A Tribute to James (Jim) R. Scott, MD (1937–2025)

James (Jim) R. Scott, MDThe world of obstetrics and gynecology is poorer after the loss of Jim Scott on April 7, 2025. Dr. Scott was born in Mediapolis, Iowa, in 1937, and he grew up in nearby Burlington. He attended the University of Iowa for college and medical school, followed by an internship in San Bernadino, California. He then worked in the Public Health Service for 2 years in an Indian Health Service Hospital in Kearns, Arizona. Dr. Scott then spent 4 years working as a general practitioner in Grundy Center, Iowa. This experience informed his affection and appreciation for clinicians in small towns with modest resources, and he would often reference how docs would handle a situation in Grundy Center. He completed an obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Iowa, followed by a 2-year fellowship in reproductive immunology at UT Southwestern. Dr. Scott then spent 4 years as an academic obstetrician–gynecologist at the University of Iowa. At the age of 39, he became chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Utah. When he started, the department had six physicians, no divisions, and an embryonic research program. Over 18 years, Dr. Scott almost singlehandedly grew into an excellent, modern department with many divisions, strong educational and research programs, and people recruited from all over the world. He did this with a singular vision, indomitable will, and strong work ethic. Most importantly, he mandated a “patient-first”–“do the right thing” culture in all of us that lives on today. He passionately believed that patient care was the most important role for any clinician or department. In addition, he was focused on emotional support and patient satisfaction long before it was fashionable. He insisted that we should behave “like Nordstrom's” personnel, proactively asking every patient and family what we could do to help them. He also insisted on doing everything possible to provide the highest-quality education possible for all trainees. He never missed a teaching conference or journal club, and he was an outstanding mentor for generations of students, residents, fellows, and faculty. He always put others first, making him beloved by patients and trainees. Dr. Scott was also an advocate for general obstetrician–gynecologists. He maintained clinical excellence and research expertise in all facets of obstetrics and gynecology, including many aspects of subspecialties. He also enjoyed “tweaking” subspecialists, (correctly) pointing out that many of their practices were not evidence based or were expensive, cumbersome, anxiety provoking, and potentially harmful. He was a huge advocate of the Society for Academic Specialists in General Obstetrics and Gynecology (SASGOG) and insisted that our residency program ensure that graduates could perform general obstetrics and gynecology in small communities, even if they eventually subspecialized. Dr. Scott was also incredibly practical; he had a terrific lecture that he gave for years on the “death of common sense” in obstetrics and gynecology and U.S. medicine in general. These views are as relevant today as ever, and he encouraged others to use a practical approach to clinical care, even if it posed minor medical or legal risks. Dr. Scott led from the front and by example, always working harder than anyone. He modeled appropriate ways to interact with patients and learners by taking the entire team on group rounds with each patient. He was an outstanding editor and would always turn around documents within 24 hours, no matter how busy he was. In turn, it made it very difficult to complain to him about how hard anyone else was working. He also was a superlative mentor, taking more pleasure in the success of his trainees and junior faculty than in his own achievements. Although he maintained excellence across the specialty, Dr. Scott had a few areas he was passionate about. His work on reproductive immunology led to interest and expertise in recurrent pregnancy loss, antiphospholipid syndrome, transplant and pregnancy, and autoimmunization and alloimmunization in pregnancy. He recruited others with similar interests and published several sentinel studies on these topics. Dr. Scott was also a thought leader in our specialty. He was invested in all aspects of obstetrics and gynecology, including clinical care, research, education, advocacy, and public policy. Among many leadership positions, he served as president of the American Gynecological & Obstetrical Society (AGOS), president of the Council of Chairs of Obstetrics and Gynecology (CUCOG), and chair of the Practice Bulletin committee for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Dr. Scott served as the Editor-in-Chief for Obstetrics & Gynecology for 12 years. He applied the same guiding principles to the Green Journal that he did to all aspects of his career. He emphasized publishing studies that were useful for practicing clinicians and believed that authors deserved a thorough and fair evaluation of their work. He highly valued innovation and disdained emphasizing findings that were “statistically significant but clinically meaningless.” He also was a terrific mentor for many editors across all subspecialties and areas of expertise. Finally, in addition to his many contributions to our specialty, Dr. Scott had a rich life outside of work. He formed a true lifelong partnership with his spouse, Jo, and had a large extended family, with four children and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He loved golf and was both excellent and competitive. He also enjoyed skiing, hiking, music, painting, and especially the Iowa Hawkeyes. Dr. Scott was beloved by generations of patients, mentees, and colleagues. His impact cannot be measured, and his loss is felt by all.