Dr. Kimberly Ephgrave

EPHGRAVE, NEDER, ROCKLIN

Posted By: Tara (email)
Date: 3/7/2012 at 14:23:18

Dr. Kimberly Ephgrave died at home surrounded by family on March 6, 2012. Her life since her diagnosis with lung cancer nearly three years ago was a rich journey for her and an inspiration to many.

A Service of Remembrance will be held at 2 pm, Sunday, March 11th at Lensing Funeral & Cremation Service, Iowa City with Rev. Steven Protzman officiating. Burial will be at Oakland Cemetery. The family will greet friends after 1 pm Sunday. Following the service a reception will be held at The Kirkwood Room (next to the funeral home). In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Dr. Kimberly Ephgrave Surgery Educational Development Fund c/o University of Iowa Foundation, 1 West Park Rd, Iowa City, IA 52242

Kim was born on November 9, 1956 in Oak Park, Illinois to James and Patricia (Neder) Ephgrave. She lived in Shorewood, Wisconsin for the first six years of her life, and then moved to Los Angeles, California. She attended the University of California at Santa Cruz, graduating with collegiate honors in 1977 with a B.A. in biology. In 1980, she received her M.D. from Loyola-Stritch School of Medicine, where she was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha, the national honor society for medical students, residents, and faculty members. She completed a surgical internship at Loyola University Medical Center in 1981 and a surgical residency at the University of Texas at Dallas in 1986. In 2010, Kim began work on a BFA in painting.

Kim joined the faculty of the Department of Surgery at The University of Iowa College of Medicine in 1986, rising through the academic ranks to Professor in 1995. She was a beloved teacher, compassionate clinician, prolific scholar, and innovative administrator during her career.

She was recognized as Teacher of the Year by the junior class five times during her career and won the Department of Surgery Staff of the Year award, the Collegiate Teaching Award and the Association of Surgical Education national teaching award. She supervised the research of 26 trainees, ranging from high school students through residents. Countless former students and residents cite the centrality of her example of integrity, compassion, and intelligence in their own development as physicians. She was particularly influential among women trainees, and was recognized with the Olga Jonasson Distinguished Member Award from the Association of Women Surgeons, which she served in a number of capacities, including as president.

Kim served in a number of administrative roles, including clerkship director and associate residency director for the department, and, from 2002 through 2006, associate dean for student affairs and curriculum for the Carver College of Medicine. In all of these roles, she put trainees first and her devotion to their development guided all of her decisions.

Dr. Ephgrave was devoted to high quality care for patients from all backgrounds. Her practice was guided by a sophisticated understanding of the medical literature, which she continued to read up to days before her death, tempered by her wide experience. She was listed among Best Doctors in America in six different years.

During her career, Kim published some 72 peer reviewed articles on topics ranging from stress ulcer prophylaxis to disciplinary differences in faculty professionalism. Her interest in research was fundamentally pragmatic and oriented toward the improvement of practice, both clinical and educational.

Kim is survived by her parents, her husband of 33 years, Tom Rocklin, sons Zeb, Dan, and Noah, and sister Pamela Ephgrave, M.D.