Fraser Mustard
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James Fraser Mustard (October 16, 1927 – November 16, 2011) was a Canadian doctor and renowned researcher in early childhood development. Born, raised and educated in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
,
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, Mustard began his career as a research fellow at the
University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...
where he studied the effects of blood lipids, their relation to heart disease and how Aspirin could mitigate those effects. He published the first clinical trial showing that aspirin could prevent heart attacks and strokes. In 1966, he was one of the founding faculty members at
McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood and Westdale, adjacent to the Royal Botanical Ga ...
's newly established medical school. He was the Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences and the medical school at
McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood and Westdale, adjacent to the Royal Botanical Ga ...
from 1972–1982. In 1982, he helped found the
Canadian Institute for Advanced Research The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) is a Canadian-based global research organization that brings together teams of top researchers from around the world to address important and complex questions. It was founded in 1982 and is s ...
and served as its founding president, serving until 1996. He wrote several papers and studies on early childhood development, including a report used by the Ontario Government that helped create a province-wide full-day kindergarten program. He won many awards including being made a companion of the
Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...
– the order's highest level – and was inducted into the
Canadian Medical Hall of Fame __NOTOC__ The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame is a Canadian charitable organization, founded in 1994, that honours Canadians who have contributed to the understanding of disease and improving the health of people. It has an exhibit hall in London, O ...
. He died November 16, 2011.


Education

Born on October 16, 1927 in Toronto, Ontario, he attended Whitney Public School and the
University of Toronto Schools University of Toronto Schools (UTS) is an independent secondary day school affiliated with the University of Toronto in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The school follows a specialized academic curriculum, and admission is determined by competitive ex ...
graduating in 1946. While an undergraduate at University of Toronto, he was a Member of
Alpha Delta Phi Alpha Delta Phi (), commonly known as Alpha Delt, ADPhi, A-Delt, or ADP, is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. Alpha Delta Phi was originally founded as a literary society by Samuel Eells in 1832 at Hamilton College in Cli ...
. He received an MD from the University of Toronto in 1953. He interned at the
Toronto General Hospital The Toronto General Hospital (TGH) is a major teaching hospital in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and the flagship campus of University Health Network (UHN). It is located in the Discovery District of Downtown Toronto along University Avenue's Hospital ...
and spent two years of postgraduate study at the Department of Medicine,
University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
, where he earned his
Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...
. Upon returning to Canada, he was a senior intern at Sunnybrook Hospital and then a senior research associate with the Department of Veterans Affairs and a fellow in the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto. Packham, p. 170 In 1958, Mustard received a Medal of the Royal College of Physicians of Canada for an essay entitled, "A Study of the Relationship Between
Lipids Lipids are a broad group of naturally-occurring molecules which includes fats, waxes, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins (such as vitamins A, D, E and K), monoglycerides, diglycerides, phospholipids, and others. The functions of lipids include ...
, Blood Coagulation and
Atherosclerosis Atherosclerosis is a pattern of the disease arteriosclerosis in which the wall of the artery develops abnormalities, called lesions. These lesions may lead to narrowing due to the buildup of atheroma, atheromatous plaque. At onset there are usu ...
." Packham, p. 161 His work demonstrated the link between acetylsalicylic acid (
Aspirin Aspirin, also known as acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) used to reduce pain, fever, and/or inflammation, and as an antithrombotic. Specific inflammatory conditions which aspirin is used to treat inc ...
) as a preventative for heart attacks and stroke. From 1960 to 1961, he was a research associate with the National Heart Foundation of Canada, and from 1962 to 1963 a research associate with the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, and a senior research associate with the Canadian Heart Foundation. He became a Fellow of the
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (french: Collège royal des médecins et chirurgiens du Canada) is a regulatory college which acts as a national, nonprofit organization established in 1929 by a special Act of Parliament to o ...
in 1965. Packham, p. 159


Leadership


Co-founding McMaster Medical School

In 1966, he was publicly criticizing the Canadian government's medical research funding practices, by stating that on average, 200 of the 900 medical doctors graduating from Canadian universities each year, were heading to the United States due to the lack of research funding in their home country. At the time, he said that medical schools would need to graduate 1500 doctors a year just to keep the standard of healthcare and research at its present level. He backed up his words by becoming a founding member of the McMaster University Faculty of Medicine in
Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Hamilton has a population of 569,353, and its census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington and Grimsby, has a population of 785,184. The city is approximately southwest of T ...
, and the first chairman of the Department of Pathology. In 1972, he became Dean and Vice-President of the Faculty of Health Sciences at
McMaster University Medical School The Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine, known as the McMaster University School of Medicine prior to 2004, is the medical school of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It is operated by the McMaster Faculty of Health Sciences. ...
until 1982.


Establishing CIFAR

In 1982, he took on the task of creating and establishing The
Canadian Institute for Advanced Research The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR) is a Canadian-based global research organization that brings together teams of top researchers from around the world to address important and complex questions. It was founded in 1982 and is s ...
(CIFAR), and became its founding president. The institute, in a period of ten-years, built a network across Canada that linked researchers in the economics, education, social health and high-tech fields like robotics. He was awarded the Royal Bank outstanding service to Canada award in 1993 for his work in setting up and stewarding CIFAR. He continued on as President of CIFAR until 1996. From 1996 to the autumn of 2011, he was the head of The Founders' Network, an international collection of people interested in promoting CIFAR, science and technology, early childhood, economic issues, determinants of health and human development.


Early childhood learning reports


The Early Years Study

He was a leader in Canada on questions about the socioeconomic determinants of human development and health. A particular emphasis was on early childhood and the role of communities. In the late 1990s, he co-chaired a seminal report, with former New Brunswick Lieutenant Governor,
Margaret McCain Margaret Norrie McCain ( Norrie; born October 1, 1934) is a Canadian philanthropist who was the first woman to serve as the lieutenant governor of New Brunswick. She is known for her work in the promotion of early childhood education. As a me ...
, for the Government of Ontario on early childhood learning. The report was issued as ''The Early Years Study - Reversing the Real Brain Drain'' on April 20, 1999. The report emphasized promoting early child development centres for young children and parents; boost spending on early childhood education to the same levels as kids in K to 12; focus on programs that are available to all income levels, because even the middle-class children need these services; and encourage local parent groups and businesses to set up these programs instead of the government, when possible. Recognition of this led Dr. Mustard and his colleagues to emphasize to all sectors of society the crucial nature of the early years to provide a healthy and competent population. A follow up report in the Early Years series was completed in 2007 by Mustard, McCain, and Dr. Stuart Shanker. The second report criticized Canada for being "dead last" in spending on early childhood education, and called for national early childhood development programs.


Early Years Study 3

A third instalment in the Early Years series, ''Early Years Study 3: Making decisions, taking action'', was posthumously published simultaneously in Montreal and Toronto on November 22, 2011, only a few days after his death. The third report was co-authored with McCain and Kerry McCuaig, the Senior Policy Fellow at the Atkinson Centre,
Ontario Institute for Studies in Education The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto (OISE/UT) is Canada's only all-graduate institute of teaching, learning and research, located in Toronto, Ontario. It is located directly above the St. George subway sta ...
, University of Toronto. The main recommendation was that children as young as 2-years-old should start receiving formal education, due to the "avalanche of evidence". This education should be community-based, and voluntary, leaving parents to decide how much time they want their children in these programs. The report also revealed that even though the federal Canadian government cancelled a national childcare program back in 2007, full-day kindergarten has grown, mostly due to provincial governments funding these initiatives. It also introduced the ''Early Childhood Education Index'', which measures 20 factors, arranged into five broad categories: integrated governance, funding, access, learning environment and accountability.


Awards and recognition

Mustard was involved with governments in Canada, Australia, the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, UNICEF and the Aga Khan University in Pakistan in emphasizing the enormous importance to society of early childhood development. He was a Fellow of the
Royal Society of Canada The Royal Society of Canada (RSC; french: Société royale du Canada, SRC), also known as the Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada (French: ''Académies des arts, des lettres et des sciences du Canada''), is the senior national, bil ...
in 1976, and the winner of the 1993
Sir John William Dawson Medal The Sir John William Dawson Medal is an award of the Royal Society of Canada(RSC), established in 1985 and named after the society's first president: John William Dawson. The medal was endowed by McGill Graduates Society (founded by Sir William in ...
for his "varied and important contributions to Canadian academic and public life." In 1985 he was made an Officer of the
Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...
and was promoted to Companion in 1993. In 1992, he was appointed to the
Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official Award, honour in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the A ...
. In 2003 he was inducted into the
Canadian Medical Hall of Fame __NOTOC__ The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame is a Canadian charitable organization, founded in 1994, that honours Canadians who have contributed to the understanding of disease and improving the health of people. It has an exhibit hall in London, O ...
. He was a member of the board of PENCE (Protein Engineering Network Centre of Excellence), the Centre of Excellence of Early Child Development, the Aga Khan University in Karachi, Pakistan, Beatrice House (a residential program for homeless mothers and their children) and was Chairman Emeritus of the Council for Early Child Development. Packham, pp. 166–167" He was also the Past Chairman of
Ballard Power Systems Ballard Power Systems Inc. is a developer and manufacturer of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell products for markets such as heavy-duty motive (consisting of bus and tram applications), portable power, material handling as well as engine ...
. In all, Mustard was the recipient of fifteen
honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
s. In 2006 and 2007 he was a
Thinker in Residence Thinkers in Residence is a program in Adelaide, South Australia, designed to bring leaders in their fields to work with the South Australian community and government in developing new ideas and approaches to problem-solving, and to promote South A ...
, a program in
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
, South Australia, which brings leaders in their fields to work with the South Australian community and government in developing new ideas and approaches to problem solving. A biography of his life, written by
Marian Packham Marian Aitchison Packham (December 13, 1927 – September 20, 2020) was Professor Emerita in biochemistry at University of Toronto. She researched biochemical and physiological activities of blood platelets. Education Packham studied Bioche ...
, entitled ''J. Fraser Mustard : Connections & Careers'', was published in 2010. He died in Toronto, a month after his 84th birthday, on November 16, 2011. He was diagnosed with cancer of the
ureter The ureters are tubes made of smooth muscle that propel urine from the kidneys to the urinary bladder. In a human adult, the ureters are usually long and around in diameter. The ureter is lined by urothelial cells, a type of transitional epit ...
in October 2011, and it was the cause of his death. He was predeceased by his wife, Betty. Fraser Mustard Early Learning Academy in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
is named in his honour and opened in 2013.


References


Notes


Bibliography

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External links


Canadian Institute for Advanced ResearchFounders' NetworkThe Early Years Study - Reversing the Real Brain DrainEarly Years Study 3A raging curiosity matched with intellect
Globe and Mail obituary by Sandra Martin
J. Fraser Mustard
archival papers held at th
University of Toronto Archives and Records Management Services
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mustard, James Fraser 1927 births 2011 deaths Canadian pediatricians Canadian university and college faculty deans Companions of the Order of Canada Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada Members of the Order of Ontario University of Toronto alumni McMaster University faculty People from Toronto Alumni of the University of Cambridge Presidents of the American Society of Hematology