Donald Trunkey
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Donald Dean Trunkey (23 June 19371 May 2019) was an American
trauma surgeon Trauma surgery is a surgical specialty that utilizes both operative and non-operative management to treat traumatic injuries, typically in an acute setting. Trauma surgeons generally complete residency training in general surgery and often fel ...
.


Early life

Trunkey was born in 1937 in Washington State. He received a BS in Zoology from
Washington State College Washington State University (WSU, or colloquially Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university in Pullman, Washington, United States. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant universities in the American West. With an un ...
, where he also played basketball and because of alphabetical sorting was the last person to graduate before the school changed its name to
Washington State University Washington State University (WSU, or colloquially Wazzu) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Pullman, Washington, United States. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest Land-grant uni ...
in 1959.


Medical education

He then went to the
University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...
for Medical School and graduated in 1963. He interned under J. Englebert Dunphy at the
University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...
Medical School, who became his mentor and turned his focus to surgery. He was then drafted into the army and served two years in Germany. He completed his surgical training at
UCSF The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) is a public land-grant research university in San Francisco, California, United States. It is part of the University of California system and is dedicated entirely to health science and life ...
and became a faculty member in 1972. As a UCSF faculty member, he was the leader of the trauma service at San Francisco General Hospital. His experience as an academic trauma surgeon led to his authorship of a popular textbook on trauma care in 1983. In 1986 he became the Chief of Surgery at
Oregon Health & Science University Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) is a public university, public research university, research university focusing primarily on health sciences with a main campus, including two hospitals, in Portland, Oregon. The institution was founded ...
. In 2018 he retired to Idaho.


Writings

Trunkey has authored 174 journal articles, 25 books, and about 200 book chapters. In 1978 he starred in an episode of '' Lifeline'' on NBC. "The critical moment in Don Trunkey's career was when he published a paper in 1979 on death rates of trauma patients in Orange County (Calif.), compared to those in San Francisco County," said Richard Mullins, MD, Professor, Department of Surgery. "That paper was a bombshell. It was one of the earliest, most persuasive pieces of evidence on the effectiveness of trauma centers." Trunkey was, more than any other single person, responsible for the development of sophisticated, state-of-the-art trauma programs in the U.S.


Awards

In 2008 he received the King Faisal prize in medicine for his research improving trauma care. He has many other awards including Distinguished Service Award of the
American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons (ACS) is a professional medical association for surgeons and surgical team members, founded in 1913. It claims more than 90,000 members in 144 countries. History The ACS was founded in 1913 as an outgrowth of ...
, Washington State University College of Science Distinguished Alumnus Award, Barry Goldwater Service Award,
International Society of Surgery The International Society of Surgery, or the Société Internationale de Chirurgie, is an international society of surgeons founded in 1902.British Association for Accident and Emergency Medicine and Honorary Fellowships of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons of England, Ireland, Edinburgh, Glasgow, South Africa and Brazil, Medal of the Royal College of Medicine of England and Honorary Professorship of the
Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The RCSEd has five faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical and healthcare specialities. Its main campus is locate ...
. In 2018 he received the Icons in Surgery award.


Death

Trunkey died in Post Falls, Idaho on 1 May 2019, at the age of 81.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trunkey, Donald 1937 births 2019 deaths Physicians from Washington (state) 21st-century American physicians American traumatologists Washington State University alumni University of Washington School of Medicine alumni UCSF School of Medicine faculty Oregon Health & Science University faculty 20th-century American surgeons