The Keck School of Medicine at USC in Los Angeles, Calif, has announced the sudden and tragic passing of John K. Niparko, MD, who chaired the USC Tina and Rick Caruso Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.
Dr Niparko, who died on April 25, 2016, had been selected from a group of more than 50 highly qualified candidates in February 2013 to chair the Otolaryngology-HNS Department at the Keck School of Medicine at USC. He was widely regarded as a transformative recruitment to USC and a pillar of the university, and the fields of science and medicine. In his three years at USC, Dr Niparko led the department’s ascent to the top 10 departments of otolaryngology research funding in the country, strategically expanded its faculty and clinical services, and provided life-changing treatments and services to countless adults, children, and their families. Dr Niparko’s work spanned not only the greater Los Angeles region, but touched patients across the world through his international outreach.
According to his colleagues at USC, Dr Niparko “embodied the best of what it means to be surgeon-scientist, as he transformed not only his department, but medicine as a whole. His career was a synthesis of humanism and scientific achievement.”
Dr Niparko was deeply committed to his work at USC, which included expanding his department’s clinical programming, initiating new strategies for training residents and medical students, and developing collaborative, entrepreneurial relationships to bolster the department’s research endeavors.
An internationally renowned otology surgeon and researcher who received many awards throughout his distinguished career, Dr Niparko authored, co-authored, and edited many papers, articles, and books. Dr Niparko came to USC from Johns Hopkins University, where he had been a professor and director of the division of otology, neurotology and skull base surgery, as well as medical director of the division of audiology. From 2009 to 2012, he had served as interim director of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery at Johns Hopkins, which since 1998 had been ranked number one in ear, nose, and throat care in the nation by US News & World Report.
Dr Niparko was a leading authority on cochlear implants and other implantable devices that improve hearing for the profoundly deaf and severely hard of hearing. Under his leadership, the cochlear implant programs at the Keck School of Medicine at USC and Johns Hopkins garnered international reputations for excellence in cochlear implantation, post-operative training and rehabilitation, groundbreaking research, and participation in clinical trials of advanced implantable devices, such as the auditory brainstem implant (ABI).
Most recently, Dr Niparko had been leading a National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded study that examines the effects of cochlear implantation on language, behavioral, and societal outcomes in children. The study involves 62 investigators from six university-based clinical sites and two data coordination centers.
In a message from USC, his colleagues shared that “John was a dynamic and humble colleague and leader, whose good humor, compassion, and gentle nature earned our esteem and deep affection. We are all enriched for having known him.”
A native of Detroit, Mich, Dr Niparko had received his bachelor’s degree and medical degree with distinction from the University of Michigan, where he also completed his residency in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery and a fellowship in neurotology. He served as a faculty member at Michigan following the completion of his fellowship, before moving on to Johns Hopkins. He leaves behind his beloved wife and two sons, extended family, many patients, and a wide circle of friends.
The Keck School of Medicine at USC reports that a memorial service for Dr Niparko was held at USC on May 10, 2016.
In lieu of flowers, the Niparko Family would be most grateful for gifts in honor of Dr Niparko to be directed to the John Niparko Endowment Fund to carry on his vision at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. To donate in Dr Niparko’s memory follow this link, and be sure to click on the “Memorial or honorarium information” link on page two of the donation form and indicate that your gift is in memory of “John Niparko, MD”.
I agree that one concern with a hearing specialist. I personally having issues with my ear and throat have been showing my self to an ent in great neck ny and honestly I believe that showing yourself to a particular specialist for a problem is way better then just showing yourself to a regular doctor.
I am at a loss for words after just seeing this. He was my husbands doctor at Hopkins for many years and always used him for a guinea pig because, he was determined to get his hearing back. What a amazing guy! We have lost a great man. I was just on my search to talk with him because, my husband I am afraid will lose his only hearing ear. So deeply saddened. He was my hope to helping him. He will be truly missed!!
Sadly, I just learned of John’s death by reading it in the University of Michigan Alumnus magazine. I went to Dearborn HS with John and knew him quite well as a shy, intelligent, gentle and handsome young man. I knew his sister too. I saw John once at a High School reunion and had seen him around UM campus — everyone knew he would be successful but I’m so touched by the above comments about his passing from his patients, parents and colleagues. He truly touched many lives and left a lasting legacy. He passed far too soon; I have prayed for his soul and his lasting peace. My condolences to his family.
I just learned of Dr. Niparko’s death and am deeply saddened. He operated on my wife for a serious ear infection 10 years ago that could have been life threatening. My deepest condolences to his family.
So shocked and saddened to learn of the loss of Dr. Niparko. He was an answer to prayer for us and a lifeline in a time when we needed support, understanding, caring and the expertise he so willingly offered. Words could never express the gratitude and love we have for him. Such a great loss. So glad to have known him and benefitted from his care. Condolences to his family, friends and patients. His legacy is great and he will be so missed.
I was shocked and saddened to learn of Dr. NiParko’s death. I knew him over many years as a colleague in hearing loss policy, and I served with him on the MD State Board for Audiologists, Hearing Aid Dealers and Speech Language Pathologists. When I then became his patient, I felt very comfortable and trusted his expertise and manner. He and the JH team performed my AN surgery and did a great job.
He is a great loss. He is mourned. He will be remembered for his skill, passion for helping people with hearing loss, and his compassion. R.I.P., Dr. NiParko!
Tim
I was just back at Johns Hopkins this date 6/20/16, and as I was registering I noticed Dr. Niparko’s picture with the date of his celebration of his life and achievements. I immediately felt stunned and a sense of sadness to learn of his passing. He did my implant in 2004 and my Baha went failed. I was coming down to JH for a audiology testing, and see what advances were available. Compassionate and brilliant people you never forget. God needed Dr. John and called him I will forever think and keep Dr. Niparko and his family in my prayers. God Bless a wonderful caring surgeon.
Thank you Dr. Niparko. You were a caring Doctor/Surgeon. I was happy that you completed my daughter’s second CI. Thank you for all the work you have done for those who are deaf and severely hard of hearing. You will be missed. God bless you and your family.
I am devastated by this loss. My daughter received an implant from him in 2001 and she has learned so much from this implant. He did a fantastic job. He will be surely missed.
I was blessed to have Dr. Niparko examine me following a serious whiplash accident. No greater doctor and man than he was…RIP DR.
I was shocked when I read of Dr. Niparko’s death in our local paper. When he was in Baltimore I had the privilege of referring my audiology clients to him. I tried to take advantage of as many of his teaching sessions as possible. He was a talented individual with a gentle touch and amazing humility. His patients always felt that he was there for them. His loss was felt when he moved west. The loss is even greater now. With appreciation for his life and his gifts and with sadness at his leaving much too soon.
There is little to say about Dr. Niparko that has not been said in all of the sincere postings already made. In our case, he met my husband at a USC event and as a result took on his case and performed what we considered to be our Christmas miracle this past December 23. Upon his suggestion we stayed at a hotel near his home so that he could make a “house” call on Christmas Eve Day. My husband had the history of a post op infection that led to his deafness in the first place. He knew we were very apprehensive and wanted us to be reassured and at ease. He was leaving from his visit with us to go to LA Children’s Hospital to perform six CIs on young children. Those families truly received the best Christmas gift ever. He will be deeply missed. We will be eternally grateful that this man came into our lives. Our condolences to his family and staff.
My sincere condolences to Dr. Niparko’s family and to his many patients. My family historically had late on-set nerve deafness and, if not already completed, will require a CI or whatever they will be doing in the future. My time came in 2005 (2nd 2010) long overdue and I was incredibly fortunate to have Dr. Niparko for both of my surgeries. Prior to #1 never experienced any invasive surgery. I was 63 and scared to death. The staff at JHU Hospital and Dr. Niparko assured me and discussed which ear to do first. I had not understood the radio for the last 15 years. My operation was amazing. I worked for Carl Zeiss and the last thing I remembered prior to being knocked out in the OR was a visual tour of the OR and the Zeiss optics in place. It was incredible and I will never forget it. 2 very successful CIs and a new life ahead of me. Thank You, Dr. Niparko. Gone too soon.
Stunned and very sad to hear this. Dr. Niparco gave me my first cochlear implant in 1995, when I was just 19. It is not stretching things at all to say that I owe my very life to this man. I am so lucky to have known him.
Dr Niparko was amazing. May he rest in peace ;/ He did my son Mark’s surgery last year (October 2015). He was sooo great. Told me Mark was in good hands, hugged me, and said everything will come out fine. Nicest person ever. Thanks to him, my son is able to hear. I will always be thankful to him for an amazing job!
I have no memories of Dr. Niparko. He did not perform my CI surgery, nor did I ever meet him. Yet, I doubt that without him, I would be hearing today.
There are many extraordinary people working in this field, including the surgeon and audiologist directly responsible for my restored sense of sound. But had it not been for Dr. Niparko – and his pioneering, altruistic spirit – “setting up shop” in my hometown, I may never have known any of these people.
I hope the family can take solace in knowing that your husband/father/brother/son had a profound effect on innumerable lives beyond those he knew.
My sincerest thanks and condolences,
Lisa L.
We were extremely fortunate to have Dr. Niparko perform my older son’s cochlear implant surgery in 2005 and 2008 and my younger son’s in 2008. From reading the previous comments and our own family’s experience, I see that his compassion, expertise, and overall greatness served us and so many others well. Hard to put in words how grateful we are to him. Our condolences to his family.
You will be missed! Thank you for everything you did at John Hopkins and California. We all will miss you with your outstanding achievements you have done for all of us. Thank you so much, Dr. Niparko. Rest in Peace:(!
We just met Dr. Niparko again, 5 weeks ago. For a 5th time surgery on my son’s ears. We flew from DC to LA, only for the surgery. Because we trusted him the most!
But we loved him mostly! He always took care of us so well, and cared about our son so much! He gave him hearing that we didn’t expect to happen (because his complex anatomy and possible complications). He gave us as a family, so much hope, comfort and a reason to be optimistic in our future. I loved Dr. Niparko! This is too much bad news and too sad to accept… We still need you Dr. Niparko! You should stay! … And we will remember you always! With so much love and honor and gratitude forever!
There are no words to express how I feel about Dr. Niparko’s passing. He was truly one of a kind. Dr. Niparko was not only an incredible Dr. but a very caring person as well. He performed both my Cochlear Implants and gave me my life back. I will never forget him. He will be missed very much.
When our daughter was born in 2005 with no ears, Dr. Niparko spoke to my husband on the phone for 3 hours. My husband was referred to Dr Niparko by another Dr friend of his and didn’t expect Dr Niparko to call him directly and put his mind at ease. Dr. Niparko implanted our daughter with her first BAHA at 15 months, which was the youngest at the time, and her second one 3 months later. If we ever had any issues with the implant, he would always call us back immediately and fit her into his always busy schedule. Two years ago, after all her plastic surgery was complete with Dr Bert Brent, Dr. Niparko was ready to move her implants to give her better access to sound. He had us come out to LA so he could do the surgeries for her himself. After the surgery one of her implants started to loosen up. He had us FaceTime him so he could see and talk to her about it. He was going to send us the tool to fix it, but decided he wanted to do it himself. A few weeks later he was flying to Md for a conference. He met us in a parking lot on his way to his hotel so he could fix it himself. He then left the tool for us to have “just in case it loosened up again”. What other Dr would do that? He was a truly remarkable man and Doctor. He will be greatly missed by our daughter and our family. Our hearts are breaking for his family and all that knew him.
Greg, Lisa, and MacKenzie Smith
Dr. Niparko was the first and last doctor to give me a cochlear implant. I am going to miss him terribly. He was full of compassion and understanding. He demonstrated an excellent bedside manner. He always took his time to explain things to me before and after my cochlear implant surgeries. Before Dr. Niparko left Johns Hopkins Hospital for his new position at USC, I begged him to stay at Hopkins for one more day to take my left ear implant out. Somehow, he made it happen. That was just the kind of person he was. May God bless his family and give us all the strength to carry on.
So incredibly thankful for his contributions to otolaryngology and the River School. His efforts have provided my son with bilateral CIs to thrive amongst his hearing peers in school unrestrained by his deafness.
Thank You Dr. Niparko and family! My thoughts are with you all.
John was a colleague of mine when he was at Hopkins. I had not spoken to him in many years but called him when I needed information about cochlear implants for a family member. He was quite gracious in returning my call promptly and answering all of my questions, and the information and guidance he provided was of great help to me and my family. His early passing is a great loss to the medical community and I am sure to his family and friends. He will be missed.
The passing of a great human being!! What a loss to the ENT fraternity and the lives John touched! I had the honor and the privilege to get to know John when I was a fellow at Hopkins in 1993. He was such a kind-hearted soul. I will never forget the evening he invited me home for dinner when I completed my fellowship and was about to return to Singapore. John…we will miss you. Rest In Peace my friend! You will always remain in our memories.
This man gave me a life again. Through my 20s and 30s, I gradually lost 98% of the hearing in my one good ear. Couldn’t use a telephone, stopped socializing, relied on everyone else to run my business. Was frustrated to the point I knew I had to quit. Then I met someone who referred me to Dr. Niparko. At first the FDA turned down our request for an implant (said it was “too experimental” in my case). Niparko fought hard for me and a year and a half later did the surgery (1998). Today, there’s nothing I can’t do – run a business, serve on Bank Boards, School Boards, Special Olympic Committees, Industry Boards, and I find myself doing so much public speaking. What I’m saying is NONE of this would’ve been possible had I not met the greatest surgeon in his field and one of finest people this world has ever known. John Niparko is loved and respected beyond anything he could possibly comprehend.
Dr. Niparko was a wonderful person and physician and will be sadly missed by his family, colleagues, and friends.
The Jeppsen and Kuenne families are deeply saddened to learn of Dr. Niparko’s passing. His twin gifts of compassion and extraordinary medical skill are responsible for providing our amazing Mia with the ability to hear, and all that is enabled by that sense that most of us take for granted. We will be forever grateful for his gift and all those he has helped.
Dr. Niparko’s passing is shocking and heartbreaking news. I knew him first as a leader within AAO-HNS and later when I was his patient. He was kind, thoughtful, patient, and brilliant. I was so disappointed when he took his work from the east coast to the west coast and I lost him as my otologist. What a huge loss to the medical community and those who knew him personally.
I will greatly miss John, my doctor, colleague and friend.
Dr Niparko changed my son Ian’s life by insisting that his bone conduction hearing device be implanted prior to FDA approval and coverage by insurance companies. He took the time to write letters and make phone calls. And it paid off for my son and many other children. Thank you and God Bless your family.
My thoughts and prayers to his family, and to all of us who had the privilege to work with, learn from, or be cured by Dr. John Niparko. He was my colleague and leader at Hopkins, who shared his knowledge, vision and technical expertise so readily. I am so fortunate to have had the opportunity to work closely with someone who has had immense impact in so many ways.