By Rebecca Goodman
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Smith

ANDERSON TWP. - Richard M. Smith,senior medical director for Good Samaritan, died Friday at the hospital following a long bout with cancer.

Dr. Smith, 54, was board certified in pulmonary disease and internal medicine. He built a private practice and served in leadership roles at Good Samaritan and Bethesda hospitals as well as at TriHealth, their parent organization.

Dr. Smith "will be greatly missed as a close friend, an inspiring leader and a valued member of our team," said John Prout, president and CEO of TriHealth.

Dr. Smith was born in Chicago in 1949 and grew up in Princeton, Ill. He earned a bachelor's degree from Northwestern University. After graduating from NU's medical school in 1975, he enrolled in the internal medicine residency program at Good Samaritan.

Dr. Smith began his private practice in Cincinnati in 1982, and he became a teacher at Good Samaritan and a volunteer instructor at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

Survivors include: his wife of 23 years, Linda; three daughters, Jennifer, Lindsey and Leslie; his parents, Melvin and Nancy Smith of Princeton, Ill.; and three sisters, Fran Pinter of LaMoille, Ill., Carol Nelson of Peoria, Ill., and Barb Coates of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Visitation: 10 a.m. today followed by Mass at 12:30 p.m. at Annunciation Church, 3547 Clifton Ave. Memorials: Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation, 375 Dixmyth Ave., Cincinnati 45220.

E-mail rgoodman@enquirer.com