Rande H. Lazar, MD, of Memphis, TN, recently established an endowment for the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery in support of gathering socio-economic data related to otolaryngology. His goal is to inspire the investigation of health services and socioeconomic issues by young physicians.
In recognition of his generosity, the AAO-HNSF will award the $10,000, AAO-HNSF Rande H. Lazar Health Services Research Grant every other year through the Centralized Otolaryngology Research Efforts (CORE) grant program.
Over time, it is estimated that Dr. Lazar’s generous contribution will result in more than $2.5 million being awarded to 50 young investigators to further research in our specialty.
A native of New York, Dr. Lazar received his undergraduate degree at Brooklyn College in 1973. After earning his M.D. in 1978, he spent a year at New York Medical College for additional training. He then entered the surgical residency program at Cornell- North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset. He went on to start his otolaryngology training at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Cleveland, Ohio. While there, he completed a three month fellowship at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Washington, D.C. He completed his residency in 1984 at the Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Lazar concluded his formal training with a Fellowship in Pediatric Otolaryngology at LeBonheur Children’s Medical Center, Memphis, Tennessee, in 1985. Today, Dr. Lazar is the Director of the Pediatric Otolaryngology Fellowship Training Program for Otolaryngology Consultants of Memphis at LeBonheur Children’s Medical Center. Additionally, he is on staff at several area hospitals including Methodist Hospitals of Memphis, St. Francis Hospital, Baptist Memorial Hospitals of Memphis and LeBonheur Children’s Medical Center-East Surgery Center where he was Chairman of the Medical Executive Committee/Chief of Staff for 15 years. He completed his term as Chairman of the MEC in 2005; however, he continued on as a senior member of the Executive Committee through 2008.
One could suggest that this gift represents Dr. Lazar’s way of giving back, but he, would tell you otherwise. This is “not doing something extra,” Dr. Lazar said. “It’s our obligation as people utilizing what we’ve been able to gather through education and economic benefits. To me, that is not doing something special. To me, something special is creating a foundation for other young people to learn, and guarantee the future for education, open dialogue, open communication that we can use to intellectually stimulate our members and the public. We have a very finite period of time on this earth, and after that, peoples’ memories fade. The only legacies we leave behind are what we’re able to build and contribute.”
