David A. Dobrow, MD

Class Year

1965

Affiliation

Alumni

Posted on: January 26, 2022

David Alan Dobrow, MD, passed away on December 14, 2021, of complications from Acute Myeloid Leukemia at Cleveland Clinic-Avon Hospital at Richard E. Jacobs Campus. He was 82 years old. Dave was the loving husband and father who is survived by his two children, Susan and Mark, and his younger brother, Richard. His wife, Estelle W. Dobrow, passed away on June 20, 2020, of dementia. They had been married for 56 years.

Dave was born on February 7, 1939, in New York City and was raised in Jersey City, NJ. He trained to be a pathologist at the University of Virginia and completed his pathology internship and residency at University Hospitals of Cleveland. He married Estelle W. Dobrow in 1964. During the Vietnam War, Dave was stationed at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center and lived in Rockville, Maryland. The family spent some time in Baltimore, Maryland, when Dave worked in private practice. In 1976, Dave became employed as the Director of Pathology and Laboratories at what was then Lorain Community Hospital (now named Mercy Regional Medical Center) and the family moved to Amherst, Ohio. While at LCH, he helped to significantly upgrade the quality of laboratory medicine and testing as well as computerizing the LCH laboratory early on in the growing tech/computer industry. He introduced diagnostic computerization of lab results for Hospital Staff in 1981 before IBM introduced personal computers. He retired in 2004.

Dave and Estelle moved to Oberlin in 2011. In the final years before her death, Dave was a truly devoted caregiver to Estelle as she struggled with dementia while he himself was battling myelofibrosis.

The family suggests that memorial contributions may be made to Agudath B’nai Israel Synagogue, 1715 Meister Road, Lorain, Ohio 44053 or the David Dobrow Scholarship Fund at Lorain Community College, 1005 North Abbe Road #CC220, Elyria, Ohio, 44035.