Page 42 - Delaware Medical Journal - May/June 2019
P. 42
AYDIN Z. BILL, MD
The world lost one of the good guys with the recent passing of Dr. Aydin Bill.
Some of the newer physicians missed the pleasure of knowing him, but for those of us who did have that pleasure, our lives were richer and better for it.
Although unassuming, Dr. Bill hailed from an illustrious family and a long line of physicians. His grandfather was the personal physician to the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. He was the fourth generation of physicians in his family.
He did not fail to live up to his family tradition of high achievers. He graduated medical school in Turkey, then came to the
United States for his residency at our own Delaware Psychiatric Center, formerly Stacks,” as it was known in his time there.
He was a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association, President of the Psychiatric Society of Delaware, and had a long and productive clinical career.
He had a busy private practice but was also Clinical Director of the Rockford Center in Newark. He continued to see patients well into his later years.
He was also on staff in the Department of Psychiatry at Christiana Care, where he admitted inpatients for many years.
It was there that I had the privilege of
as an intern and resident, and later as
a colleague. One could go on about his accomplishments and clinical expertise, but what I remember most about him is his friendliness and the kindness with which he treated everyone. He had a special way of relating to colleagues and patients alike.
His patients loved him. To this day, I encounter patients who remember him lovingly.
He demonstrated caring and respect
individuals who were not especially easy to treat or interact with. He provided
a stellar example of the consummate
physician, always maintaining a
and providing calm composure in the
He also had a tremendous sense of humor, at times irreverently so, which came as
a surprise given his always professional demeanor.
In his later years, I had the honor of caring for him medically, in the ICU, postop. He honored. I think we became especially close during those days, wherein I learned more of his accomplishments and personal recollections of his family, including his love for his daughters and their families. Fortunately, he recovered well and we got to enjoy his company for years thereafter.
My condolences are extended to his family, who were so fortunate to have him as a father and grandfather.
Rest in peace, my old and treasured friend.
CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR
■ CAROL A. TAVANI, MD, MS, DLFAPA is
a board-certified neuropsychiatrist and forensic psychiatrist. She is a Past President of the Medical Society of Delaware and of the Psychiatric Society of Delaware as well as Life Trustee and Past President of the Medical Dental Staff of Christiana Care. She is Executive Director of Christiana Psychiatric Services.
“One could go on about his accomplishments and clinical expertise, but what I remember most about him is his friendliness and the kindness with which he treated everyone.”
138 Del Med J | May/June 2019
| Vol. 91
| No. 3
