John M. Daly, the former Jonathan E. Rhoads Professor of Surgery in Penn’s School of Medicine, and later twice the dean of Temple University’s Lewis Katz School of Medicine, died at home in Philadelphia on March 26. He was 73. 

Dr. Daly earned a bachelor’s degree from La Salle University, then graduated from Temple’s School of Medicine in 1973. After graduating, he worked at the MD Anderson Cancer Center and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center before joining Penn’s faculty in 1985 as a professor in the department of surgery. A year later, he was promoted to Jonathan E. Rhoads Professor of Surgery and division chief of surgery/oncology in Penn’s School of Medicine. While at Penn, Dr. Daly was listed in Steven Naifeh and Gregory Smith’s book The Best Physicians in America (Almanac April 7, 1992). He taught at Penn for eight years, returning to New York in 1993 and serving as the chief of surgery at New York Hospital and a professor at Weill-Cornell Medicine. 

In 2002, Dr. Daly was appointed dean of Temple University’s Lewis Katz School of Medicine. His tenure, which lasted until 2011, was influential, including the construction of a new medical building and the development of a new postdoctoral research program (and the recruitment of a renowned faculty to lead it). Students and colleagues remember Dr. Daly as an engaged teacher and an influential mentor. In 2019, Dr. Daly was appointed interim dean of the Katz School, and in February of 2021, he was appointed to the post permanently for a second time. In the fall of 2020, Dr. Daly spearheaded the launch of a university-wide COVID-19 testing lab at Temple. 

Dr. Daly is survived by his wife, Palma; six children; and several grandchildren. A viewing was held on March 31. 

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Temple University Lewis Katz School of Medicine at giving.temple.edu/deandaly.