Elsevier joins the emergency medicine community in mourning the death of Dr. Peter Rosen, who passed on Monday, November 11, 2019, at the age of 84. Dr. Rosen is considered the founding father of emergency medicine playing an instrumental role in establishing emergency medicine as a specialty. Dr. Peter Rosen was also one of the founding editors of Rosen’s Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice, currently in its ninth edition. Since its revolutionary first edition in 1983, Rosen’s Emergency Medicine set the standard for reliable, accessible, and comprehensive information to guide the clinical practice of emergency medicine. Generations of emergency medicine residents and practitioners have relied on Rosen’s as the premier source for current information across the spectrum of emergency medicine practice. Among Dr. Rosen’s many honors were ACEP’s Outstanding Contribution to Emergency Medicine Award and its Award for Outstanding Contribution in Education. He was elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences in 1993. In 2013, Dr. Rosen was awarded an honorary PhD in Science from Washington University for his work in the establishment of the specialty.
Ron M. Walls, MD, current Editor-in-Chief of Rosen’s Emergency Medicine, and colleague and friend to Dr. Rosen reflected on his legacy, “Peter’s vision of Emergency Medicine as a specialty, combined with his unwavering focus on quality of care and the responsibilities of the specialty, is the foundation of what our residents today take for granted. His vision extended to Rosen’s Emergency Medicine, the first ever textbook written by emergency physicians for emergency physicians. I and the rest of the editorial team are so fortunate to be able to participate in carrying forward Peter’s legacy, and his uncompromising and unapologetic expectations of those who practice this great specialty. Rest well, our dear, dear friend and mentor. Even as we miss you, we will ensure that your legacy and ideals continue to guide generations to come.”
Elsevier sends our deepest condolences to Dr. Rosen’s family, friends, colleagues, and many students.
A majestic lion of emergency medicine. All will miss the Grand Old Professor.