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Surgeon remembered as leader, teacher
By KALEY Connor
July 19, 2010
kconnor@dailynews.net
He's remembered for his compassion, his quick wit, and the many lives he saved in the operating room.
Perhaps most of all, Dr. Gary Benton is remembered for the leadership he showed -- and not only within hospital walls.
"He didn't lead with an iron fist -- he led by example," said Kelly Hedlund, a perfusionist who worked closely with Benton for several years. "Hard work ethic, being an honorable, understanding person, being truthful to your patients about their condition and making a promise to them that I'll do everything I can to get you back on your feet."
There were many laughs -- and several tears -- as Hays Medical Center staff members gathered Thursday to reminisce about Benton, who was found dead at his home a week ago today.
Ellis County Coroner Dr. Lyle Noordhoek said an autopsy revealed Benton died of natural causes, possibly a heart attack.
As a cardiothoracic surgeon, Benton operated on thousands of patients battling heart disease. Hedlund estimated Benton took on about 500 patient cases annually.
Dr. Keith Green, an anesthesiologist at Hays Med, worked with Benton since his medical residency in Wichita. Benton relocated to Hays from Wichita and had been at Hays Med since August 2005.
Green remembered Benton for his friendship, his teaching abilities in the operating room, and the way he called out excellence in others.
"It's a rare quality, and he wanted people to grow," Green said. "He truly cared for his patients. You have to understand that being a cardiothoracic surgeon is not an easy road. You have the sickest of sick patients, and you have to have ... a strong will to survive it and be able to deal with that aspect of health care."
Funeral services were this weekend in Benton's hometown of Arkansas City, but Hays Med employees are planning another memorial service this week at the hospital.
Benton also has been credited for bringing several new technologies and procedures to Hays, including a left ventricular assist device and endovascular stents to repair thoracic aneurysms.
"The advances he was willing to undertake, where some other surgeons may be a little more hesitant to undertake it, Dr. Benton was willing to get out there and do whatever it took," said Brenda McMillin, an office coordinator with the hospital's DeBakey Heart Insitute.
Those advances made it possible for Hays Med to care for patients who previously would have been transferred elsewhere, said Chief Operating Officer Bryce Young.
"From basically 1998 to his arrival in 2005, virtually all cases that we couldn't do here would go to him in Wichita," Young said. "So we were very fortunate to have him come up to DeBakey Heart Institute."
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Hospital carries on without surgeon
By KALEY Connor
July 19, 2010
kconnor@dailynews.net
Despite grief, it's been business as usual at Hays Medical Center's DeBakey Heart Institute.
Dr. William Murphy of Wichita arrived in Hays the day of Benton's death and has been providing care on an interim basis.
Two other surgeons also have agreed to help cover Benton's patients during the next month, Chief Operating Officer Bryce Young said.
"It's a collaborative effort," Young said. "We're fortunate in that we have mid-level providers on his service that are essential for trying to take care of the patients."
Patients who already were scheduled to have a heart procedure performed by Benton were given the opportunity to remain in Hays or transfer elsewhere, Young said, noting all of those patients chose to remain at Hays Med.
Benton had been scheduled to perform three surgeries July 12.
Administrators are continuing to create a long-term plan for Benton's replacement, Young said.
"No one person, no one surgeon, can replace Dr. Benton," he said. "It will take two-plus surgeons to do the work that he did. He was a great man."
And when it comes to finding a replacement, several of Benton's co-workers agreed one thing is clear -- he set a hefty precedent for future surgeons.
"The day he died, I walked into his office, and he always wore these certain shoes to surgery. ... He, a lot of times, had blood on his shoes, so I always noticed his shoes," said Dave Coen, cardiac services operations manager. "And I looked down at them, and it made me very sad that those were his shoes, and they were empty. But my very first thought was, those are some big shoes to fill."
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