CANADIAN MEDICAL HALL OF FAME 2010 Video
In 2003, The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame opened the doors of its new exhibit hall in the heart of downtown London, Ontario. The Hall features a distinguished laureate portrait gallery, three feature exhibits (The Brain & Mind, The Vital Flow and Mother & Child), an inspiring laureate quotation wall, a display of stamps from Canada Post reflecting the history of medicine and health care in Canada, and a media theatre.
Visitors are inspired by the stories and outstanding achievements of the remarkable Canadian men and women who have changed the face of medicine and health care in the world today.
Dr. Charles George Drake Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 1994.mov
Charles Drake completed his M.D. at The University of Western Ontario, and has made his contributions from his clinical base in London, Ontario. He interned at Toronto General Hospital before returning to Western to instruct in physiology. He later continued to study physiology at Yale University. He returned again to London as a surgical resident at Victoria Hospital. A strong interest in neurosurgery led Drake to tour the clinics of five European countries before he returned to Canada as a fellow in neuropathology at the Banting Institute in Toronto.
Dr. John James Macleod Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2012
Dr. John James Rickard (J.J.R.) Macleod is now recognized for collaborating in one of the most important breakthroughs in medicine. Known internationally at the time for his research in carbohydrate metabolism and physiology, Dr. Macleod was recruited to the University of Toronto where he directed the research that led to the discovery and clinical use of insulin as an effective therapy for diabetes. Following the breakthrough in 1922, Dr. Macleod shared the 1923 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Dr. Frederick Banting.
To learn more about our Canadian Medical Hall of Fame laureates go to CdnMedHall.org
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Dr. Jonathan Campbell Meakins Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2011
Dr. Jonathan Campbell Meakins, born in Hamilton, Ontario, was an outstanding teacher and promoter of clinical research. As a brilliant investigator and innovative leader, he was responsible for the training of many prestigious men and women researchers, many of whom have become laureates of The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame.
Graduating in medicine from McGill University in 1904, Dr. Meakins studied at Johns Hopkins Medical School in Baltimore and later in New York City at Presbyterian Hospital. In 1910, at the age of 28, Dr. Meakins was appointed lecturer in Medicine and Pathology, and in 1912, director of Experimental Medicine at McGill University. He was appointed in 1919, the Christison professor of Therapeutics at the University of Edinburgh, where he became one of the first to administer and study insulin. In 1924 recruited back to McGill, he assumed the titles of professor and chair of Medicine, physician-in-chief at Royal Victoria Hospital and, perhaps his greatest legacy, director of the McGill University Clinic. It was at the Clinic that Dr. Meakins demonstrated his pioneering spirit by initiating collaborations between basic medical scientists and clinicians. Less than two decades later he was named dean of the Faculty of Medicine.
A study on the effects of high altitude on human physiology served as the catalyst for Dr. Meakins' first book in 1925, Respiratory Function in Disease. His most renowned textbook, with six editions, The Practice of Medicine, was published 11 years later. During World War I, he studied Soldier's Heart, now referred to as post-traumatic stress disorder, and war-gas poisoning, and in World War II served as Deputy Director of Medical Services with the rank of Brigadier. As a prolific writer Dr. Meakins authored over 160 scientific publications.
A father of two, Dr. Meakins was an advocate of health insurance and an excellent administrator. Founding father and first president of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, he presided over numerous other organizations, such as the Canadian Medical Association, the American College of Physicians, and the Canadian Mental Health Association. His dedication to mental health as an acclaimed clinical scientist served as an inspiration to others and subsequently raised its awareness in the medical community.
Awarded the esteemed title of Commander of the Order of the British Empire, he also received two honourary degrees. Named Master by the American College of Physicians, Dr. Meakins was a Fellow of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of Canada, and the Royal Society of Canada (1926). His many contributions to McGill University have been commemorated in The Meakins-Christie Laboratories.
To learn more about our Canadian Medical Hall of Fame laureates go to CdnMedHall.org
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Dr. Alan Burton Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2010
Born in London, England, Dr. Alan Burton began his career as a high school physics teacher before immigrating to Canada at the age of 23 and becoming a graduate student in physics at the University of Toronto. Considered a founding father of modern biophysics and a pioneer in interdisciplinary health research, Dr. Burton was a brilliant scientist and a superb raconteur who
had a profound and lasting effect on those he encountered. One of the first physicists to become a biophysicist at a time when biophysics was not in vogue,
Dr. Burton is perhaps appreciated most for his uncanny ability to crystallize physical concepts in medicine and make learning relevant, exciting and most of all, fun. Much of his teaching occurred at Coffee Time twice a day; he encouraged his students to keep a notebook of Nobel Prizes Pending; and his books included intriguing poems such as Ode to a red cell. Dr. Burtons Ph.D. work, including the heating of electrolytes by microwaves (then of great medical interest), marked his entry into the world of biology. He pursued postdoctoral studies at the University of Rochester, NY (1932-1934) and the University of Pennsylvania (1934-1939), and returned to Canada after the outbreak of World War II. Refusing to let the disruptive years of war deprive him of his dreams, nor diminish his scientific spirit, he undertook military research related to the design of protective clothing for military personnel work that formed the underpinning of the discipline of environmental physiology.
In 1945, Dr. Burton was recruited to the University of Western Ontario where he founded and led from 1948-1970 the first Department of Biophysics in a Canadian medical school. He repeatedly turned down numerous positions in the United States, and his department is now one of Canadas largest biophysics departments, known for its innovative graduate program. In his later years, Dr. Burton turned his energies towards the problem of cancer, including protection against cancer by altitude, once again showing how simple physics can help to more clearly understand medical problems.
Awarded the Member of the Order of the British Empire for his contributions during the war, Dr. Burton served as President of the American Physiological Society (1956), Biophysical Society (1960) and the Canadian Physiological Society (1959). He was honoured with the Gairdner Foundation International Award for Cardiovascular Research (1961) and has received two
honourary degrees. The Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at Western named their CFI-funded biophysics laboratory the Alan C. Burton Laboratory for Vascular Research in his honour.
For more information on our CMHF laureates go to CdnMedHall.org .
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Dr. Henry J.M. Barnett Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 1995
Dr. Henry Barnett, a native of Britain, obtained his Medical Degree from the University of Toronto in 1944. After obtaining specialty qualifications in Neurology at the Toronto General Hospital, he moved to Oxford to further his research training. He returned to Canada to enjoy an outstanding career in investigative medicine in Toronto and London. Dr. Barnett is best known for directing many of the most important large multi-centered clinical trials in stroke; including the first randomized trial to show that aspirin prevents stroke.
Dr. Bernard Langer - 2015 Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate
Bernard Langer is recognized as a true innovator, a gifted surgeon and respected teacher. Dr. Langer’s reputation for clinical excellence was unsurpassed during his surgical career. Considered a global pioneer of Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary (HPB) surgery, he developed a world leading academic HPB and liver transplant service while head of the division of surgery at Toronto General Hospital. As chair of the department of surgery at the University of Toronto, Dr. Langer established the first surgical full time practice plan in Canada to foster research and education, and developed the Surgeon Scientist Program, now a widely recognized and emulated model for training academic surgeons in Canada and in other countries. This program and its graduates constitute one of Dr. Langer’s enduring legacies. Dr. Langer was also instrumental in the creation of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada Clinician Investigator Program and in the formation of the Canadian Patient Safety Institute. For more information go to CdnMedHall.org.
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Dr. Claude Fortier Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 1998
Born in Montreal, Claude Fortier received his medical degree from the University of Montreal in 1948. Dr. Fortier had a passionate commitment to the common good of medicine in Canada. He offered his services to numerous medical organizations in Canada and was a strong advocate of clinical research. Fortier took the lead as one of the early scientists to introduce computers as a tool for medical research.
Dr. Fraser Mustard Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2003
Upon returning from graduate study in Cambridge, Dr. Mustard became a Research Fellow in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. He and the team he led carried out groundbreaking research on the role of platelets in the coagulation of blood, and the means by which this process could be controlled. At the pinnacle of his research career, he joined John Evans in 1966 as a founding member of the McMaster University Faculty of Medicine, and became its first Chairman of the Department of Pathology, later serving as Dean of Medicine and Vice-President (Health Sciences). The revolutionary educational philosophy of the new school coincided with Dr. Mustards own learning philosophy that we go to school to learn how to continue to learn all through our professional lives. With the new Faculty running smoothly, he embarked in 1982 on his third career, the establishment of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIAR). This Institute is a research network which studies complex problems in the sciences and social sciences and involves researchers working in many countries. Dr. Mustard has been the recipient of fifteen Honorary Degrees and in 1986 was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada. He became a Companion of the Order in 1994.
Dr. Frederick Grant Banting Canadian Medical Hall of Fame 1994
Frederick Grant Banting completed his medical studies at the University of Toronto and established a surgical practice in London, Ontario. He supplemented his income by working as a medical demonstrator at the University of Western Ontario. It was there he conceived a technique which might permit isolation of the anti-diabetic component of the pancreas. He returned to the University of Toronto in 1922 to conduct experiments on the pancreas at the labs of Dr. J.R.R. MacLeod. By the time the summer had ended, he and Charles Best had isolated insulin.
Dr. Collip developed the process by which insulin was able to be refined and produced in sufficient amounts for clinical trials. Fame came quickly to the soft-spoken Banting who won the Nobel Prize for Medicine because of the discovery. Many honours followed, including knighthood. Banting continued to work and do research and coordinated the National Wartime Medical Research effort. His life was tragically cut short by a fatal air crash in Newfoundland in 1941.
Dr. Cal Stiller Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2010
Born and raised in Saskatchewan, Dr. Calvin Stiller's magic touch as a builder pervades every phase of his career. A physician, scientist, administrator, policy innovator and entrepreneur, Dr. Stiller developed one of the most dynamic organ transplant programs in the nation and championed countless other initiatives that have enriched research enterprise in Canada. He is called a visionary with organizational genius. Dr. Stiller was Canada's major voice in organ transplantation during the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s when the field transformed from a risky experimental undertaking to a reliably successful venture. It was Dr. Stiller who, in the late 1970s, obtained the promising new drug Cyclosporine and organized its first multi-centre clinical trial in kidney transplantation in North America, creating the foundation for subsequent studies that put Canada on the world stage. Cyclosporine remains today as the drug of choice to combat tissue rejection after transplantation. He was responsible for the controversial but groundbreaking research that showed that cyclosporine, an immunosuppressant, could halt the progression of Type 1 Diabetes demonstrating that it was an immune disorder. In a lifetime, an individual might be successful in creating one institution or program. Dr. Stiller has been the architect of many, including The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame, Robarts Research Institute, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, MaRs, and the Stiller Centre. From 1984 to 1996, he established and led the Multi-Organ Transplant Service (MOTS) at The University of Western Ontario's University Hospital, the first of its kind in Canada and one of the first in the world. During this time, Dr. Stiller had a remarkable run as a crusader for organ donation and the organ donor card, and popularized, if not coined, the term Gift of Life. Dr. Stiller's appointment to the board of the Medical Research Council of Canada in 1987 coincided with his shift towards medical entrepreneurship, along with a belief in the role of productive partnerships between the private, public and voluntary sectors. In 1996 he was named Ontario Entrepreneur of the Year. Convinced that there was a serious lack of capital available to Canadian bioscientists, he honed his idea of involving the private sector in stimulating a real Canadian-grown life sciences industry. Accordingly, he built four venture funds the largest being Canadian Medical Discovery Fund that served as the catalyst for biotechnology in Canada and developed early-seed investments in discoveries coming out of universities.
A recipient of numerous prestigious awards and honours, Dr. Stiller is a Member of the Order of Canada (1995) and the Order of Ontario (2000), and has received the Queens Jubilee Award (2002). Recognized for Life Time Achievement by the Canadian Society of Transplantation (2003), he also holds three honourary doctorate degrees.
For more information on our CMHF laureates go to cdnmedhall.org
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Dr. F. Clarke Fraser Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2012
Raised and currently living in Nova Scotia, Dr. F. Clarke Fraser is an iconic figure in Canadian medicine and was one of the creators of the discipline of medical genetics in North America. He founded the first Canadian medical genetics department in a paediatric hospital, aptly named the F. Clarke Fraser Clinical Genetics Centre at McGill University, in 1995. He also laid the foundations in the field of Genetic Counseling, which has enhanced the lives of patients worldwide.
To learn more about our Canadian Medical Hall of Fame laureates go to CdnMedHall.org
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Canadian Medical Hall of Fame inductee Lorne Tyrrell
Lorne Tyrrell is one of six medical heroes joining the ranks of 82 Canadian Hall of Fame laureates April 28 in London, Ont.
Tyrell led the University of Alberta's medical school for 10 years, developed the antiviral therapy for hepatitis B now being used around the globe and he was the driving force behind the development of the Li Ka Shing Institute of Virology—a facility that has vaulted the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry and the U of A to prominence as a world centre of excellence in viral research. Video produced by Geoff McMaster.
Dr. John E. Bradley - Honorable Peter Lougheed Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2001 .mov
After serving in the Medical Branch of the RCAF for three-and-a-half years during the Second World War, Dr. Bradley co-founded the Wainwright Medical Clinic, where he practised medicine until 1960. He then entered the field of Health Services Administration where he worked to provide Albertans with an efficient medical delivery system long before universal medical care came to Canada. From 1964-72, Dr. Bradley held the position of Executive Director of the Glenrose Provincial Hospital, which he developed into a major resource for the treatment of handicapped and emotionally disturbed children, and subsequently served as Chairman of the Alberta Hospital Services Commission. In 1977, Premier Peter Lougheed, who was in the process of creating the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research, appointed Dr. Bradley as his Special Advisor on Medical Research. In this office, Dr. Bradley was able to use his long experience and diplomatic skills to fashion an institution of national and international research excellence. In 1972, Dr. Bradley was awarded an Honorary LL.D. by the University of Alberta.
Vault of Genius: Jerry Breaks into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
Using Nemo's secret code, super-spy Jerry Muskrat breaks through a vault door and steps into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame in London, Ontario. There, he discovers how Canadians have improved the health of people around the world. One of the original ten laureates is Jerry’s WW1 pal Frederick Banting, now a “Sir”! Jerry spots Bobby Raccoon slipping out of the vault, and heads inside to make sure nothing is stolen. There, he gets a crash course on several notable Canadian superheroes who have saved millions of lives!
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Produced by in partnership with Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
Dr. Ian McWhinney Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2006
Dr. Ian McWhinney is acknowledged as one of the founders of modern Family Medicine in Canada. He is credited with defining the discipline as a distinct field of medicine, based on the knowledge gained by the physicians long term relationship with patients and their families, familiarity with their life stories, and the trust that patients place in their physician over time.
Dr. Vera Peters Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2010
Born on a dairy farm near Toronto, Dr. Mildred Vera Peters is most notably recognized as an outstanding clinical investigator who changed the management of Hodgkin's disease and breast cancer. In addition, her legacy as a clinician her deep desire to know and involve her patients in decision-making also marks her as a truly unique and compassionate innovator who was ahead of her time.
One cannot fully appreciate the impact of Dr. Peters work without taking into account the challenges she faced as a female in an era when women were not universally accepted as scientists. To graduate in the 1930s from medical school and emerge out of the 1960s as a world-class figure in oncology is a testament to her dogged determination and ingenuity.
Claiming that research isn't a question of time but a matter of curiosity, Dr. Peters was a great observer who was driven by the need to explain all that she observed. In 1935, she joined the father of the discipline of radiation therapy in Canada, Dr. Gordon Richards, at Toronto General Hospital who suggested that she study Hodgkin's disease. This led to her landmark publication in 1950 that showed that a high proportion of patients with early-stage Hodgkin's disease considered incurable at the time could be cured if treated with high dose radiation.
From 1958 to her retirement in 1976, Dr. Peters worked at the Princess Margaret Hospital where her relentless pursuit of scientific truth with respect to treating early-stage cancer of the breast proved that breast-conserving surgery (lumpectomy) followed by radiation is as effective as radical mastectomy. Her findings in both Hodgkin's disease and breast cancer, although initially met with skepticism, became common practice throughout Canada and the world.
Successfully married with two children, Dr. Peters had an extraordinary ability to balance and separate her professional and personal worlds to the point that she was known as Mrs. Lobb at home and Dr. Peters at the hospital. Women then, today and for generations to come will continue to be inspired by this remarkable role model.
Dr. Peters was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada in 1975 and an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1977. She was the recipient of the Gold Medal from the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology in 1979. Among numerous honours, Dr. Peters has been
awarded two honourary doctorates (York University, 1975; Queens University, 1983).
For more information on our CMHF laureates go to CdnMedHall.org .
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STARS founder being inducted into Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame
STARS founder Dr. Greg Powell has a new honour to add to his resume: He’s being inducted into Canada’s Aviation Hall of Fame.
Powell, whose list of accolades includes being appointed as an Officer of the Order of Canada (2006), will officially be inducted during a ceremony on June 7, 2018, in Calgary.
“This is truly a tribute to all the men and women at STARS and the wonderful contribution they’ve made to patient care,” said Dr. Powell.
His inspiration for STARS came from the Vietnam War. In 1969, Dr. Powell was an observer at a MASH unit outside of Saigon, where he witnessed lives being saved due to medevac efforts that quickly brought badly wounded soldiers to sophisticated emergency health care.
“I just knew, if we had those same patients in Alberta, we weren’t going to save them,” said Dr. Powell.
By the early 1980s Dr. Powell was working in an emergency room, and he and some colleagues were looking for ways to save more lives.
“We recognized that we were seeing people who were salvageable if we had actually got to them earlier in their trauma,” he said.
He then recalled what he’d seen in Vietnam and, together with Dr. Rob Abernethy, pitched an idea to Lions Club members David Dalgetty, Art Hironaka and John Panton.
“On the back of a napkin one day in a hotel somewhere in Calgary we drew up the plans for an airport-based helicopter that would be able to transport us to communities within range and perhaps reduce the morbidity and mortality rate we were seeing in emergencies.”
STARS officially launched in 1985. It has since flown more than 36,000 missions and has grown to six bases across Western Canada.
“Years ago, who would have thought?” said Hall of Fame board member Gordon Berturelli. “I’m sure his vision was one helicopter, maybe two at the most, but here we are with 11, and countless lives have been saved. People are walking around today thankful, thankful for STARS Air Ambulance.”
Dr. Powell earned his pilot’s licence as a resident in training and, always a flying enthusiast, was a crucial link between the aviation and medical worlds as STARS found its early wings.
“I may have been the spark because of the physician-aviator blend I brought to the table, but the bonfire was here,” said Dr. Powell, standing inside the Calgary STARS base. “These people around me really rose to the occasion and drove this organization far beyond the heights that I ever imagined.”
His wife Linda Powell was understandably proud of his Hall of Fame award.
“To not only be nominated but also to be named a recipient is such a special honour for him and for STARS,” she said. “I’m thrilled for him and for us as a whole team.”
Dr. Powell will be one of four people inducted during the gala in June 2018. The others are:
- John Bogie, co-founder of the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association; he also helped create the Experimental Aircraft Association of Canada, a civilian pilot group for Search and Rescue in the military, and the Canadian Business Aircraft Association.
- General (Retired) Paul D. Manson, fighter pilot, had a 38-year career in the RCAF/CF and was Chief of Defence Staff from 1986 to 1989; also served as chairman for Lockheed Martin Canada.
- Dr. John Maris, Canadian Armed Forces operational pilot, test pilot, project manager, and Canadian Space Agency team leader; chairman of Aerospace Industries Association of Canada; published author.
Sir William Osler Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 1994
William Osler finished his M.D. at McGill University, buoyed along by a dynamic personality and immense personal magnetism. After further studies in London, Berlin and Vienna, Osler returned to McGill with definite ideas on how clinical medicine could work more efficiently and with a greater human touch. It took less than ten years of outstanding work at McGill before Osler was successfully courted by the Universiry of Pennsylvania. The administration at Penn gave Osler carte blanche to develop clinical medicine as he saw fit. Five years later, he was given the same mandate by Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.
Dr. William Cochrane Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate 2010
Dr. William Cochrane was born and grew up in Toronto, and from the beginning considered no other profession than medicine. Recognized early on as a leader in pediatrics, Dr. Cochranes career evolved through medical research, medical education, biotechnology and business. A visionary who never gave up, Dr. Cochrane had an extraordinary ability to attract and encourage others to join him in his pursuit for excellence in Canadian medicine.
As a pediatrician, Dr. Cochrane was one of the first non-hospital sub-specialists to practice in Ontario. His research interests led to the development of an acetone tolerance test to diagnose glycogen storage disease of the liver (1953) and to the Cochrane (L-leucine) test still in use today to identify a form of hypoglycemia that is sensitive to protein intake (1956).
A strong believer in the power of education, Dr. Cochrane was lured towards an academic career at Dalhousie University in 1958. While in Halifax, he initiated the first Cystic Fibrosis clinic in the Maritimes, formed the Atlantic Research Centre for Mental Retardation, and most
significantly, secured funding and government support for the Isaac Walton Killam Hospital for Children, which opened in 1970. Driven by a desire for new challenges, Dr. Cochrane left the Maritimes with a mandate, but limited resources, to develop a medical school at the University
of Calgary. Attracted by the opportunity to start afresh, he introduced a systems-based approach to teaching medicine and began one of only two three-year MD training programs in North America.
Numerous successful ventures followed. Dr. Cochrane became Albertas Deputy Minister of Health (1973-1974). As President of the University of Calgary (1974-1978) he established Faculties of Humanities and Law. Moving into the realm of business, as Chairman and CEO of
Connaught Laboratories (1978-1989), Dr. Cochrane championed a new strategy for the company that focused on genetic engineering. He also sat on 30 Boards of corporations ranging from biotechnology to real estate, in addition to being a dedicated community leader.
Among numerous awards, Dr. Cochrane received the Order of Canada (1989), the Queens Golden Jubilee Award (2002), the Alberta Order of Excellence (2007) and was elected to the Biotechnology Hall of Fame by the BioAlberta Association (2009). He was named one of 100
Alberta Physicians of the Century (2008) and has received four honourary doctorates. His interest in helping First Nations communities earned him an honourary membership in the Stoney Indian Band (1972) and the title Medicine Chief.
For more information on our CMHF laureates go to CdnMedHall.org .
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