Dr. Ellison Dies at 89
Dr. Robert Gordon Ellison, a stalwart of the Medical College of Georgia who helped revolutionize the field of cardiothoracic surgery, died Jan. 8 at age 89.
“Dr. Ellison’s contributions as a member of the MCG faculty are incalculable,” said MCG President Daniel W. Rahn. “He was directly responsible for many of MCG’s most groundbreaking achievements, and he simply helped change the face of health care. He will be sorely missed.”
Dr. Ellison earned a medical degree from MCG in 1943. After completing an internship and residency at MCG and a cardiopulmonary physiology fellowship at Bellevue Hospital in New York, he joined the MCG faculty in 1947. He went on to become chief of cardiothoracic surgery, retiring in 1987 as Charbonnier Professor Emeritus and Chief Emeritus.
He performed Georgia’s first open-heart operation using bypass in 1956. He worked closely with his wife, Dr. Lois Taylor Ellison, who helped develop MCG’s cardiopulmonary laboratory.
His awards included a School of Medicine Distinguished Alumnus Award, Society of Thoracic Surgeons Silver Platter, Medical Association of Georgia Hardman Cup, 2005 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Georgia Chapter of the American College of Cardiology and MCG’s 2005 Vessel of Life Award (see page 47). The Robert G. Ellison, M.D. Symposium on Thoracic Surgery was established in his honor.
Survivors in addition to his wife include five sons, three of whom are MCG School of Medicine alumni, and nine grandchildren.
For more information about Dr. Ellison’s career, visit www.mcg.edu/news/memorials/.
Contributions may be made to MCG's Robert G. Ellison, M.D. Chair of
Cardiothoracic Surgery, MCG Foundation, Inc., 919 15th Street, Augusta, Ga.,
30912, or the Television Ministries of Trinity on the Hill United Methodist
Church, 1330 Monte Sano Ave., Augusta, Ga., 30904.