Peter Smith, 75, died December 9 after a 10-year struggle with Parkinson’s disease and Lewy body dementia. He attended medical school at the University of Basel in Switzerland and completed residency at T. C. Thompson Children’s Hospital in Chattanooga, TN, in 1975. After completing the fellowship in pediatric hematology and oncology at Rhode Island Hospital in 1977, he joined the faculty of Brown University, where he loved teaching, the intellectual challenge of medicine, and the emotional intensity of working with children and their families. He served as the pediatrics clerkship director from 1984 to 1991, and received the Senior Citation from the Brown MD Class of 1986.
In 1987, Dr. Smith received the Senior Class Award. He was recognized several times during his career with awards for his service to patients with hemophilia and served as the medical director of the Rhode Island Hemophilia Program for many years. He was appointed professor emeritus of pediatrics in 2001. He spoke French, German, and Spanish fluently and enjoyed traveling the world. He is survived by his wife, Heidi; two children; and two grandchildren.
