Sydney Fancourt McDonald (1885-1947) was an Australian physician and military doctor. He was the first paediatrician within the Faculty of Medicine of the

University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = B ...

Early life

Sydney Fancourt McDonald was born in

Brisbane, Queensland Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

on 18 November 1885. He was the son of a Scottish surveyor George McDonald and his wife Amelia. He was educated at Rocklea State School and Brisbane Boys Grammar School, a contemporary of

John Lavarack Lieutenant General Sir John Dudley Lavarack, (19 December 1885 – 4 December 1957) was an Australian Army officer who was Governor of Queensland from 1 October 1946 to 4 December 1957, the first Australian-born governor of that state. Early l ...

and S.A. Roe. He won a scholarship to attend the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

where he lived in residence at

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

while he studied medicine, taking his MB in 1909, BS in 1910 and MD in 1913. He was appointed to Queen's Memorial Infectious Disease and Alfred Hospitals and was assistant senior resident surgeon at the Children's Hospital from 1912-1914. He travelled to England in 1914 to take up postgraduate study and was a resident medical officer at

Queen Charlotte's Hospital Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital is one of the oldest maternity hospitals in Europe, founded in 1739 in London. Until October 2000, it occupied a site at 339–351 Goldhawk Road, Hammersmith, but is now located between East Acton and W ...

Military service

McDonald first served in the Australian Militia Engineers in 1904. From 1910 he was an officer with the Melbourne University Rifles. He enlisted with 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 1914 while he was in England and was posted to the 4th (British) General Hospital at Versailles, France. He was a conscientious teacher instructing VAD staff working in the hospitals in the basics of medical care. He served as an anaesthetist and radiographer at the hospital, and later the 33rd and 51st casualty clearing stations and 46th stationary hospital. He was mentioned in despatches in 1916.

Return to Australia

Following the war McDonald worked in a number of English hospitals treating ex-servicemen suffering from post-war disorders. He completed his M.F.C.P in London in 1919. McDonald returned to Australia in 1920, taking up a position at the Repatriation Hospital in Lutwyche assisting ex-servicemen and an honorary position at the Children's Hospital in Brisbane specialising in childhood diseases and disorders. He lobbied to have lead paint removed from use in homes and backyards due to the poison risk it created for children. He treated patients with

polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...

myelitis. In 1927, McDonald encouraged other physicians to set up practice in

Craigston Craigston is a heritage-listed apartment block at 217 Wickham Terrace, Spring Hill, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Atkinson & Conrad and built in 1927. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 Octob ...

, an apartment building in Brisbane which combined consultation spaces with private apartments. In 1928, he was appointed a medical consultant to the

RAAF "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

and Civil Aviation Unit in Brisbane. He was a licensed pilot and was able to give advice on pilot fatigue and aviation issues in a medical capacity. He also continued in private practice.

World War II

McDonald served in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

during World War II assisting with medical problems associated with tropical conditions.

Memberships

* McDonald was on the council of the BMA (Queensland) 1923-1944. * McDonald was President of the BMA Queensland in 1930. * Chairman of Postgraduate Committee of BMA, Queensland. * Board Member, Faculty of Medicine, University of Queensland.

Legacy

McDonald's health began to fail during 1944. He died on 8 August 1947. He was survived by his second wife Jean and a large extended family. A keen photographer and film maker, his photographs, particularly of Heron Island, and other papers are held in the

Fryer Library. A biography of McDonald entitled, ''The highest traditions: a biography of Sydney Fancourt McDonald'' was published in 1985.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mcdonald, Sydney Fancourt 1885 births 1947 deaths Australian military doctors Australian paediatricians People educated at Trinity College (University of Melbourne)