Millennium Magazine_6th Ed

88 Millennium - A Marquis Who’s Who Magazine W hen Dr. Robert H. Geertsma entered college, he initially thought he would follow in his father’s footsteps and become a chemist, but psychology was the track that captured his interest. He received a BA in 1950 and PhD in 1956, both from the University of Chicago. From 1954 to 1956, he was a clinical psychology trainee at the Veterans Administration Hines Hospital and West Side Mental Hygiene Clinic in Chicago. Quickly moving along in his career, Dr. Geertsma worked at the University of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine in psychiatry, where he was an instructor turned assistant professor. In 1964, he moved on as chairman of the Department of Biomedical Communications at the University of Kansas School of Medicine for five years. For nearly 30 years, Dr. Geertsma dedicated his career to the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, where he aided in the establishment and development of the Division of Medical Education. Over the years, he had served as professor and chairman within the Department of Medical Education and Communication, and professor and clinical professor of psychiatry within theWarner School of Education and Human Development. He has also worked out of a private practice since 1984. Dr. Geertsma made numerous achievements throughout the course of his career, but is especially proud of his collaboration with doctors and scientists in China in the mid- 1980s. He has visited Peking, Shanghai, Qingdao, Dalian, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Wuxi and Xian, and established contacts with health officials on provincial and national levels, as well as led Americans on study trips in China to develop research projects in medical areas. Dr. Geertsma’s career highlight was being on the committee of minority affairs with an incoming class of 60 students, and watching his wife’s book get published. He is a fellow of the Academy of Clinical Psychology and author of scientific research studies. ROBERT H. GEERTSMA, PHD PSYCHOLOGIST, EDUCATOR Rescue, CA EDUCATION