In memoriam: Myron Weiner, M.D., an expert in geriatric psychiatry, Alzheimer’s disease
DALLAS – Aug. 14, 2023 – Myron Frederick Weiner, M.D., Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at UT Southwestern Medical Center and a noted clinical researcher in geriatric psychiatry and Alzheimer’s disease, died July 17 in Dallas. He was 89.
A faculty member at UT Southwestern for more than 50 years, Dr. Weiner served as Vice Chair of Psychiatry, directed the Clinical Core of UTSW’s federally funded Alzheimer’s Disease Center, and established the Geriatric Psychiatry training program at the Medical Center. Following his retirement in 2013, Dr. Weiner continued guiding and helping junior faculty and trainees as a Professor Emeritus.
“Dr. Weiner was a true mentor, teacher, and collaborator. He had a gift for finding the natural talents of each team member and developing them further,” said Carol Tamminga, M.D., Professor and Chair of Psychiatry who holds the Stanton Sharp Distinguished Chair in Psychiatry. “He cared about the success of others more than himself. We will miss his wisdom and perspective as well as his presence.”
Dr. Weiner received his medical degree from the Tulane University School of Medicine in 1957 and completed his internship and residency at Parkland Memorial Hospital. A U.S. Air Force veteran, Dr. Weiner found his career calling in seeking to manage the emotional and behavioral symptoms of dementing illness following a 1984-1985 fellowship in geriatrics and adult development at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York.
Dr. Weiner was a prolific medical writer with more than 200 scientific publications as well as authorship or co-authorship of more than 10 books. He also served as an editor of The American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Alzheimer Disease and Other Dementias (2009).
In 2014, the Presbyterian Village North Foundation (PVN) donated $1 million to the Southwest Medical Foundation to support Alzheimer’s research at UT Southwestern, in recognition of the work of Dr. Weiner and Paul Chafetz, Ph.D., who helped establish the Alzheimer’s Disease Care Wing at PVN. The gift was used to establish the Presbyterian Village North Foundation Distinguished Chair in Alzheimer’s Disease Therapeutic Research, currently held by Joachim Herz, M.D., Professor of Molecular Genetics, Neuroscience, and Neurology in UT Southwestern’s Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute.
Dr. Weiner held the Aradine S. Ard Chair in Brain Science and the Dorothy L. and John P. Harbin Chair in Alzheimer’s Disease Research while a UTSW faculty member. His awards and recognitions included the Castle Connolly Medical Ltd. America’s Top Doctors (2008), the American Psychiatric Association Distinguished Life Fellow (2003), and the Texas Society of Psychiatric Physicians Psychiatric Excellence Award (1997).
He is survived by sons Daniel (Karen) and Gary Weiner (Mary Anne), stepson Darrel Harmon (Lora), stepdaughter Holly Pennett (Barry), seven grandchildren and their spouses, and one great-grandson.
Contributions can be made to Alzheimer’s care and research at UT Southwestern, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, Texas 75390, c/o Office of Development.
Dr. Herz also holds the Thomas O. and Cinda Hicks Family Distinguished Chair in Alzheimer’s Disease Research.
About UT Southwestern Medical Center
UT Southwestern, one of the nation’s premier academic medical centers, integrates pioneering biomedical research with exceptional clinical care and education. The institution’s faculty has received six Nobel Prizes, and includes 26 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 19 members of the National Academy of Medicine, and 14 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators. The full-time faculty of more than 2,900 is responsible for groundbreaking medical advances and is committed to translating science-driven research quickly to new clinical treatments. UT Southwestern physicians provide care in more than 80 specialties to more than 100,000 hospitalized patients, more than 360,000 emergency room cases, and oversee nearly 4 million outpatient visits a year.