Former trustee Dr. Bowden remembered for his skill, humility, example

Former AOA trustee Boyd W. Bowden II, DO, one of the AOA’s Great Pioneers, died April 14 in Columbus, Ohio.

Dr. Bowden, 70, was renowned for his skills as an orthopedic surgeon, educator and leader in the osteopathic medical profession. He was also a gifted mentor whose passion for work, infectious humor and respect for others provided invaluable lessons beyond the clinic, say physicians who trained with Dr. Bowden.

“Hardly a day goes by that I don’t think of something Boyd said or taught me,” says C. Daniel Smith, DO, an orthopedic surgeon in St. Joseph, Mo., who served his residency under Dr. Bowden in the early 1980s. “He had a great joy of life and loved surgery.”

A 1968 graduate of Kirksville (Mo.) College of Osteopathic Medicine-A.T. Still University, Dr. Bowden completed his orthopedic surgical residency at Doctors Hospital in Columbus. He joined the multispecialty group practice OrthoNeuro in Columbus in 1973. That same year he became president of the practice and held the position for nearly 20 years.

As an AOA trustee from 1996 to 2010, Dr. Bowden was a “passionate proponent” for osteopathic medical research and osteopathic medical student issues at the Board level, says George Thomas, DO, the AOA’s 2004-05 president. In particular, Dr. Bowden pushed to expand graduate medical education opportunities and played a key role in helping establish the professionwide Osteopathic Research Center in Fort Worth, Texas, Dr. Thomas says.

As the 1990 president of the American Osteopathic Academy of Orthopedics, Dr. Bowden sought to improve osteopathic orthopedic surgery residencies by instituting educational programs for trainers and implementing advanced standards.

1n 1999, the academy bestowed Dr. Bowden with its highest honor, the Donald Siehl Appreciative Award. Citing Dr. Bowden’s achievement in becoming the first osteopathic physician trained in both hand surgery and pediatric orthopedics, the AOA in 2008 named him one of its Great Pioneers in Osteopathic Medicine. In 2010, the AOA awarded Dr. Bowden its highest honor, the Distinguished Service Certificate.

Throughout his career, Dr. Bowden held leadership positions with regional and national orthopedic, osteopathic and sports medicine organizations. He also served as team physician for Columbus-area high school and college athletics.

Living tributes

Along with the plaques and certificates commemorating Dr. Bowden’s accomplishments and activities, the young physicians and athletes he mentored serve as living tributes to his generosity, guidance and example. “It is amazing how many people—not just in medicine but from all walks of life—he took under his wing,” says Charles D. Kerr, DO, who was mentored by Dr. Bowden while serving his orthopedic surgery residency. “I saw him do a thousand surgeries and he made it look easy. He was a superb technician.”

Dr. Bowden’s actions and example served as his primary avenues for imparting lessons, Dr. Kerr says. “If you were smart enough to hang around with him, not only would you learn orthopedics, you’d learn about humility, integrity, and the importance of hard work, friends and family. But he never pontificated. You’d learn it all by watching how he lived his life.”

Dr. Kerr recalls being at dinner at the Bowdens’ shortly after finishing his residency. “Dr. Bowden wasn’t on call at the time, but he got a telephone call from a kid who cut himself playing basketball. Dr. Bowden just left the table and took me with him to treat the kid. He was available 24/7 for those high school and college kids.”

Tom Dunson, who played basketball at Capital University in Columbus in the late 1970s, befriended Dr. Bowden when he served as team physician. Dunson eventually went into banking, but even decades later he’d occasionally meet Dr. Bowden for lunch. “One of the biggest impacts he had on me was how he consistently treated people with respect and humbleness,” says Dunson. “At his practice, I’d see him always joking with patients and making a point to say something to each one as he walked by. He taught me how to talk to folks and always treat them fairly.”

Although plainspoken and humble, Dr. Bowden’s contagious gregariousness could erupt at any time, Dr. Smith says. “He had a belly laugh. You might be at the hospital at 6 a.m., worn out from being on call all night, then suddenly you’d hear that laugh echo from some room all the way down the corridor.”

Dr. Smith also recalls how Dr. Bowden helped awkward residents gain self-assurance in the operating room. “We were all trying to do the best job we could, but the whole concept of actually operating on another person was always a bit intimidating,” he says. “Dr. Bowden had wonderful hands in surgery. As he guided us though surgery, his confidence in his own skills was so complete that he imparted that confidence to us. In my opinion, his gift was the ability to look at younger people and appreciate what they can become.”

Not long after resigning from the AOA Board last year, Dr. Bowden explained the motivation behind his career accomplishments. “Working hard and making a positive difference in people’s lives was something I wanted and needed to do for my patients, myself and the profession,” he is quoted as saying in the fall 2010 issue of the Orthopod: The Journal of the American Osteopathic Academy of Orthopedics. “I don’t look on it as a great honor; it was just something I did.”

Dr. Bowden is survived by his wife, Ellen, three daughters and one grandchild.