Career of Distinction
Longtime friend, global philanthropist honors former UTSW resident, Roby Mize, M.D.
After more than 40 years as one of the country’s pioneering orthopedic trauma surgeons, UT Southwestern Clinical Professor and former resident, Roby Mize, M.D., can add “distinguished” to his impressive resume.
The honorific adorns a new endowed professorship at UT Southwestern Medical Center. It’s a tribute from Dr. Mize’s longtime friend and founder of The Wyss Medical Foundation, Swiss philanthropist, Hansjorg Wyss.
“Throughout his career, Dr. Roby Mize – a brilliant surgeon, compassionate physician, and dedicated educator – has demonstrated the difference exemplary surgeons make in both the lives of their patients and the physicians they train,” said Mr. Wyss. “The Wyss Medical Foundation is proud to devote its first gift to UT Southwestern to support their Orthopaedic Trauma Education and Management Program and establish the Dr. Roby Mize Distinguished Professorship in Orthopaedic Trauma Surgery.”
The Wyss Medical Foundation’s $850,000 commitment will establish a Distinguished Professorship to support the efforts of an exceptional trauma surgeon and will also enhance the Orthopaedic Trauma Education and Management Program by underwriting a symposium, a visiting professorship, and training opportunities for students.
Dr. Mize’s friendship with Mr. Wyss began during his postdoctoral fellowship at Oxford University, where he met Martin Allgower, M.D., then Professor and Chairman of Surgery at the University of Basel, Switzerland’s oldest university. Dr. Allgower invited Dr. Mize to join his Swiss AO surgical team in Basel, following his fellowship at Oxford University.
Dr. Allgower convened a group of Swiss general and orthopedic surgeons to form the Association of the Study of Internal Fixation in 1958. Referred to as the AO Group, it developed surgical principles, instruments, and implants that revolutionized how surgeons treat fractures. Widely regarded by the global medical community, the organization is considered the international authority in the surgical treatment of trauma.
The Distinguished Professorship will support the efforts of an exceptional trauma surgeon and enhance the Orthopaedic Trauma Education and Management Program.
The AO Group’s work captivated Dr. Mize, whose reputation and impact spread across the U.S. through his work with UT Southwestern, Parkland Memorial Hospital, and Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital. Decades later, these principles and techniques remain the gold standard for orthopedic trauma care.
It was Dr. Allgower who introduced the American surgeon to Mr. Wyss. Dr. Mize and Mr. Wyss quickly became friends.
Dr. Mize left Switzerland and returned to a career in the United States in 1977. Mr. Wyss did the same, establishing Synthes USA, a medical device manufacturer making internal screws and plates to repair broken bones.
“I feel total gratitude to the Wyss Medical Foundation for providing resident surgeons in the UT Southwestern orthopedic surgery program with advanced educational opportunities they might never have experienced,” Dr. Mize said. “My friendship with Hansjorg goes back almost 50 years, and to have his Foundation support the Distinguished Professorship and all these wonderful initiatives is completely gratifying.”
