Dr. Robert E. McAfee

Less visible, but even more widespread, is the legacy of day-to-day, individual suffering. It is the pain of children who are abused by people who should protect them, women injured or humiliated by violent partners, elderly persons maltreated by their caregivers, youths who are bullied by other youths, and people of all ages who inflict violence on themselves. . . No country, no city, no community is immune. But neither are we powerless against it.

-Nelson Mandela

Family violence touches every corner of our State and requires a shared commitment from everyone to address. Legal aid providers typically are required to respond after violence has occurred, in order to help the victim use the legal system to achieve safety and independence. Dr. Robert E. McAfee has championed the ways that medical providers and others can recognize and respond to the earliest warning signs of family violence, in order to prevent it from occurring at all.

A graduate of Deering High School, Bob went on to receive a B.S, in Biology from Bates in 1956 and a M.D. from Tufts University of Medicine in 1960. He completed his internship and surgical residency at the Maine Medical Center in 1965. He served as an attending surgeon at the Maine Medical Center for 31 years as well as Chief of Surgery and Vascular Surgery at Mercy Hospital. Bob was elected president-elect of the American Medical Association [AMA] in June 1993 and served as the 149th President of AMA from June of 1994 to June 1995, making him the first AMA President from Maine.

As President of the AMA, Bob used his influence to educate the medical community on family violence issues. He was appointed to the American Bar Association’s Commission on Domestic Violence and served on the Advisory Committee to the Attorney General and the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Service in the Clinton administration.

In Maine, Bob’s commitment to family violence issues goes far beyond his general practice. He is a founding member of the Maine Citizens Against Handgun Violence and of its Foundation and was a member of the Executive Council of Maine’s Communities for Children initiative. He served on the board of Ingraham of Portland, a non-profit social service agency providing services to people in crisis. He recently retired as founding chairman of the Citizen Review Board of the Portland Police Department, a subcommittee of the Civil Service Committee. He continues as a member of the National Association of Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement.