Current and former members of the Duke Neurology Department celebrated the career of E. Wayne Massey, MD, virtually this year, to mark the neurologist’s contributions to patient care, training, and research.
Massey has been an integral part of Duke Neurology for more than four decades. From his arrival in 1979 until his retirement from clinical practice in 2014, he treated thousands of patients. Within the Neurology Department, however, Massey is especially well-known for the mentorship and teaching he has provided to generations of residents, medical students, and his colleagues. Massey’s wife Janice of more than 50 years, is a fellow neurologist and an international expert on neuromuscular disease.
Massey was the planned guest of honor at this year’s Duke Neurology reunion dinner at the American Academy of Neurology’s (AAN) annual meeting, which was to be held in Toronto last week. The AAN canceled the meeting because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but to mark the occasion several of Massey’s many colleagues shared their memories and thoughts of Massey electronically.
The Neurology Department hopes to celebrate Massey’s career in person at next year’s AAN meeting in San Francisco. In the meantime we hope that you’ll enjoy the following words that people had to say about Dr. Massey, as well as the selected photos, from his college stint playing baseball as a “Prickly Pear,” up until his continuing work teaching the neurological examination to medical students at Duke.
Don Sanders, MD
Wayne and I first met when he was in the Navy in the late 1970’s, and I was a young (Can you imagine that?) member of the Neurology Department at UVa, invited to give a talk at his hospital in Bethesda.
When I came to Duke in 1980 Wayne was running the EMG Lab, along with Rehab and a number of other things. We did EMGs together for a while in a one-room “EMG Lab” with two machines, separated only by a curtain – we had to listen to the signals with headphones to keep from hearing the other machine.
His chief in the Navy told me once that Wayne was the best Neurologist he ever knew, and I can second that. Not only with an extraordinary depth of knowledge, but compassion and genuine concern for his patients. And common sense
If you ever walk with Wayne in the hospital or at a meeting, don’t be in a hurry - you have to wait every couple of minutes as he stops to say hello to a colleague, resident, patient, support staff, even the janitor.
You may not know that Wayne has an extraordinary sense of direction and can navigate even in foreign countries that he’s never visited. I think he either has a built-in GPS or is part pigeon.
I’m honored to have Wayne not only as a colleague, but as a friend.
Here’s to you, E.W.
Above, Massey demonstrates the neurological exam for a group of Duke medical students last year.
Massey (circled), played third-base as a “Prickly Pear”in college during the late 1960s.
Joel Morgenlander, MD
I have been so honored to be a student, colleague and friend of Wayne Massey’s since before I came to Duke. I met Wayne as he was one of my interviewers at Duke and I largely came to Duke because the people I met were so nice that they stood above all of the experiences I had elsewhere and it is great that some things don’t change.
Wayne sincerely is interested in how everyone is doing. Long after I spent time caring for my brother who was critically ill in Pittsburgh, Wayne would ask me how he was doing. I think Wayne saw most of our kids right after they were born in the hospital and we were always so glad to see him. I often think if we really wanted to make the world a better place, we would take a drop of Wayne’s essence, his core being, and add it to the water so everyone could have a little more of his wonderful kindness.
The other important part of Wayne’s influence on me was to show me that I could have specialty interests and still work as an academic general neurologist and have a wonderful career. By talking to Wayne and experiencing his career alongside, I got the best kind of mentoring.
In the photo above,attends the 2016 dedication of the Janice and Wayne Massey Conference room in Duke South; below he and his wife Janice pose for a 1974 snapshot.
Janice Massey, MD
So I met Wayne over 50 years ago in college. Virtually everyone else on campus knew him and he had learned something about their family, friends, concerns, etc—some things never change. He was a 2nd year med student when we married. Our tiny apartment was a popular place as fellow students came nightly to study his notes and hear his commentary on class material (he was top of his class and already a great teacher).
Certainly he influenced me to move from teaching high school to ultimately going to med school (once we largely paid his tuition)!
His love of neurology and teaching has never wavered. I have no idea how many, many, many he has taught!! It’s been inspiring to see!!
I too hope we are able to toast the “Old Dr. Massey."
Rod Radtke, MD
I met Wayne 39 years ago, as I began my residency. Even then he was known among patients as "Old Dr. Massey" while Janice took on the label as the "Young Dr. Massey". I assume Janice enjoyed it then and even more so now. So, hopefully, almost 4 decades later, Wayne has become more comfortable with the moniker of the "Old Dr. Massey."
As we shower him with praise, I wanted to point out two things that I have sometimes thought to criticize him for. To this day I will always say that Wayne had two faults, first, he was too nice and caring and, second, he put too much time and effort into teaching. It just made it too hard for those of us around him to live up to either of those attributes.
So I would offer a virtual toast to his career in neurology! May we all come together some day to recognize his contributions.
Above, Massey displays a beard before he came to Duke, and below, talks with intern Imani Taylor about his career.
Vani Chilukuri, MD
Wayne I first met you 28 years ago. You were my mentor when I was a resident and I saw you always as a master teacher and a superb clinician whose joy in taking care of people and love for bedside teaching was matched only by the warmth of your smile. To me you have been the beating heart of our department reminding me always of all the reasons I became a doctor. I am honored to call you my teacher, mentor, colleague and valued friend.
Mark Skeen, MD
I don’t know when I first met Wayne, but I know when I first heard of him. As an Internal Medicine resident in the Navy all of the neurologists couldn’t say enough good things about Dr. E. Wayne Massey and how much they had learned from him. Wayne was appropriately “legendary” in Navy neurology and is a significant part of the reason that I came to Duke to learn Neurology. It was the right choice. Wayne – thanks for everything you’ve taught me and thanks for being a friend.
Burton Scott, MD, PhD
Wayne and Janice have been a blessing to Duke Neurology for a long time.
I honor and admire their faithful service.
David Hosford, MD
I met Wayne only 36 years ago. He was (and is) infused with a love for clinical neurology, and he shared that love with very effective teaching. I still remember the 5 ways he taught us to elicit a Babinski. He taught us (Residents) and students and fellows and consulting docs so many things that they can’t be listed here. But maybe the best thing about Wayne is the way he always looks at everyone so attentively over the top of his glasses with just enough of an infectious smile that it is always a special event to talk with him.
Jim Hora, MD, PhD
During my first rotation as an intern I met Dr. Massey and was so impressed I transferred from Medicine to Neurology. For 5 years I had the honor of working and learning from him. From his admiration of Wartenberg to his ability to not only demonstrate but name all the ways to elicit the extensor plantar response Dr. Massey has been inspirational, a neurologist’s neurologist.
James McNamara, MD, PhD
I remember well the arrival of Wayne and Janice to Duke Neurology. What a gift! Wayne’s engaging smile and easy manner are obviously comforting to patients and colleagues. A terrific clinician. And as nice a human being as I have met. I would love to join the toast.
When he’s not teaching Duke medical students about the neurological examination or mentoring our current residents, Massey enjoys writing about famous neurologists of the 19th and 20th century (he’s currently writing a book about William A. Hammond), spending time with his family, and is active in his church.
Massey discusses his career at Duke, time in the Navy, and much more in his 2018 “spotlight” interview. Read that interview here.