Raised in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania, Dr. Kornberg graduated from PCOM in 1978. He completed his internship and residency at PCOM and his fellowship training at Deborah Heart and Lung Center.
Dr. Kornberg officially joined the PCOM faculty in 1983 as a clinical instructor of internal medicine. He was named clinical professor of internal medicine in 1992 and was the chair of the Department of Cardiology from 1997 until his retirement last year. He was also co-vice chairman of the Department of Internal Medicine at PCOM from 1990 to 2023 and core curriculum chairman for clinical cardiology from 1995 to 2023. In addition, he served as an attending physician at Main Line Health’s Lankenau Medical Center.
Dr. Kornberg is a 12-time recipient of PCOM’s Clinical Teacher of the Year Award and a recipient of the Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Award for Outstanding Teaching. He has consistently been recognized as a Top Doc in Philadelphia by Philadelphia Magazine.
After four decades as a full-time cardiologist and professor, he now enjoys a more flexible schedule while working part-time with the Lankenau Heart Group. He also spends a few days a month teaching courses at PCOM and serves the institution as a member of the PCOM Alumni Association Board.
A self-proclaimed “PCOM lifer,” Dr. Kornberg recalls the teachers and mentors who guided his career. He credits his uncle for encouraging him to stay in Philadelphia for graduate medical education, beginning his career at PCOM as chief intern.
While on a rotation in pulmonary medicine, he met John P. Simelaro, DO ’71, FCCP, FACA, FACOI, a legend to legions of PCOM alumni and patients, who later became the chief of medicine, and Dr. Kornberg his vice chairman. Dr. Kornberg later worked with Robert H. Jama, DO ’69, who would become the director of the surgical ICU and trauma unit while they were both attending physicians. Dr. Jama taught him how to multitask and move from one patient to the next.
What led Dr. Kornberg to cardiology? “I didn’t choose it, it chose me,” he says.
While on a second-year rotation at the Deborah Heart and Lung Center, Dr. Kornberg met Alden S. Gooch, MD. “Dr. Gooch was trained when you had your stethoscope, your brain, your hands, an EKG and a chest X-ray. And he was phenomenal.” When Dr. Kornberg was 27 years old, Dr. Gooch invited him to train with him at Deborah Heart and Lung Center, where he served as chief fellow.
In 1983, Albert Floyd D’Alonzo, DO ’56, MSc, FACOI, FACC, hired Dr. Kornberg, and he returned to PCOM. “Dr. D’Alonzo is the reason I’m here, and I became his partner.”
Dr. Kornberg says his osteopathic training gave him another modality to make people better. In his teaching, he encouraged his students to look at the patient both medically and psychologically, and to integrate all aspects into taking care of the person. He also taught students to take care of the patient’s family.
“Experience is education too,” Dr. Kornberg affirms. “I had 40 wonderful years as an attending. I worked hard. I loved taking care of patients.
“And I was fortunate enough to marry a girl who wanted to help me be as good as she thought I could be,” he adds. While Dr. Kornberg was working in the outpatient clinic at 48th and Spruce streets, a fellow third-year student (now his brother-in-law) invited him on a double date. “We went to Strolli’s in South Philly because they had cheap (and good) Italian food. After that, it was ten weeks until I got a ring. We’ve been married for 45 years.”
Reflecting on his career, Dr. Kornberg is proud to have watched more than 40 of his residents go on to cardiology fellowships. “I taught them physical diagnosis and how to auscultate a heart. At reunions they say to me, ‘When am I ever going to get your voice out of my head?’ And that’s flattering.” The greatest compliment he’s ever received, however, is when his peers brought their parents or spouses to him for medical care.
At present, Dr. Kornberg lives in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, with his wife, Merle. “I couldn’t have done any of this without her,” he says. Their son, William N. Kornberg, DO ’07, is a cardiologist with the Lankenau Heart Group, and daughter-in-law Traci Littman Kornberg graduated from PCOM’s Physician Assistant Studies program in 2010. Their daughter, Rebecca, is a reading teacher and math coach, and their son-in-law, Martin Lehr, owns a biotech company.
Michael A. Becker, DO ’87, FACOFPGrowing up in the Roxborough section of Philadelphia, and later in East Norriton, Pennsylvania, Dr. Becker was inspired to work in medicine by his family’s trusted physician, an osteopathic doctor named Harold Schreiber, DO. Little did he know that someday Dr. Schreiber would end up as his boss.
After completing an undergraduate degree in biology from La Salle University, Dr. Becker arrived at PCOM as a medical student and graduated in 1987. Upon completion of his family medicine residency, Dr. Becker joined the faculty of PCOM’s Department of Family Medicine in 1993, and rose through the ranks at Roxborough Memorial Hospital. He served as medical director of PCOM’s Roxborough Healthcare Center from 1999 to 2001.
In 2001, he became family practice residency director of the PCOM/Mercy Suburban Hospital program. Dr. Becker later returned to the College in 2009 and was appointed associate dean of clinical education in 2020. In 2021, he was named campus chief of Main Line Health – Lankenau Hospital’s Department of Family Medicine.
“As osteopathic physicians, our approach to how we take care of our patients is unique,” says Dr. Becker. “Osteopathic manipulation really works, and we are truly holistic. The osteopathic approach is consistent with who I am as a person and as a doctor.”
Dr. Becker names Emanuel Fliegelman, DO ’42, as a physician who positively influenced his professional trajectory. “He was somebody who was inspiring for the empathy that he had, the way he talked to patients and the way he put the patient first.”
He credits Bruce Kornberg, DO ’78, as another source of inspiration for him. “Dr. Kornberg made a big impact on me as a resident. He was tough, but that’s how you learn.”
Dr. Becker says he can’t remember a time when he wasn’t involved with PCOM—as either a student, member of the medical staff or teacher.
“When you teach somebody, you’re treating thousands of patients. When we’re with our students, we model how to take care of people. I’m very conscious of that.” Dr. Becker encourages his students to be lifelong learners, and tells them, “The world keeps changing, but to be an effective educator, you have to adapt to culture changes with your students.”
Over the last few years, Dr. Becker had the privilege of sharing the campus with his daughter, Claire Becker, DO ’23. “I used to go walking with her on breaks, and we would geek out on medicine,” he says. “We have that bond because she understands the culture and the craziness of medicine.”
Dr. Becker lives in Blue Bell with his wife, Barbara. They also have a daughter, Katelyn, who works in digital communications for Elsevier, and a son, Christopher, who is a software engineer.
Dr. Becker has been on the board of the PCOM Alumni Association since 2016, and will serve as president beginning in June 2024. He hopes to bring more alumni back to campus to mentor current students.
“We are a family here at PCOM, and that means we all have a commitment to each other. I’ve started thinking about what my legacy will be, and I want to be remembered as someone who made a difference to our students, and ultimately to their patients,” he says. “It’s a tremendous responsibility, but it’s also a gift. I’m a PCOM lifer, and it’s really important to see the success of the College continue long after I’m gone.”
Learn more about Founder's Day 2024 at PCOM.
Digest, the magazine for alumni and friends of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, is published by the Office of Marketing and Communications. The magazine reports on osteopathic and other professional trends of interest to alumni of the College’s Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) and graduate programs at PCOM, PCOM Georgia and PCOM South Georgia.
© 2024 Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine