Frank J. Tornetta, 93, of Audubon, an anesthesiologist, died Thursday of a lung infection at Montgomery Hospital in Norristown, where he had served on the staff for 45 years.

Dr. Tornetta was director of the hospital's department of anesthesiology from 1950 until 1987 and was the longtime director of the hospital's School of Nurse Anesthesia.

Now named the Frank J. Tornetta School of Anesthesia, the school is affiliated with La Salle University. Dr. Tornetta, who founded the school in 1951, received the teacher of the year award in 1993 from the National Association of Nurse Anesthetists.

Dr. Tornetta also was associate clinical professor at Temple University Medical School and he taught at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School and in the graduate school at St. Joseph's University.

He was a past president and founding member of the Montgomery County Medical Society and a member of the committee that established the Montgomery County Board of Health. He was past president of the Pennsylvania Society of Anesthesiologists.

He retired in the mid-1990s, but still served on the board of Montgomery Hospital.

"He was known for his compassion and understanding of his patients, students, and coworkers and was a strong advocate of the personal relationship between patient and doctor," a son, Frank Jr. said.

Dr. Tornetta, whose parents emigrated from Sicily, grew up with five brothers and a sister in Norristown. He graduated from Norristown High School and earned a bachelor's degree from Ursinus College.

He earned a master's in biology from Penn and a doctorate in physiology from New York University in 1942. His thesis was on the effect of high altitudes on the endocrine system. As an expert in the field, he later consulted for General Electric on the space program.

During World War II, Dr. Tornetta joined the Navy's program to train doctors. He earned a medical degree from Hahnemann University in 1946. He interned at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Philadelphia while serving in the Navy and completed a residency in anesthesiology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania before joining the Montgomery Hospital staff.

He met his future wife, Norma Zollers, at the hospital, where she was an X-ray technician. They were married for 50 years; she died in 2007.

Dr. Tornetta enjoyed gardening, reading, playing cards, and smoking cigars while listening to Phillies radio broadcasts on summer nights. An enthusiastic traveler, he toured Sicily in 2003 and leased a castle in Tuscany for a vacation with his family in 2004.

In addition to Frank Jr., he is survived by sons David and Mark; two brothers; and six grandchildren.

A Funeral Mass is scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday at Holy Savior Church, 407 E. Main St., Norristown. Friends may call from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Entombment will be in St. Patrick's Cemetery, East Norriton.

Donations may be made to the Frank J. Tornetta School of Anesthesia, Box 992, Norristown, Pa. 19404.

Contact staff writer Sally A. Downey at 215-854-2913 or sdowney@phillynews.com.