1987 Great Comebacks® Program Award Recipient
When Scott underwent ileostomy surgery at age 31 and received his Great Comebacks
® Award at age 35, he was thrilled with the opportunity to share his story.
While coping with symptoms of ulcerative colitis as a teenager, Scott Barrows recalls watching Great Comebacks® Program founder Rolf Benirschke play in the NFL with an ostomy. “I was very impressed with Rolf and knew that I wanted to help carry on the mission of providing encouragement to other people with this disease or with an ostomy,” said Scott. So, when Scott underwent ileostomy surgery at age 31 and received his Great Comebacks® Award at age 35, he was thrilled with the opportunity to share his story.
Following in Rolf’s footsteps, Scott has dedicated time out of his very busy life to help other people with an ostomy by sharing his story and answering questions about what it is like to live with an ostomy. Scott believes it’s important to provide support because he remembers having questions and concerns himself. By telling his story, he hopes others will see that ostomy surgery can provide a second chance and a new lease on life.
While volunteering his time, Scott also has been very busy with his career. As a clinical assistant professor of biomedical visualization at the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center, Scott has been the head of the biomedical visualization graduate program for the past 10 years. He also works with eHuman, a Stanford-based medical software company, designing interactive learning programs.
Great Comebacks® is not the only award Scott has won—in 1987, he received the Outstanding Alumni Award and in 1988 the Smithsonian-Computerworld Award for Innovative Technology. Additionally, Scott has designed several award-winning paintings and murals and illustrated best-selling books, journals, surgical atlases and animated videos. And on top of all that, in 2009, Scott received a research grant from the U.S. Department of Defense, which involves improving patient care.
When Scott, 57, of Lisle, IL, isn’t in the office or speaking at various universities, he enjoys spending time with his wife Jo, three adult children, Carrie, Justin and Lauren, and two grandchildren, Ella and Hayden.
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