Dr. Bill Mackey Memorial Message

Dear Boston Surgical Society Members,
       I am deeply saddened to share with you that Past-President of the BSS and longtime surgeon-in-chief at Tufts Medical Center, Dr. Bill Mackey, passed away on January 31st at the age of 72. Bill spent his entire career at Tufts, spanning nearly 40 years. He served as surgeon-in-chief at Tufts Medical Center and Benjamin Andrews Chair of Surgery at Tufts University School of Medicine for 17 years, and for 16 years on the Tufts Medical Center Board of Trustees.
       He was nationally-recognized and respected as a technically superb vascular surgeon and expert on carotid disease. He was an educator and researcher who always put his patients first and generously shared his time, expertise and wisdom with generations of faculty, residents and medical students. Triple board-certified in general surgery, vascular surgery, and surgical critical care, he was a past president of the New England Society of Vascular Surgery and also served on the editorial board of the Journal of Vascular Surgery for a decade. As director of the surgical residency program at Tufts, which he helped create, Dr. Mackey inspired hundreds of future surgeons. Cited repeatedly for excellence in teaching, he received the 2014 Dean’s Outstanding Mentor Award and the Distinguished Career in Teaching Award from the Class of 2018.
       I will always remember Bill for his wisdom, positivity and sense of humor. He was a towering figure in the Boston Surgical Community and a great friend and mentor. This sad news will impact so many so deeply.
 
Marc S. Rubin M.D.
President, Boston Surgical Society