Semmes Murphey Chairman has a lifelong passion for innovation

By JAMES DOWD

Dr. Kevin Foley’s path to becoming a world-renowned neurosurgeon, medical innovator,
and chairman of the Semmes Murphey Clinic reads like a blueprint for purposeful living
– fueled by curiosity, shaped by resilience, and driven by a lifelong commitment to
improving patient care.

Living in rural western Massachusetts until he was five, Foley grew up with modest
means but was profoundly influenced by his father, the first in his family to attend
college. Foley’s dad earned his education through the Army ROTC program and went on
to a distinguished military career, rising to the rank of two-star general and
commanding all U.S. armor operations during Desert Storm.

“I was an Army brat, and my sister and I moved across the U.S. and Europe with our
family,” Foley said. “I attended a German kindergarten in the early '60s, lived on bases
from Fort Bragg to Fort Knox, and ultimately enrolled in Deerfield Academy as a day
student. It was there that I discovered a passion for science, which would eventually
guide me toward medicine.”

While at Deerfield, Foley's academic pace was as driven as his ambition. After being
accepted to Harvard, Stanford, and Penn State, he chose Penn State for its accelerated
pre-med track.

“I was impatient,” he admits. “Penn State allowed me to test out of a lot of courses
because I’d had such an incredible education at Deerfield, so I completed college in one
year and entered medical school at 19.”

Though he was the youngest in his class, Foley thrived in the rigorous academic
environment at the UCLA School of Medicine, developing an early interest in
neuroscience. Initially drawn to neurology, he found neurosurgery more compelling for
its ability to intervene and directly improve patient outcomes.

With medical school tuition a major consideration, Foley followed in his father's
footsteps and enrolled in the Health Professions Scholarship Program (HPSP), a post-
Vietnam initiative modeled after ROTC that covered medical school costs in exchange
for military service.

After completing his internship in general surgery at Letterman Army Medical Center in
San Francisco, he returned to UCLA for a five-year neurosurgery residency. Following
that, he began active-duty service, holding leadership roles at Brooke Army Medical
Center in San Antonio, Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, and Walter Reed
National Military Medical Center, where he was named Chief of Neurosurgery when he
was 34.

During this time, Foley not only built his clinical expertise in spinal trauma, but also
began contributing to spinal cord research, flying regularly to Wisconsin to conduct
experiments. His talks on spinal repair caught the attention of Dr. James T. Robertson,
then chairman of neurosurgery at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center
(UTHSC) and the Semmes Murphey Clinic.

In 1992, after being invited to lecture at UTHSC, Foley received an offer to join Semmes
Murphey. Though he had offers from institutions including UCLA, NYU, and UT
Southwestern, he chose Memphis for its unique blend of private practice, academic
medicine, and a culture that embraced innovation.

“It was an interesting opportunity, I liked the facility and I felt like it was a good call,”
Foley said. “Three decades later I stand behind that decision.”

One of Foley’s key conditions for joining was retaining the rights to his intellectual
property. At the time, the clinic owned all inventions. Foley asked them to reconsider
the policy, and they did, which began a prolific chapter in medical innovation.
With more than 180 patents, Foley is widely recognized as one of the most inventive
figures in modern neurosurgery. Among his most impactful contributions is a
navigation system that revolutionized spinal surgery by allowing surgeons to see in 3D
beneath the skin without active X-rays, thereby dramatically improving accuracy and
reducing risks.

But Foley is far from finished. He is currently involved in pioneering projects including
developing stem cell injections to regenerate spinal discs, and a bone glue is poised to
transform fracture and spinal repair for both humans and animals.

At this stage in life, Foley said he could step away from his career and pursue an active
retirement, but he is far from finished with the medical field. The motivation, he
explained, is helping others.

“One of the delights of medicine is making people better. It’s like a runner’s high,” Foley
said. “You can only treat so many people with your own hands, but a successful
invention can touch millions.”

At 69, Foley continues to operate, teach, and invent. He shares a rich life with his wife, a
dermatologist and fellow Army brat whom he met at 16. They’ve been married for nearly
a half-century and have three children and three grandchildren.

Foley loves his life and his purpose, and he’s not stepping away any time soon. And
though he realizes the day will come when he will stop practicing, he’ll never stop
inventing. When asked where his ideas come from, he’s quick to answer.

“Some arrive during that half-awake, half-asleep time in the morning,” Foley said. “My
wife jokes that when my toes start wiggling, I’m dreaming up something new – and she’s
usually right.”