James C. Giles M.D.

1932 - 2010

James C. Giles, M.D., Orthopaedic Surgeon, passed away after a long illness during the early morning hours of Tuesday, Nov. 23 at St. John's Regional Medical Center in Oxnard. He was 78. Dr. Giles practiced medicine throughout Ventura County for over 45 years.

Born Sept. 26, 1932 in Inglewood, Calif., he was raised there and later moved to nearby Westchester with his parents and younger brother for a short time before entering Loyola University on the merits of his academic record from Mt. Carmel High School in Los Angeles, Class of 1950, and on a football scholarship. After playing one season at Loyola University, he decided to hang up his cleats in order to turn more of his attention to his academic ambitions.

Dr. Giles graduated from Loyola University of Los Angeles in 1953, Marquette Medical School in Milwaukee in 1957, served in the Air Force as a General Medical Officer at Ladd AFB in Fairbanks, Alaska from 1958-61, and completed his Orthopedic Residency in Baltimore at Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1962-65. His long, distinguished career included a private practice in Oxnard from 1965-2010. He was a Staff Member at St. John's Regional Medical Center in Oxnard from 1965-2010, Chief of Surgery at St. John's Hospital from 1977-78, Director of Rehabilitation Services at St. John's from 1978-80, Medical Director of the Spina Bifida Clinic of Ventura County from 1975-2010, and Attending Physician at CCS Ventura Cerebral Palsy Clinic from 1967-2010.

He was also a member of the International People to People Pain Management Delegation that went to Australia in 1983, Yugoslavia in 1984, and Moscow in 1985. He was so widely sought for his expertise that he had patients travel from as far away as the former Soviet Union to see him.

In semi-retirement, Dr. Giles continued to provide his orthopaedic and neurological expertise to Ventura County clinics for children with Cerebral Palsy, Multiple Brain Trauma and Genetic Disorders. He was a Chairman of the Credentialing Committee for St. John's Regional Medical Center and responsible for interviewing physician candidates new to St. John's and assisting in the process of screening for the most qualified applicants.

Additionally, Dr. Giles is recognized for championing what is now known as the St. John's Inpatient Rehabilitation Center, a legacy that he now shares with those who came on board to support the idea. His exemplary efforts in patient advocacy eventually led to the Inpatient Rehabilitation Center being developed and credentialed. Dr. Giles' humble leadership, natural rapport, modest repartee, and otherwise unaffected personality won him many friends and admirers.

His awards and honors were numerous. They include the 1987 St. John's Mercy Award, 1997 Physician of the Year awarded by Employees from Mercy Healthcare Ventura County (St. John's Regional Medical Center/St. John's Pleasant Valley Hospital) for exemplifying core values of the hospital: Justice, Dignity, Stewardship, Excellence and Collaboration. He was also a Humanitarian Award recipient and was recently awarded the St. John's Dignity in Action Award, as well as the recently announced Physician Emeritus of the Year Award.

While well-known and loved for his self-effacing sense of humor, his good-natured leadership, and his highly regarded medical training and expertise, he was equally well-known for his tireless and selfless care for patients. As a doctor, he did not believe that surgery was always the best answer, and he believed in making physical therapy and rehabilitation an important part of treatment. The implementation and accreditation of the Inpatient Rehabilitation Center at St. John's that he championed, his gift for bedside manner, and his pleasant, reassuring nature in the course of his work, are perhaps the most important professional legacies that Dr. Giles leaves with us in his passing. While excellence in patient care remained his primary focus professionally, his remarkable life was also characterized by his adroit ability to manage a robust and fulfilling personal life as well.

He often spoke amongst those closest to him of how very fortunate he felt for having an enduring marriage to a devoted and loving wife after becoming a widower in middle-age, family, friends and colleagues who loved and appreciated him, seven accomplished children, and six rambunctious grandchildren, all of whom loved and appreciated him in their own unique way.

With a thriving practice and career, and often appearing larger than life to many, raising a large family presented its own set of challenges over the years. He was also a supportive, encouraging presence at local and regional swim meets and water polo matches for years while his kids swam competitively. Dr. Giles cultivated many interests after his children were grown.

He enjoyed gardening with his wife, Kathleen, and together they became expert rosarians, even printing a popular calendar with pictures from their garden two years in a row. An avid shutterbug his entire adult life, he leaves behind thousands of slides and pictures of events, trips, and family vacations that will be forever etched into the hearts and minds of his children.

Dr. Giles was admired for his humble, personable approach to patient care and family life, his giving, charitable spirit and his heartfelt optimism, even when personally facing his own health issues and physical challenges later in life. In recent years, he courageously endured physical hardship due to cancer treatments and an inherited form of Amyloidosis that caused polyneuropathy, a neurological disorder that hampered motor and sensory control in his arms and legs as well as his ability to work well with his hands or feet. True to character, his personal struggle with his own illness was a humble, brave and dignified one. Dr. James C. Giles touched many lives. His colleagues, patients, family, friends and loved ones are all better people for having known and loved him.

He was a beloved and devoted husband, father, stepfather, grandfather, brother, colleague, physician and friend who will be greatly missed for the heartfelt kindness, love, and laughter that he generously shared with all of those who knew him professionally and personally. Pure in form and pure at heart, Dr. Giles was known best for leading by example. He truly inspired all to live their lives to the fullest while, first and foremost, serving others.

Dr. Giles is survived by his loyal and loving wife of 23 years, Kathleen Giles, RN; his brother, Roger Giles of Knoxville, Tenn.; seven children including two stepchildren who he insisted on treating as his own; six grandchildren; and countless friends, acquaintances, colleagues, and patients who loved him dearly. His biological children, in order of birth, are Michael (Mary), Leanne Colvin (Scott), Christopher (Ruth), Matthew (Heidi), and Colleen. His two stepchildren are Greg (Sasha) and Gigi (Kevin). His grandchildren in order of birth are Sarah and Daniel Colvin, Jameson and Laken Giles, Merrick Giles, and Madison Wilson.

He was preceded in death by his first wife, Jacqueline, and his parents, James and Reva.

In lieu of flowers, Dr. Giles' family respectfully requests that donations be made to any noble charity of your choice in the name of community and concern for others.

Celebration of life services will be held at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 5, 2010 at the First Presbyterian Church, 850 Ivywood Drive in Oxnard, with Rev. James K. Brian officiating. The Giles family is being assisted by Santa Clara Mortuary, Oxnard, 485-5757.