Entertainment
Time to Retire? Better to Take On a New Challenge.
At 67, a heart surgeon leaves the suburbs for Brooklyn and for the chance to continue his life’s work in a new hospital.
Dr. Scott Schubach grew up on Long Island and built a career there. Then, at 67, he decided he wanted to give life in New York City a try for the first time.
He was living in the town of Sea Cliff, in Nassau County, working as a heart surgeon at NYU Langone Hospital Long Island. Dr. Schubach had started his career there in 1991, when it was still Winthrop University Hospital, and served as chair of the cardiac department for 20 years.
But two years ago, he couldn’t shake the feeling that it was time for a change. As he reached an age when many hope to pivot toward retirement, Dr. Schubach decided he wanted a new challenge. “I needed to find something else,” he said. “I wasn’t ready to retire. I didn’t want to do less and less. I wanted to keep active and be a part of growth.”
This year, he got an opportunity to do just that. Dr. Schubach was asked to be a part of the leadership team to expand the cardiac program at NYU Langone Hospital Brooklyn, in the Sunset Park neighborhood. The expansion would make a range of heart surgeries available at the hospital for the first time.
He knew the job wasn’t just a fresh professional challenge; it was going to reshuffle his life altogether. “I could not commute,” he said. “It was just too far. With all I do, the need to be accessible for patients — I’m at work at 6 in the morning. I couldn’t live on Long Island. That can be an hour and a half commute.”
