Nasir Ali Khan

Nasir A. Khan, 74, of Newton MA died April 9, 2014. Nasir, son of Dr. Ahmed A. Khan and Bilqis Begum, devoted husband of Kay Khan, passed away unexpectedly. He is survived by his wife; three children, Tira, Zafar and Alex Khan; their spouses, Dan Winston, Suzie Khan and Renee Khan; and seven grandchildren: Sasha, Alana and Viveca Winston-Khan, Ginger and Jett Khan, and Chace and Ava Khan. Two families live in Newton and one in Redondo Beach, CA.

Nasir was born to Indian parents in London. He graduated from King’s College and Westminster Medical School in 1962. He completed his medical training at Westminster Hospital (surgery), St. Mary’s Hospital (medicine) and North Middlesex Hospital (obstetrics). He also earned a diploma in obstetrics from the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynecology in England in 1965. Nasir’s father, a general practitioner, encouraged him to join his family practice. Instead, Nasir moved to Boston in 1965 to begin a Harvard Medical School psychiatric residency at Boston City Hospital. He met Kay Kraus and they were married in 1966.

Nasir served as chairman and chief executive officer of Bournewood Hospital, after he and a group of doctors purchased the hospital in the early 1980s. He is credited with transforming the Brookline facility from the brink of bankruptcy to the well-managed psychiatric hospital it is today. Before that, he served as superintendent of Danvers State Hospital, given the daunting task of closing the large psychiatric facility.

Board-certified by the American Board of Psychiatry in Neurology, as well as Geriatric Psychiatry, Nasir maintained a private practice in Newton. He was an Assistant Clinical Professor in Psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine.

He was a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and in 2008 was honored with a Heroes in the Fight Award from the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Nasir served on the Board of Trustees of the Massachusetts Medical Society. He was president of the Charles River District Medical Society, president of the Indian Medical Association of New England, president of the Massachusetts Association of Private Psychiatric Hospitals twice, and president of the Medical Staff at Newton-Wellesley Hospital. He was honored earlier this week by the Charles River District Medical Society as 2014 Community Clinician of the Year.

Nasir loved spending time with family, and always showed great interest in what family and friends were doing. He helped his wife, state rep. Kay Khan, with her campaigns, and would drive around town installing lawn signs in supporters’ yards. He gave well-measured advice, if asked, and encouraged family members to try their best. He enthusiastically embraced all around him. During almost every holiday and school vacation Nasir could be found hosting family. Last year he took his children and grandchildren to India for the first time to see his family’s ancestral home. He could be counted on for last minute carpools, babysitting, and bringing dinner to his children’s homes. Nasir also enjoyed boating, squash, skiing, golf, running the Boston Marathon with his daughter and driving old cars. He will be missed incredibly.

The funeral will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, April 17, at the First Baptist Church, 848 Beacon St., Newton. A reception will follow at the Windsor Club, 1601 Beacon St. Visiting hours will be held 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday at his home. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Dr. Nasir A. Khan Memorial Trust, 19 St. Mary’s St., Newton, MA 02462.