IN REMEMBRANCE : Leonard J . Weiner , MD November 25 , 1935 – November 2 , 2023
Surrounded by family , Leonard J . Weiner , MD , passed away peacefully on Nov . 2 , 2023 . Dr . Weiner was the first Chief of Plastic Surgery at the University of Louisville , and he served from 1973 until 1994 . Upon appointment , he started the UofL plastic surgery residency program , which trained over 50 plastic surgeons and taught plastic surgery principles to scores of UofL students and general surgery residents . He was also a key supporter of Dr . Hiram C . Polk Jr .’ s expansion of UofL Surgery into an effective and acclaimed multidisciplinary practice , teaching and research program .
Leonard Weiner was born on Nov . 25 , 1935 , in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , to the late Edward and Mary ( Rubenstein ). His undergraduate degree was at UCLA , where he was a star baseball pitcher . His MD was from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine . He became board certified in general surgery at the University of Pennsylvania , and board certified in plastic surgery at the University of Arizona . After general surgery , he served as an Army Surgeon in Vietnam . His hobbies included running , a Turf Club membership at Churchill Downs and enjoyment of French cuisine and French wines .
Dr . Weiner laid the groundwork for a first-rate plastic surgery program at UofL , which continues to this day . Dr . Weiner was a pioneer in the field of liposuction , and he had a vigorous practice in burn surgery , facial trauma , reconstruction and aesthetic plastic
surgery . Under Dr . Weiner ’ s leadership , UofL plastic surgery faculty pioneered many medical advances . His first recruit , Dr . Robert Acland , developed one of the first microsurgical teaching laboratories , the first microsurgical fellowship and a productive surgical anatomy laboratory . I appreciated his support in pioneering early tangential excision and skin grafting of burns , in developing several new myocutaneous and muscle flaps and ultimately establishing the UofL composite tissue allotransplantation and hand transplant program . Dr . Weiner also recruited Dr . John Barker , who built a strong plastic surgery research program , which became one of the largest in the world , and contributed to many peer-reviewed publications in the field of plastic surgery .
After retiring , Dr . Weiner continued involvement with the UofL plastic surgery program by attending journal clubs and visiting professor events for many years . He and his wife , Jane ( Dr . Jane Schultz Weiner ), established the Leonard J . Weiner , MD Professorship of Plastic Surgery at the University of Louisville , which will promote excellence in the program forever .
Dr . Weiner is survived by his loving , devoted wife , Jane Schultz Weiner , MD , three children , Elizabeth Weiner Dahl ( Anders Dahl ), Jonathan T . Weiner ( Sherry Hopeman Weiner ), Jennifer Karmiol , and five grandchildren .
Leonard Weiner , MD , has left a fine legacy for his profession , his university and his community .
-Gordon Tobin , MD
DR . WEINER WAS A GLMS MEMBER FOR 50 YEARS .
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