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Whenever I eat breakfast I think
of Henry and when I think of Henry I want coffee, a banana, and
bagel for breakfast. “Breakfast with Henry” was a highlight
for those of us lucky enough to attend. The things we learned from
Henry. There was, of course, lots of teaching of standard orthopaedics
and medicine, but there was so much more. Henry’s breadth of
knowledge is so wide we never reached its end. He taught us politics,
history, psychology, and humor. He would frighten the weak and challenge
the strong. He would make us look at each other and ourselves in
different lights.
Each six months, as a new crew
arrived at the MGH, we would introduce ourselves. It was not a standard
introduction. Sure, we gave our names, rank, and serial number but
there would be more. Often we had to tell whom we took to our high
school prom or where we attended high school. Henry would start,
“I took Norma Sue Goodman to the senior prom and graduated
from Taylor Allderdice High School in Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh,
PA.” The date did not spawn a romance but Henry did bilateral
total hip replacements on her years later. Residents did not eat
at breakfast, but they did feed at the table of knowledge. Many
did not know it then, but I bet later they realized how valuable
“Breakfast with Henry” was in their education.
Henry was born in Pittsburgh,
educated at the University of Pittsburgh (Magna Cum Laude in college),
did an internship at the University of Chicago, and completed a
six-month residency in Internal Medicine at that University. He
defended our country for two years as a Lieutenant Commander in
the United States Navy stationed in Las Vegas, Nevada. Following
that was a five-month residency in Pathology and his Orthopaedic
residency at Hospital for Joint Diseases in New York City. He began
his academic career at the University of Pittsburgh, returned to
New York in 1966 to be Professor and Co-Chair of the Department
of Orthopaedics at Mount Sinai Medical Center and Chief of Service
at Hospital for Joint Diseases. In 1972 he was recruited to the
Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School to be
the Edith M. Ashley Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Chief-of-Service
at the Massachusetts General Hospital.
Henry was lucky to have as his
bride the former Carole Jane Pinkney. They have three children:
Allison Jane, David Philip, and Keith Pinkney of whom they are rightly
very proud. At last count there were three grandchildren.
Henry’s career has been
dedicated to education. He educates the public, medical students,
residents, fellows, orthopaedic surgeons, and physicians of all
specialties. He is a master of the lecture. He makes metabolic bone
disease interesting, a feat unparalleled in medical education. Those
who hear his lecture on cartilage sit on the edge of their seats
to catch each word. His visual effects, often having the audience
participate while he demonstrates a point, are all original and
help the student of any age understand better. He has taught an
Instructional Course at the annual American Academy of Orthopaedic
Surgeons meeting for decades longer than anyone else ever has, or
probably ever will, and each year it gets rave reviews. He has traveled
throughout the world teaching everyone and anyone the wonders of
the musculoskeletal system and the beauty of orthopaedic surgery.
He has been made a corresponding or honorary member of thirteen
associations for which an American orthopaedic surgeon would not
otherwise be eligible. He has given the R. I. Harris Lecture for
the Canadian Orthopaedic Association, the Bunnell Lecture for the
American Society for Surgery of the Hand, the Sir John Charnley
Lecture in England, the Sir Robert Jones Lecture at Hospital for
Joint Disease in New York, and the Schiff Memorial Lecture for the
American College of Rheumatology. No one teaches more, better, or
loves teaching as much as Henry.
Henry’s career is filled
with research. His first NIH award was in 1962 and he has been funded
continuously by the NIH from 1972 to 2001. He has done some of the
most important work in developing what we now know about articular
cartilage. He has studied bone transplantation in the laboratory
and in humans. He almost single handedly reintroduced bone allograft
transplantation to clinical medicine. His early work has lead to
a wide acceptance of bone and soft tissue transplantation. Henry
continues to be active in the laboratory and continues to help us
understand the musculoskeletal system better. We look forward to
what he can teach us in the future.
Henry has served our profession
with the energy of many. He was one of the founding members of the
Musculoskeletal Tumor Society. He has served on countless committees,
chaired numerous organizations, and has been the President of almost
every organization to which he has belonged. He has been President
of the Orthopaedic Research Society, the American Board of Orthopaedic
Surgery, the American Orthopaedic Association, and the Musculoskeletal
Tumor Society. I will not try to list all the organizations to which
he has made significant contributions.
Henry has had a long, full, and
distinguished clinical career. The patients who benefited from his
clinical and surgical skills are too numerous to count. They were
all devoted to him because he was devoted to them. He knew how to
take care of their problems. He identified what was wrong and fixed
it. He was consulted to care for the most complicated problems.
When other orthopaedic surgeons were stumped, they called Henry.
They probably will continue to do so. He was, is and always will
be available. He was tireless when seeing patients. Thursdays were
the days that most patients were seen in the office. It was standing
room only and they waited because they knew it was worth the wait.
They knew they would get the care and consideration they wanted.
All of his patients will miss being able to see him as their doctor
although one mother has already told me that she likes his new position
because it is easier to get him on the phone. There were no operations
too complex or difficult for Henry. He could do them all.
Few, if any, orthopaedic surgeons
have done more for our profession. I am honored and pleased to write
this dedication. I write this for all of his students who have gotten
so much from Henry. We salute you Henry Mankin, MD and thank you
for all you have done for us.
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