With deep sadness, we share with you that our friend and Emeritus Director Dr. William S. Tasman has passed away at the age of 88.
Dr. Tasman, noted practitioner and philanthropist, served as a Director of the American Board of Ophthalmology from 1985 to 1992. In addition to championing higher standards in the practice of ophthalmology, he took the lead in planning the 75th anniversary celebration of the Board. He also presented at the Board’s Centennial Symposium in San Francisco in 2016 (pictured).
Dr. Tasman was a leader among leaders, serving as president of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Ophthalmological Society, and the Retina Society. He was a founding member of both the Retina Society and the Club Jules Gonin and was a member of the Pennsylvania Academy of Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology, College of Physicians, Pan American Association of Ophthalmology, the Macula Society, and the American Medical Association. Dr. Tasman also served on the Board of the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the Board of Directors of the American Diabetes Foundation, the advisory board for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, and as a trustee to the Edmund B. Spaeth Foundation.
Dr. Tasman completed his residency at Wills Eye Hospital, followed by a retinal fellowship at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Hospital in Boston. In 1974 he founded Mid-Atlantic Retina, formerly Retinovitreous Associates, Ltd. He was Ophthalmologist-in-Chief of Wills Eye Hospital from 1985 to 2009, where he trained 161 residents and 199 retinal fellows.
We extend our deepest sympathies to Alice Lea and the Tasman family.
