Mario Cruz

Mario Cruz, MD 4/14/1956 – 5/30/2024. Dr. Cruz recently retired from University of New Mexico where he was Associate Chief Medical Information Officer and Medical Director of Health Information Management, and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry. Previously, he was a National Institutes of Mental Health funded health services researcher at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's Department of Psychiatry. He also served as Vice-Chair for Clinical Services at the University of Arizona's Health Sciences Center, Department of Psychiatry, and was Chief Medical Officer for Behavioral Health Services for Pima County, Arizona. He was both a diplomate in Psychiatry of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and a diplomate in Clinical Informatics of the American Board of Preventive Medicine. He was a graduate of Occidental College in Los Angeles, Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, and Albert Einstein College of Medicine Psychiatry Residency Program in New York City. He served on the board of the American Association of Community Psychiatry, and his clinical and research passions aimed at improving mental health care to underserved populations produced numerous publications. He is survived by his devoted wife of 35 years, Robyn Flaum Cruz, his father Emilio Louis Cruz, Jr., and brother Emilio Louis Cruz, III both of Los Angeles. In lieu of flowers, donations supporting pancreatic cancer research may be made to the Lustgarten Foundation https://lustgarten.org/ or the Cancer Research Institute https://www.cancerresearch.org. Memorial celebrations will be held in Albuquerque and Los Angeles.

            Dr. Cruz’s interest in science began early on, eventually flowering into his medical studies and medical practice. His continual love of learning led him to add to his clinical practice by pursuing expertise in research, and then to study for a second medical board specialization in informatics later in his professional life. He received that second medical board certification in 2020. He participated in a range of sports in his younger years and became an avid climber during his time in Tucson, AZ and an avid cyclist and kettle bell enthusiast in Albuquerque, NM. He met his wife Robyn during his second year of psychiatry residency in the Bronx, and they reconnected when he began as a Commissioned Officer with the United States Public Health Service in Crownpoint, NM on the Navajo Reservation in 1987. Their first date sealed their union because they immediately recognized each other as true partners and soul mates. They were always grateful for the gift of their love and cherished their years together.