Butler Hospital announces dedicated endowed chair

PROVIDENCE – Butler Hospital has announced the creation of its first endowed chair, The Aronson Chair for Neurodegenerative Disorders. Named for Dr. Stanley M. Aronson, The Aronson Chair honors Aronson for a career and life dedicated to the research, diagnosis and treatment of neurological disorders.

An honorary member of the Butler Hospital medical staff since 1970 and a member of Butler’s Board of Trustees and Foundation Board for more than 20 total years, Aronson had an active role at Butler, as well as nearly all of the hospitals and medical organizations in Rhode Island.

He has played a crucial role in some of the most important institutions in the state, including serving as the founding Dean of the Alpert Medical School of Brown University and the creation of Home & Hospice Care of Rhode Island. Aronson is considered a pioneer in his field for his contributions to understanding and treating disorders, including eradicating Tay Sachs disease and being the first to identify Lewy Body Dementia.

“It’s so fitting that Butler, an institution with a strong focus and commitment to neurology and brain sciences, honor a national leader with a storied career in the neurology field with its first endowed chair,” said Dr. Patricia Recupero, Butler Hospital’s president and CEO.

- Advertisement -

The Aronson Chair emphasizes the importance of the key services provided by Butler’s Neurology Department’s Movement Disorders Program and establishes an endowment fund that provides permanent financial support for the future of the Movement Disorders Program.

The first recipient of The Aronson Chair is Dr. Joseph H. Friedman, chief of the Movement Disorders Program at Butler, chief of the Division of Movement Disorders in the Department of Neurology at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University, and Adjunct Professor in the School of Pharmacy at the University of Rhode Island. Friedman is a nationally recognized clinician, researcher, and educator in the treatment and study of Parkinson’s disease and related movement disorders. He is an active member of the Parkinson’s disease and Huntington’s disease study groups, and participates in multicenter trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, Michael J. Fox Foundation, pharmaceutical companies, and single-center unfunded studies. A fellow of the American Academy of Neurology, Friedman serves on the editorial board of Parkinsonism and Related Disorders and is Editor-in-Chief of the Rhode Island Medical Journal, taking over the position following the retirement of Aronson.

No posts to display

1 COMMENT

  1. Congratulations to Butler Hospital honoring Dr. Stanley M. Aronson and selecting a cherished colleague, Dr. Joseph H. Friedman as its 1st Chair in focusing on the complex sciences of neurology and bringing hope to those suffering with such neurological disorders.