Sandra K. Willsie, DO, FCCP, died on March 26, 2017, after a courageous battle with brain cancer. As an osteopathic physician with board certification in internal medicine, pulmonary diseases, and critical care medicine, Sandra worked diligently for over 30 years to further scientific discovery and health-care education.
An NIH-funded career academic awardee, a Macy Institute scholar, and an invited faculty member on health-care leadership at Harvard University, Sandra was very involved in academic medicine. She served as professor of medicine, interim chair of medicine and docent at the University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Medicine; and as provost, dean, vice-dean, and department chair at Kansas City University of Osteopathic Medicine. Sandra earned a master’s degree in bioethics and health policy focusing on research ethics from Loyola University of Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. She made countless scholarly presentations and published regularly.
Sandra made eight pro bono trips to provide physicians in Honduras, Panama, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic the latest research updates on asthma and COPD research. She was honored to serve as president of Women Executives in Science and Healthcare and as board president of the American Heart Association’s Midwest Affiliate. She had been volunteering for over 30 years at the KC CARE Clinic in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and was a committee member of the FDA advisory panel on respiratory and anesthesiology devices.
Sandra devoted many years of active participation to the American College of Chest Physicians and will be missed by so many colleagues and friends. She served on the Board of Regents and on the US and Canadian Council of Governors, was a member of numerous committees, including Education, Ethics, Marketing, Nominating, and Chair of the Scientific Presentations and Awards Committee. A staunch supporter of the CHEST Foundation, she was instrumental in its creation and served as a board and committee member. We extend our heartfelt condolences to her husband, Tom, and her family and many friends.