Sir Francis Richard Fraser (14 February 1885 – 2 October 1964) was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, to Sir

Thomas Richard Fraser Sir Thomas Richard Fraser (5 February 1841 – 4 January 1920) was a British physician and pharmacologist. Together with Alexander Crum Brown he discovered the relationship between physiological activity and chemical constitution of the body. ...

, the Professor of Materia Medica at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

and member of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

, and Susanna Margaret Duncan. After attending

Edinburgh Academy The Edinburgh Academy is an independent day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, which was opened in 1824. The original building, on Henderson Row in the city's New Town, is now part of the Senior School. The Junior School is located on Arboretum Ro ...

and Christ's College at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

, Fraser received his medical training from the

, graduating in 1910 with M.B., Ch.B. He interned at the Royal Infirmary and the Hospital for Sick Children, both in Edinburgh. In 1922, he received his M.D. from the

University of Edinburgh Medical School The University of Edinburgh Medical School (also known as Edinburgh Medical School) is the medical school of the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and the United Kingdom and part of the University of Edinburgh College of Medicine and Veterinar ...

. By chance, due to an illness of his father's, Fraser was asked to host a dinner in honor of

Abraham Flexner Abraham Flexner (November 13, 1866 – September 21, 1959) was an American educator, best known for his role in the 20th century reform of medical and higher education in the United States and Canada. After founding and directing a college-prep ...

. Flexner convinced Fraser to go to the

Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research The Rockefeller University is a private biomedical research and graduate-only university in New York City, New York. It focuses primarily on the biological and medical sciences and provides doctoral and postdoctoral education. It is classi ...

in the United States for his postgraduate work. While in the United States, Fraser worked on poliomyelitis and electrocardiographs with

Rufus Cole Rufus is a masculine given name, a surname, an Ancient Roman cognomen and a nickname (from Latin ''rufus'', "red"). Notable people with the name include: Given name Politicians * Rufus Ada George (born 1940), Nigerian politician * Rufus A ...

Simon Flexner Simon Flexner, M.D. (March 25, 1863 in Louisville, Kentucky – May 2, 1946) was a physician, scientist, administrator, and professor of experimental pathology at the University of Pennsylvania (1899–1903). He served as the first director ...

and Alfred E. Cohn at the Rockefeller. He then went on to work with W. T. Longcope at Presbyterian Hospital. When

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

broke out, Fraser joined up with the Harvard Unit and returned to England. In 1920 Fraser became assistant director of the medical unit at

Saint Bartholomew's Hospital St Bartholomew's Hospital, commonly known as Barts, is a teaching hospital located in the City of London. It was founded in 1123 and is currently run by Barts Health NHS Trust. History Early history Barts was founded in 1123 by Rahere (died ...

(Bart's) in London. When

Archibald Garrod Sir Archibald Edward Garrod (25 November 1857 – 28 March 1936) was an English physician who pioneered the field of inborn errors of metabolism. He also discovered alkaptonuria, understanding its inheritance. He served as Regius Professor of ...

left the position of director later that year to go to Oxford, Fraser was appointed to it. He remained at Bart's until 1934 when he was asked to become the first professor of medicine at the Postgraduate Medical School at

Hammersmith Hospital Hammersmith Hospital, formerly the Military Orthopaedic Hospital, and later the Special Surgical Hospital, is a major teaching hospital in White City, West London. It is part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in the London Borough of ...

. In 1939, Fraser was asked to join the

Emergency Medical Services Emergency medical services (EMS), also known as ambulance services or paramedic services, are emergency services that provide urgent pre-hospital treatment and stabilisation for serious illness and injuries and transport to definitive care. ...

and soon was appointed director general. For his work with the EMS and Hammersmith, Fraser was knighted in 1944. At the close of World War II, Fraser resigned from Hammersmith to undertake the establishment of a

British Postgraduate Medical Federation British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

as its first director. The Federation loosely joined and established postgraduate medical schools and institutes in the London area. In 1960 Fraser retired from academic life.

Family

In 1919, Fraser married Mary Claudine Stirling Fraser, daughter of Colin Dunlop Donald and widow of Captain John Alexander Fraser, Francis Fraser's first cousin. Mary Claudine had two daughters from the previous marriage, Alexandra Mary Agnes and Margaret Stirling, and with Francis Fraser had one son, Peter Basil Fraser.

Sources

Witness Seminar held at the Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine, London, 9 June 1998.Journal of Experimental Medicine. March 1914, vol. 19, number 3
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, Francis Richard 1885 births 1964 deaths 20th-century Scottish medical doctors People educated at Edinburgh Academy Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Physicians of Hammersmith Hospital