The American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities mourns the loss of one of its past presidents. Dr. Michael McGuire of Santa Monica, California, died at home of an apparent stroke on Nov. 14, 2016, at age 70.
He was a past president, committee chairman and trustee for Quad A. He is widely recognized as having forged a distinguished career as a private practitioner and a leader of organized plastic surgery. He was a leader in the Quad A movement to accredit surgical suites and was heavily involved in patient safety advocacy at the state and national levels.
Dr. Robert Singer, Quad A trustee and colleague of Dr. McGuire, said he was one of the great unsung heroes in our specialty.
He added, “He was not well known by many of the younger surgeons outside of California and Quad A but he was an absolute significant contributor to the specialty of plastic surgery and one of the leading passionate proponents of patient safety. Michael was involved in many of the state and legislative issues that helped improve the image of plastic surgery in California.
“He was an absolute rock when it came to direction and advice in Quad A, where he was instrumental in the strategic planning and success of our organization. He never had an agenda other than doing what was right and taking the high road. He was an educator and mentor to many plastic surgeons and board members. Michael made plastic surgery better and safer and will be missed by all who had the opportunity to know him.”
Dr. McGuire also led the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) as a president, served as president of the California Society of Plastic Surgeons and as a director of the American Board of Plastic Surgery.
Dr. McGuire graduated from the Columbia University School of Medicine and completed his general and plastic surgery residencies at UCLA and fellowship training at Stanford University and Canniesburg Hospital in Scotland. He practiced medicine in Southern California for more than 30 years. He was a clinical professor of plastic surgery at UCLA and the University of Southern California and also served for more than 10 years as chief of plastic surgery at St. John’s Hospital in Santa Monica.
Dr. McGuire will be greatly missed. Quad A salutes his leadership over the last 36 years.
