Dr. James Goodrich, renowned neurosurgeon who performed seven different procedures to separate conjoined twins, has died from coronavirus complications at the age of 73.
Montefiore Einstein, the hospital system where Dr. Goodrich spent most of his career, announced his death in a press release Monday afternoon, describing the doctor as having “dedicated his life to saving children with complex neurological conditions.”
Dr. Phillip O. Ozuah, the CEO of the hospital system, has called him a “beacon of our institution” and a person whose “expertise and ability were second only to his kind heart and manner.”
After serving in the marines during the war in Vietnam, Goodrich attended Columbia Medical School, beginning the career that would take him on the journey to becoming a renowned expert and consultant for delicate pediatric neurosurgery operations.
In 2016, CNN reported on Dr. Goodrich’s seventh craniopagus surgery, during which Dr. Goodrich led a team of forty doctors in a 27-hour operation to separate 13-month-olds Jadon and Anias McDonald, twins who were born conjoined at the head.
In a follow-up interview two years later, the news agency reported that both Jadon and Anias were growing at a similar pace, but at one point Anias experienced setbacks that have limited and even reversed some of his milestones:
Jadon McDonald studies the picture book and reads the words aloud: my, he, she, the. He pours on the charm, using a deep-throated caveman voice and flashing a huge smile after each word.
Within moments, he announces that he wants to walk. He spins from the coffee table, grabs his walker and scoots across the living room.
His twin brother, Anias, sits nearby in a specially designed wheelchair, playing with a soft keyboard he can touch with his feet. His movements are more restrictive, his mobility more limited, his speech more strained.
Dr. Goodrich told CNN at the time of the operation that the procedure can be “chaotic,” but that the experts now had it “down to a fine art.”
In a statement, Dr. Emad Eskandar, the hospital system’s chair of neurosurgery, revealed that “in many ways, Jim was the heart and soul of our department.”
“His sudden loss is heartbreaking and his memory will always remain foremost in our thoughts,” remarked Dr. Eskander. “Our sympathy and prayers go to his wife Judy, and all those who were close to him.”
Dr. Goodrich reputedly had a passion for traveling and surfing, and is survived by his wife and three sisters.
In response to the virus outbreak, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo publicly appealed to healthcare workers, in places not hard-hit by the pandemic, to travel to New York and help treat coronavirus patients, reported NBC News.
“I am asking health care professionals across the country: if you don’t have a health care crisis in your community, please come help us in New York now,” announced Cuomo.
As The Daily Wire previously reported, Cuomo revealed Sunday during a press conference on Sunday that 75,000 health care professionals within the state had already volunteered to help in hard-hit areas.