By CHERYL POWELL
Beacon Journal medical writer
Akron Beacon Journal (Ohio)
AKRON, Ohio — Anyone who has faced a serious medical emergency in the Akron area during the past 25 years probably has Dr. Daniel T. Schelble to thank in part for their care.
The longtime head of Akron General Medical Center’s emergency department is credited with helping the city develop and improve its Emergency Medical Services.
Dr. Schelble, 59, of Stow, died on Monday and was buried Thursday.
Though an official cause of death is pending, "... everything is consistent with a self-inflicted act,” said Joe Orlando, chief medical examiner investigator for the Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Dr. Schelble leaves behind a legacy of leadership in physician education and patient care, said Dr. Jack Bradford, an Akron General emergency physician and longtime friend.
“He was always admired as a clinician and certainly a patient advocate in terms of always doing what was best for the patient,” said Bradford, Akron General’s chief of staff.
During his 25-year tenure as chairman of Akron General’s emergency department, Dr. Schelble stayed calm and in control in the busy, hectic ER environment, said Dr. Terry Gordon, an Akron General cardiologist.
“He was just this island of calmness, even when stuff was going bad,” Gordon said.
Dr. Schelble’s death was difficult to accept for many in the medical examiner’s office, which often works with the local emergency departments.
Orlando said he had known Dr. Schelble since 1977.
“It’s tragic,” Orlando said. “He just did so many wonderful things for the community.”
Dr. Schelble guided Akron General through expansions of its emergency department, which is on pace to treat more than 60,000 patients this year.
He had been an active member of the city’s emergency medical service advisory board since ambulance services started in 1978.
“He had been there from the early stages and really was instrumental in developing the system that we have today,” said Dale Evans, district chief in charge of EMS for the Akron Fire Department.
Dr. Schelble also helped research and develop standardized guidelines for examining victims of sexual assault, Bradford said.
Dr. Schelble came to Akron General in the late 1970s as a resident in the emergency department after earning his medical degree from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine.
Though he made Ohio his home, the Wisconsin native remained loyal to the University of Wisconsin’s sports teams, as well as to the Green Bay Packers.
Ohio State University graduate Dr. Michael Mackan, director of EMS for Summa Health System in Akron, had a standing $5 bet with Dr. Schelble for the Ohio State-Wisconsin football games.
Though the two worked for rival hospital systems, they often worked together on projects to improve EMS care in Akron.
“He was such a good man,” Mackan said. “It takes the wind out of you when somebody like that passes away.”
Dr. Schelble was dedicated to his wife, Susan, and two daughters, Anita and Dana, both of whom are training to become doctors, Bradford said.
“His life outside of medicine revolved around his family,” Bradford said.
The family requests that memorials be made to the Emergency Medical Fund, c/o Akron General Development Fund, 400 Wabash Ave., Akron, OH 44307.