In memoriam: a tribute to dr. Owen H. Wangensteen, the greatest teacher of surgery during the 20th century (1898-1981)

My philosophy regarding teaching has been formulated primarily by my close personal relationship with my beloved mentor, Dr. Owen Wangensteen, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at the University of Minnesota, who is recognized as the greatest teacher of surgery during this last century. By 1930, he had become Chairman of the Department of Surgery of the University of Minnesota Health Sciences Center, a position he held for 371/2] years. He transformed the University of Minnesota into a great center for surgery and attracted a group of brilliant young surgeons to do research on impossible problems. His lifelong recognition of the relevance of basic science and the insight to be derived from research in the training of young surgeons created the milieu and opportunities for great surgical achievements. During the period of almost 40 years in which he served as Chairman of the Department of Surgery, he became the greatest surgical educator of the 20th century. The future academic careers for his residents were indeed impressive: 38 became the department chairs; 31 accepted positions as division heads of their departments; 72 were directors of training programs; 110 became full professors; and 18 had appointments as associate professors. In this favorable environment uncluttered by the cobwebs of tradition, significant developments in surgery were forthcoming: open heart surgery; the heart-lung machine; cardiac pacemaker; conservative management of intestinal obstruction; heart, pancreatic, and intestinal transplantation and metabolic surgery for weight loss as well as elevated blood cholesterol; and revolutionary advances in wound repair.