We posted a statement on our website but wanted to follow up with a blog post. Our team was among the many people shocked by Dr. Robert Butler’s death. Bob was a mentor to the great minds in the field of aging and inspired me personally as a friend and teacher for more than two decades. He made a profound impa
ct on the lives of multiple generations, while spearheading some of the most important social shifts of our time. Bob recognized early on the importance of care management and was passionate about allowing people to age with dignity and quality of life. Like so many of my colleagues, I owe my career to his mentoring and support . Soon after he arrived at Mount Sinai Hospital he gave me the opportunity to join the Geriatric Medicine Faculty Practice. Later, when I chose to move on and develop a private care management practice he mentored and referred patients to me. When I was tasked to put together a Professional Advisory Board at SeniorBridge, Bob was the first to “sign-up” and helped me recruit the wonderful thought leaders we now have guiding our company. Bob and I had just been together at the SeniorBridge Caregiver Symposium in April and then again 3 weeks ago at the ILC Age Boom Academy. We had projects and plans – developing internships for Mailman Public Health students – integrating geriatric medicine into our company’s offerings. There is so much unfinished business – a health care system in disarray, a population aging and functionally declining. Bob saw the problems and pointed us all to the solutions.
I couldn’t agree more with Nora OBrien-Suric’s blog post on the the John A. Hartford Foundation blog. No one will ever fill his shoes, but he left in many of us a the passion and commitment to question, investigate, advocate and create change. What a legacy!
Claudia Fine, LCSW, MPH, Chief Professional Officer, SeniorBridge
