Muhammad Nurul Islam

Muhammad Nurul Islam
November 13, 1939-July 5, 2023
Dr. Muhammad Nurul Islam died on July 5, 2023 after a recurring battle with colon cancer at Stamford Hospital with his family by his side. He was 83 years old and is survived by his wife, Zebunnessa, and his three children Shahnaaz, Iffat ,Ferdousi and son-in-law Fahriaz. Muhammad attended Dhaka Medical College in Bangladesh when he was just 18 years old. He was born in 1939 in Nadia, Bangladesh, where he graduated from Dacca (now Dhaka) Medical College in 1958 specializing in Internal Medicine and emigrated with his wife to the United States shortly thereafter.
Initially destined for London, government challenges in Bangladesh eliminated his awarded scholarships. He received a Fullbright that was dissolved in the wake of tense relations with the U.S. Nevertheless, Muhammad made his way to the United States to complete his residency, $30 in his pocket, carrying the history of partition and ultimately independence.
As an E.R. physician Muhammad worked for many years at St. Joseph as Hospital as ER Medical Director and later completed his career at Stamford Hospital. He was known for his optimism and warm bedside manner. Muhammad mentored many physicians, he retired out of St. Joseph and later on worked at the Tully Center Emergency room until his retirement. Muhammad was an unusually hard worker, but in his spare time he wrote several popular novels and serials in his native tongue, Bengali.
While in many respects Muhammad was traditional, he bucked his cultural norm in encouraging his daughters to be independent. Muhammad was a family man, who not only put his own family first, he helped his own brothers, sisters, in-laws and friends to help them set a path for themselves, and considered him as their own big brother and/or their best friend.
He maintained deep friendships and enjoyed photography. He bought the safest cars and the biggest televisions. He was particular about his croissants, and he loved his family and friends equally.