Remembering Dr. Bertrand Bell, Mentor to Countless Students and Residents
For those involved with graduate medical education, the name Bertrand Bell has a special ring to it. Dr. Bell, distinguished professor emeritus of medicine and of family and social medicine at Einstein, was well-known for his efforts in the late 1980s to limit resident work hours, which at the time often exceeded 90 hours a week. He passed away on October 4, 2016 at the age of 86.
Bertrand BellIn addition to leading a committee known as the Bell Commission, which made recommendations leading to new legislation in New York State that limited resident duty hours to 80 a week, Dr. Bell was a champion for window guards in apartment buildings, seatbelts in taxis and improved training in emergency medicine. He often voiced his position on these causes through letters to the editor at the New York Times.
Dr. Bell earned his medical degree from what is now the University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. His father, a Jewish immigrant from Belarus, changed the family name from Bolotsky to Bell before Dr. Bell was born. The derivation of his surname was questioned by the dean of a leading medical school during his interview, after which, Dr. Bell recalled, the interview was terminated; Dr. Bell blamed anti-Semitism.
After completing medical school, he served as a captain in the Air Force Medical Service, and then completed his residency in internal medicine at Jacobi. In 1960, he accepted a fellowship in gastrointestinal medicine at Bellevue Hospital, which he completed in 1962. For the next four years, he was in private practice in Westchester while serving as chief of staff at Calvary Hospital. He then returned to Jacobi, rising to the position of director of ambulatory care.
During his time in this position, he established the primary care residency program and strongly supported making emergency medicine a specialty. He joined the Einstein faculty in 1966 and was mentor to countless Einstein students completing rotations in ambulatory care, as well as to Jacobi residents in his charge.
Dr. Bell is survived by his wife, Rose (nee Rudel); their daughters Judith, Beth, Lesley and Debra Bell; five grandchildren; and his brother, Kenneth.
Posted on: Monday, October 10, 2016