The American Board of Ophthalmology extends its deepest condolences to the family of renown pediatric ophthalmologist and educator John T. Flynn, MD, who passed away March 18 at the age of 88.
Dr. Flynn served as a Director of the ABO from 1987 to 1995 and was a dedicated Oral Examiner for the Board. Even after his ABO service concluded, Dr. Flynn's training videos on how to deliver the Oral Examination continued to offer guidance to nearly two decades of ABO volunteers and aided in the assessment of thousands of newly graduated ophthalmologists.
During his long and storied career, Dr. Flynn authored more than 150 peer-reviewed articles, published several books, and helped pioneer advancements in retinopathy of prematurity, performing the first fluorescein angiogram of the ridge.
Following his graduation from the University of Notre Dame and receiving his medical degree from Northwestern University, he trained at Cornell Medical College. Subsequently, Dr. Flynn became the fifth ophthalmologist to join the faculty at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, where he practiced for 35 years and earned numerous teaching accolades. In 2000, he became the first Anne S. Cohen Professor at Columbia University in New York.
He was inducted into the prestigious American Ophthalmological Society in 1983 and participated in many professional societies, serving as the president of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (AAPOS) from 1991-92. Dr. Flynn received the Senior Honor Award from AAPOS along with the Gold Award, the highest honor given by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Flynn is survived by his wife Roseanne; two children: Thomas, an ophthalmologist at the Edward S. Harkness Eye Institute at Columbia University, and Ellen Flynn, a psychiatrist and faculty member at the Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University; and four grandchildren.