Tom D.Y. Chin MD

Dr. Tom D.Y. Chin, 95, passed away quietly at the Kansas City Hospice House on July 11, 2017. Dr. Chin was truly the founder of public health at the University of Kansas. He received his MD degree from the University of Michigan in 1946, and completed his public health training at Tulane University in 1950. After serving in the US Army Medical Corp from 1951-1953, he took a position as an Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer with the US Public Health Service in 1954. He was assigned to the Kansas City Field Station from 1954-1973, and directed outbreak investigations of respiratory and enteric diseases throughout the region and worldwide. He rose quickly through the ranks, and served as the director of the Ecological Investigations Program for the Centers for Disease Control from 1966-1973.

He joined the faculty of the University of Kansas School of Medicine in 1955, working in the Departments of Microbiology, and Human Ecology and Community Health. In 1974, he retired from the US Public Health Service and assumed the role of chair of the Department of Human Ecology and Community Health, which was subsequently reconfigured to form the Department of Preventive Medicine. He continued to serve as chair of this department until 1989, and subsequently served as an emeritus professor, actively engaged in teaching and scholarship until shortly before his death.

Dr. Chin was internationally recognized for his work, with more than 160 scientific papers that reflected his diverse interests and expertise. He consulted on outbreaks and infection control (particularly infectious hepatitis) throughout the world. He was a life-long scholar who always kept up to date on the latest developments. Long after his retirement, he was the first resource that people would turn to in order to understand the latest infectious disease outbreak. His passion for science and learning was an inspiration to everyone who came into contact with him.

Born in Hoiping, China, Dr. Chin was a longtime resident of Overland Park, KS. He is predeceased by his father, Hom Yoke Poy; his mother, Yee King Jen; his wife, Rita Chung Chin; his son, Dr. Robert Allan Chin; and his brother, Doon Fay Hom. He is survived by his daughter, Dr. Donna L. Chin; his cousin Bill Lee; his nieces, Macer Leung and Lisa Cheung; and many friends.

A memorial service will be held for Dr. Chin at 1:00 PM on Thursday, July 20th at Mt. Moriah, Newcomer & Freeman Funeral Home, 10507 Holmes Road, Kansas City, MO. In lieu of flowers, his daughter suggests contributions to a memorial fund that has been established in Dr. Chin’s name to support the public health training to which he was so devoted. (KU Endowment, 3901 Rainbow Blvd., MS 3012, Kansas City, KS 66160; memo: in memory of Dr. Tom D.Y. Chin – MPH/Preventive Medicine)