After 36 years of exceptional, tireless service to The Johns Hopkins Hospital and its patients, pioneering cardiac surgeon William Baumgartner, M.D., a multifaceted leader of Johns Hopkins Medicine, will retire in June 2018.

Soft-spoken, with a warm smile and invariably friendly, gracious manner, Baumgartner arrived at Johns Hopkins in 1982 as an assistant professor of cardiac surgery. He re-established Johns Hopkins’ heart transplant program and soon made the hospital a nationally acclaimed center for the surgical treatment of heart failure.

In 1987, Baumgartner and cardiac surgeon Bruce Reitz, M.D., led a Hopkins medical team in the nation’s first successful “domino-donor” three-way transplant surgery.

Baumgartner became a full professor of surgery, served as director of the heart and heart-lung transplant program and was named chief of cardiac surgery. In 1999, he was appointed vice dean of clinical affairs and president of the Clinical Practice Association, which represents 1,700 full-time faculty members. In 2000, he was named the Vincent L. Gott Professor of Cardiac Surgery, and in 2011, he became senior vice president of Johns Hopkins Medicine’s Office of Johns Hopkins Physicians.

A prolific researcher, Baumgartner served as director of the Cardiac Surgery Research Lab for more than 25 years.

Baumgartner long inspired trainees and faculty members to develop their passion for cardiac surgery and surgical research, mentoring more than 45 residents who have become leaders in the field.

The author of more than 375 publications, he has held leadership positions in numerous professional organizations. “One of the most rewarding elements of a career at Johns Hopkins is working with colleagues whose achievements and commitment exemplify excellence,” says Paul B. Rothman, M.D., dean of the medical faculty and CEO of Johns Hopkins Medicine. “Bill Baumgartner, both as a cardiac surgeon and through his many clinical leadership roles, has been such a colleague.”

To celebrate his legacy, the Johns Hopkins Heart and Vascular Institute is seeking support to endow a professorship in Baumgartner’s name.

To make a gift to the professorship, visit the Baumgartner Fund or call 443-287-7384.