Eleanor Mildred Creak (1 August 1898 – 25 August 1993) was an English
child psychiatrist known for her work on
autism
The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...
and
organic mental disorders
Organic brain syndrome, also known as organic brain disease, organic brain disorder, organic mental syndrome, or organic mental disorder, refers to any syndrome or disorder of mental function whose cause is alleged to be known as organic (physio ...
. She began her career at
Maudsley Hospital
The Maudsley Hospital is a British psychiatric hospital in south London. The Maudsley is the largest mental health training institution in the UK. It is part of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, and works in partnership with the In ...
and later headed the psychiatric department at
Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital (informally GOSH or Great Ormond Street, formerly the Hospital for Sick Children) is a children's hospital located in the Bloomsbury area of the London Borough of Camden, and a part of Great Ormond Street Hospital ...
.
Early life
Mildred Creak was born on 1 August 1898 in
Cheadle Hulme
Cheadle Hulme () is a suburb in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester, England,. Historically in Cheshire, it is south-west of Stockport and south-east of Manchester. It lies in the Ladybrook Valley, on the Cheshire Plain ...
,
Stockport
Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here.
Most of the town is within ...
, to Robert Brown Creak, a mill engineer, and Ellen (née McCrossan).
She attended
Withington Girls' School
Withington Girls' School is an independent day school in Fallowfield, Manchester, United Kingdom, providing education for girls between the ages of seven and eighteen. Withington is a member of the Girls' Schools Association and the Headmasters ...
and went on to study medicine at the
London School of Medicine for Women
The London School of Medicine for Women (LSMW) established in 1874 was the first medical school in Britain to train women as doctors. The patrons, vice-presidents, and members of the committee that supported and helped found the London School of Me ...
, transferring after a year to
University College Hospital
University College Hospital (UCH) is a teaching hospital in the Fitzrovia area of the London Borough of Camden, England. The hospital, which was founded as the North London Hospital in 1834, is closely associated with University College London ...
Medical School and graduating in 1923.
[
]
Career
After qualifying, Creak had difficulty securing a medical post because she was a woman. After 90 job applications, she was eventually hired as an assistant physician by The Retreat
The Retreat, commonly known as the York Retreat, is a place in England for the treatment of people with mental health needs. Located in Lamel Hill in York, it operates as a not for profit charitable organisation.
Opened in 1796, it is famous ...
, a psychiatric hospital in York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
run by Quakers
Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...
; she had become a Quaker at university.[ In 1929, she moved to ]Maudsley Hospital
The Maudsley Hospital is a British psychiatric hospital in south London. The Maudsley is the largest mental health training institution in the UK. It is part of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, and works in partnership with the In ...
in London, where she began to expand the service for child and adolescent psychiatry
Child and adolescent psychiatry (or pediatric psychiatry) is a branch of psychiatry that focuses on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental disorders in children, adolescents, and their families. It investigates the biopsychosocial fac ...
. She was awarded a Rockefeller Fellowship
The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Carn ...
in 1932 which enabled her to visit the Philadelphia Child Guidance Clinic. On her return to London, she specialised through her research and clinical work in children's organic mental disorders
Organic brain syndrome, also known as organic brain disease, organic brain disorder, organic mental syndrome, or organic mental disorder, refers to any syndrome or disorder of mental function whose cause is alleged to be known as organic (physio ...
: psychiatric problems including tics, chorea, compulsions, hysteria and compulsions caused by biological disease.[
Creak worked at Maudsley Hospital until 1939, when it was evacuated to ]Mill Hill
Mill Hill is a suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is situated around northwest of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until 1965, when it became part of Greater London. Its population counted 18, ...
. She stayed at Mill Hill until she joined the Royal Army Medical Corps
The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps a ...
in 1942. She worked in India in 1943–44, and achieved the rank of major in 1945. After the war, she joined Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital (informally GOSH or Great Ormond Street, formerly the Hospital for Sick Children) is a children's hospital located in the Bloomsbury area of the London Borough of Camden, and a part of Great Ormond Street Hospital ...
as its first physician in charge of the department of psychological medicine. She was elected Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...
soon afterwards in 1949.[ In the early 1960s, she chaired a working party that established a set of diagnostic criteria for ]autism
The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...
, then known as "schizophrenic syndrome of childhood", based partly on 100 patients Creak had treated. At a time when autism was thought to be caused by inadequate parenting, she proposed that it was primarily caused by genetic factors.[ A unit for autistic children in ]Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
, Western Australia, was subsequently named after Creak.[
]
Later life
Creak retired in 1963. She developed Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...
in the 1970s, and died from breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...
on 25 August 1993 in Stevenage
Stevenage ( ) is a large town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, about north of London. Stevenage is east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1(M), between Letchworth Garden City to the north and Welwyn Garden City to the south. In 1946, Stevena ...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...
.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Creak, Mildred
1898 births
1993 deaths
British child psychiatrists
English psychiatrists
British women psychiatrists
People from Cheadle Hulme
People educated at Withington Girls' School
Alumni of the UCL Medical School
English Quakers
British women in World War II
Deaths from breast cancer
Deaths from cancer in England
Alumni of the London School of Medicine for Women
Autism researchers
Rockefeller Fellows
Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians
Physicians of Great Ormond Street Hospital