Cover image for
Resource Name:
Resource Type:
External Resource
Metadata
Asset Name:
E009079 - Chong, John Kenneth Kwok-Hoe (1929 - 2009)
Title:
Chong, John Kenneth Kwok-Hoe (1929 - 2009)
Author:
Lavinia K Chong
Identifier:
RCS: E009079
Publisher:
London : Royal College of Surgeons of England
Publication Date:
2016-03-24

2019-01-15
Description:
Obituary for Chong, John Kenneth Kwok-Hoe (1929 - 2009), Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England.
Language:
English
Source:
Plarr's Lives of the Fellows
Full Name:
Chong, John Kenneth Kwok-Hoe
Date of Birth:
4 April 1929
Place of Birth:
Ipoh Perak, Malaysia
Date of Death:
18 May 2009
Occupation:
Titles/Qualifications:
BSc McGill 1951

BA Oxford 1955

BM BCh 1958

FRCS 1963

FACS 1972
Details:
J Kenneth Chong was a plastic surgeon in southern California. He was born in Ipoh, Perak state, Malaysia, on 4 April 1929, the son of Francis Tak-Nam Chong, a general practitioner, and Catherine Keng-Mun Chong née Lee. He attended Anderson School in Ipoh and then completed his A levels at Badingham College, Fetcham Park, Surrey in 1948. He spent four years at McGill University, Montreal, where he earned a BSc in 1951 and also suffered a severe burn. Subsequently, he matriculated at Christ Church College, Oxford and gained a BA and BM BCh. In 1956, he joined St Bartholomew’s Hospital for his clinical training, which included being a house surgeon under John P Hosford and a junior surgical registrar under Edward G Tuckwell. He then took a middle grade surgical registrar post at Whipps Cross Hospital under Sydney G Nardell. Ultimately, he attained the rank of senior plastic surgical registrar at Queen Victoria Hospital, under Percy Jayes, where he concentrated on craniofacial anomalies as well as burn management. In April 1967 he joined Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, eventually rising to the post of attending plastic surgeon. As an academician, he contributed to the literature on all the core subjects of plastic surgery and was featured in D Ralph Millard’s *Cleft craft: the evolution of its surgery* (Boston, Little Brown, c.1976-c.1980). His former chief at Temple University, Lester Cramer observed: ‘I am proud that we were friends and colleagues. I travelled far and wide, but never observed his equal as a technical surgeon. Surpassing this surgical skill was his compassion and humility. He was the compleat doctor, the best plastic surgeon I ever encountered.’ He often quipped that he was a member of the Hakka tribe, literally the ‘guest people’, which perhaps explains his wanderlust. In keeping with these nomadic roots, he moved his family to Newport Beach, California in 1972, joining Frederick Grazer in private practice. He became a member of the medical staff at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian and earned other honours of which he was proud, including being an invited guest examiner for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, membership of the Pacific Coast Surgical Association as well as presidency of the southern California chapter of the American College of Surgeons from 1998 to 1999. In September 1954, he married Junie Choong of Penang, Malaysia. They had three children – Lavinia (the author), Kenneth and Clare. The decades of the 80s and 90s were full of contentment in his personal and professional life, as he travelled widely, tending to his extended family and friends. After finishing my plastic surgery residency in 1996, I returned to share an office with him until his retirement in 2003. He was a classically-trained surgeon who loved the vigour of surgery, the rituals and fellowship. In his last role as paterfamilias, when no amount of innovation or determination could change the outcome, he comforted us with the last memory of a peaceful transition. He died on 18 May 2009 at the age of 80. We, his family, are eternally grateful to have been able to share a life well-lived.
Rights:
Copyright (c) The Royal College of Surgeons of England
Collection:
Plarr's Lives of the Fellows
Format:
Obituary
Format:
Asset
Asset Path:
Root/Lives of the Fellows/E009000-E009999/E009000-E009099
Media Type:
Unknown