James Douglas Miller
FRSE
Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...
(20 July 1937 – 23 August 1995) was a Scottish
neurosurgeon
Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the medical specialty concerned with the surgical treatment of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, spinal cord and peri ...
of international repute. The Douglas Miller Memorial Lecture is named in his honour.
Life
He was born in
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
on 20 July 1937. His father was an executive at
Collins the publisher. He was educated at
Glasgow Academy
The Glasgow Academy is a coeducational independent day school for pupils aged 3–18 in Glasgow, Scotland. In 2016, it had the third-best Higher level exam results in Scotland. Founded in 1845, it is the oldest continuously fully independent ...
then studied medicine at the
University of Glasgow
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, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
graduating with an
MB ChB
Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...
. Meeting
Bryan Jennett
William Bryan Jennett (1 March 1926 – 26 January 2008) was a British neurosurgeon, a faculty member at the University of Glasgow Medical School, and the first full-time chair of neurosurgery in Scotland. He was the co-developer of the assess ...
he was inspired to be a neurosurgeon.
From 1962 to 1965 he was Surgical Senior House Officer at
Glasgow Royal Infirmary
The Glasgow Royal Infirmary (GRI) is a large teaching hospital. With a capacity of around 1,000 beds, the hospital campus covers an area of around , and straddles the Townhead and Dennistoun districts on the north-eastern fringe of the city cen ...
. From 1965 to 1967 he was a
Medical Research Council Fellow
A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context.
In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements.
Within the context of higher education ...
. In 1969 he went to America to the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
to study under Dr Langfitt. In 1971 he returned to Scotland and began lecturing in neurosurgery at the
University of Glasgow
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, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
. In 1975 he became Professor of Neurosurgery at the
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
and in 1981 returned to Scotland as Professor of Surgical Neurology 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 ...
. He was also a practising neurosurgeon at Edinburgh's
Western General Hospital
The Western General Hospital (often abbreviated to simply ‘The Western General’) is a health facility at Craigleith, Edinburgh, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Lothian.
History
The hospital was designed by Peddie and Kinnear and opened as ...
. Noted Indian neurosurgeon
B. K. Misra
Dr. Basant Kumar Misra is a neurosurgeon specialising in treating brain, spine, cerebrovascular and peripheral nervous system disorders, injuries, pathologies and malformations. He is the Vice-President of the World Federation of Neurosurgical ...
is one of his students.
In 1992 he was elected a Fellow of the
Royal Society of Edinburgh
The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...
. His proposers were
Phillip Harris
Phillip Harris (born 29 September 1989) is a British former figure skater. He is a three-time British national champion (2014–2015, 2015–2016, 2017–2018) and has qualified for the free skate at four ISU Championships.
Career
Early ...
,
Cameron Gould,
Sir Patrick Forrest
Sir Andrew Patrick McEwen Forrest (25 March 1923 – 7 August 2021) was a Scottish surgeon.
After qualifying in medicine from the University of St Andrews and completing a Fellowship at the Mayo in Rochester, Minnesota, he took up surgic ...
and
Sir Abraham Goldberg.
He died of a heart attack in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
on 23 August 1995.
Family
In 1965 he was married to Margaret (Margot) Rainey. They had two sons, Derek and Kenneth.
References
Scottish neurosurgeons
Alumni of the University of Glasgow
Academics of the University of Edinburgh
Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Medical doctors from Glasgow
People educated at the Glasgow Academy
University of Pennsylvania alumni
University of Virginia faculty
1937 births
1995 deaths
20th-century surgeons
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