Year in 2004.
Says Moritz Ziegler, MD, a former surgeon-in-chief at Cincinnati Children’s, “Bob was an outstanding representative of the pediatric community – extremely loyal to Cincinnati Children’s and to his patients. He was very kind, sensitive and devoted to his family and friends. He was a gentle man and a gentleman, the kind of guy you’d like to have as your child’s pediatrician.”
“Bob Gregory was ‘Mr. Bylaws,’” recalls Camille Graham, MD, executive community physician at Cincinnati Children’s. “He always did a very careful review and presented changes with flourish and humor at our quarterly medical staff dinners. I used to think that by-laws were the most boring thing in the world, but as I grew older and wiser, I realized how important they are for any organization. Cincinnati Children’s has yet to find anyone with as much passion for bylaws as Dr. Gregory. The entire pediatric community will miss his dedication, his intelligence and wit, and of course, that twinkle in his eye that reminded you not to take yourself too seriously.”
Gregory is survived by his wife, Jane, to whom he was married for 59 years. In addition, he is survived by his daughters, Becky Gregory-Lawson and Claire Gregory-Ehrman, six grandchildren, and his brother Bill (Pat) Gregory.
