University of Edinburgh Medical School

University of Edinburgh Medical School
Type Medical school
Established 1726
Dean Prof Sir John Savill
Administrative staff
 1244 (2007/8; includes Support Staff)
Students 2,218 (2007/8)
Undergraduates 1,328 (2007/8)
Postgraduates 890 (2007/8)
Location Edinburgh, Scotland
Campus The Medical School, Teviot Place
Chancellor's Building, RIE
Western General Hospital
Royal Hospital for Sick Children
Colours Dark Red, Light Red and Pale Yellow (or "Liver, Blood and Pus" according to the history books)
Affiliations University of Edinburgh
Website http://www.mvm.ed.ac.uk/

The University of Edinburgh Medical School also known as Edinburgh Medical School or Edinburgh University Medical School is part of the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine of the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. It was established in 1726, during the Scottish Enlightenment, and soon attracted students from across Britain and the American colonies. It is one of the oldest medical schools in the English-speaking world and today is widely regarded as one of the best medical schools in the UK. In 2013 and 2014, it ranked 1st in Scotland and 3rd in the UK by the Guardian University Guide,[1] The Times Good University Guide.[2] and the Complete University Guide. It ranked 1st in the UK in research according to the most recent RAE in 2008, 21st in the world by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2013–14 and 22nd in the world by the QS World University Rankings 2014.[3] According to a Healthcare Survey run by Saga in 2006, the medical school's main teaching hospital, the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, was considered the best hospital in Scotland.[4]

As of 2013 the school accepts 190 European Union medical students per year and an additional 17 students from outwith the EU.[5] Admission is very competitive, with an acceptance rate of 11.5% for the 2012–13 admissions year.[6] The matriculation rate, the percentage of people who are accepted who choose to attend, is 71% for the 2012–13 admissions year.[7] The school requires the 3rd highest entry grades in the UK according to the Guardian University Guide 2014.[8]

The medical school is associated with 3 Nobel Prize winners; 2 winners of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and 1 winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

The medical school is also associated with 5 Victoria Cross recipients, 3 US Senators, 1 Founding Father of the United States, 1 Prime Minister of Canada and 1 President of Malawi. Other famous alumni include Charles Darwin, Thomas Hodgkin, James Young Simpson, Arthur Conan Doyle, Joseph Black, Daniel Rutherford and John Collins Warren.

Graduates of the medical school have founded medical schools and universities all over the world including 5 out of the 7 Ivy League medical schools (Pennsylvania, Yale, Columbia, Harvard and Dartmouth), University of Sydney, Sydney Medical School, University of Melbourne Medical School, McGill University Faculty of Medicine, University of Vermont College of Medicine, Université de Montréal Faculty of Medicine, the Royal Postgraduate Medical School (now part of Imperial College School of Medicine), the University of Cape Town Medical School, Birkbeck, University of London, the Middlesex Hospital Medical School and the London School of Medicine for Women (both now part of UCL Medical School).

History

Bust of Alexander Monro in Edinburgh's Old College

Although the University of Edinburgh's Faculty of Medicine was not formally organised until 1726, medicine had been taught at Edinburgh since the beginning of the sixteenth century. Its chief sponsor was Archibald Campbell (1682–1761), duke of Argyll, Scotland's most influential political leader.[9] Its formation was dependent on the incorporation of the Surgeons and Barber Surgeons, in 1505 and the foundation of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh in 1681.

The University was modelled on the University of Bologna, but medical teaching was based on that of the sixteenth century University of Padua, and later on the University of Leiden (where most of the founders of the faculty had studied) in an attempt to attract foreign students, and maintain potential Scottish students in Scotland.

Since the Renaissance the primary facet of medical teaching here was anatomy and therefore in 1720, Alexander Monro was appointed Professor of Anatomy. Later his son and grandson (both of the same name) would hold the position, a reign of Professor Alexander Monros lasting 128 years. In subsequent years four further chairs completed the faculty allowing it to grant the qualification of Doctor of Medicine (MD) without the assistance of the Royal College of Physicians.

Success in the teaching of medicine and surgery through the eighteenth century was achieved thanks to the first teaching hospital, town physicians and the town guild of Barber Surgeons (later to become the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh). By 1764 the number of medical students was so great that a new 200-seat Anatomy Theatre was built in the College Garden. Throughout the 18th century until the First World War the Edinburgh Medical School was widely considered the best medical school in the English speaking world.[10] Students were attracted to the Edinburgh Medical School from Ireland, America and the Colonies by a succession of brilliant teachers, such as William Cullen, James Gregory and Joseph Black, the Medical Society and a flourishing Extra-Mural School.

The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh

Plaque on the site of the first Royal Infirmary

The origins of the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary began in a small house, opposite the head of Robertson's Close, in today's Infirmary Street. Only four beds were available from 6 August 1729 and medical students' visits were limited to two tickets only per student (to prevent crowding). This was the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The facilities were clearly inadequate, and in 1741, shortly after the foundation of the college, a 228-bed purpose-built hospital was designed by William Adam. Due to overcrowding throughout this High School Yards site, David Bryce was commissioned to design a new hospital – the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh on Lauriston Place close to the university and next door to where the medical school buildings would be built in 1880.

In 2003 a new 900-bed Royal Infirmary opened at Little France, in the south-east of the city, replacing the facility on Lauriston Place.

The Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh

Former site of the University's Botanic Garden at Shrubhill

The Edinburgh Botanic Garden was created in 1670 for study of medicinal plants by Dr Robert Sibbald (later first Professor of Medicine at Edinburgh University) and Dr Andrew Balfour. It gave a base for the development of study of Pharmacology (Materia Medica) and Chemistry. Originally at St Anne's Yards adjacent to Holyrood Palace, the garden measured a meagre 40 square feet (3.7 m2). It moved subsequently to the ground now occupied by Waverley Station and in the 1760s was again relocated to Shrubhill between Edinburgh and Leith. It was not until after 1820 that the garden and its contents began the move to its present day location in Inverleith ('The Inverleith Garden') by Robert Graham (appointed Regius Keeper, 1820–45). It is currently recognised as the second oldest botanic garden in Britain after Oxford (OBG founded in 1620).

The nineteenth century saw a growth of new sciences at Edinburgh, notably of Physiology and Pathology, and the development of Public Health and Psychiatry. Midwifery was finally admitted as an essential part of the compulsory medical curriculum.

Women and Medical School

In 1869 Sophia Jex-Blake was reluctantly accepted to attend a limited number of classes in the School of Medicine, enrolling Edinburgh in the heated international battle for women to enter medicine. Full equality between the sexes was not achieved at Edinburgh Medical School until 20 years later. British medical schools openly refused to accept women students at this time. Jex-Blake persuaded Edinburgh University to allow not only herself, but also her friend, Edith Pechy, to attend medical lectures.

The Medical School at Teviot Place

Edinburgh Medical School, Teviot Place
Arcade off the New Quad
Floor plan of the New Medical School in 1893

In the 1860s the medical school was constrained within the Old College and by 1880 the new Royal Infirmary had been built on Lauriston Place. The construction of new medical buildings began and they were completed by 1888, in Teviot Place, adjacent to the Royal Infirmary. Together they housed the Medical Faculty with proper facilities for teaching, scientific research and practical laboratories. This complex came to be known as the "New Quad," in contrast to the Old College (sometimes known as the "Old Quad") and New College, which was not originally part of the university.

The competition to design the University's new buildings was won by the architect Sir Robert Rowand Anderson in 1877 (who later designed the dome of the Robert Adam/William Henry Playfair Old College building). After extensive European travel, he decided upon a 'Cinquecento' Italian Renaissance style which he judged "more suitable than Greek or Palladian, where the interior would have been constrained by the formal exterior, or mediaeval, which would have been out of keeping with the spirit of scientific medical enquiry". Initially the design incorporated a new University Graduation Hall, but as this was seen as too ambitious. A separate building was constructed for the purpose, the McEwan Hall, also designed by Anderson, after funds were made available by the brewer Sir William McEwan in 1894. The final grand structure took three years to decorate including elaborate ceiling murals and organ.

The Medical School was designed around two courts, with a grand public quadrangle at the front and, for discreet delivery of cadavers to the dissection rooms, a second private yard entered from the lane behind. The Professor of Anatomy, Sir William Turner (Professor 1867 to 1903, Principal 1903 to 1917) was placed in charge of the project leading to the construction of a three-storey galleried Anatomy Museum with displays of everything from whales to apes as well as human anatomy, an associated library and a whole series of dissecting rooms, laboratories, and a grand anatomy lecture theatre (based on that at Padua) with steeply raked benches rising above the central dissecting table. The Anatomy Museum has since been plastered and its remnants are now a student study space, off-limits to the general public, although the grand elephant skeletons that were once the hallmark of the museums entrance still remain in the east wing.

Today the medical buildings at Teviot Place focus on the teaching of pre-clinical subjects such as biochemistry and anatomy. The building still holds the anatomy teaching laboratory (although prosection has replaced dissection) and anatomy resource centre (a scaled down version of the anatomy museum) and the original lecture theatre. The building also hosts the Biomedical Teaching Organisation, where subjects allied to medicine (such as physiology and forensic science) are taught to senior biology students and to medical students taking intercalated degrees.

There are also currently plans to hand the West Wing of the medical school to the History Department of Edinburgh University, as the previous occupants (the Department of Medical Microbiology) have moved to the new campus at Little France.

The Medical School at Little France

Chancellor's Building, Little France

The Chancellor's Building was opened on 12 August 2002 by The Duke of Edinburgh and houses the new £40 million Medical School at the New Royal Infirmary in Little France. It was a joint project between private finance, the local authorities and the University to create a large modern hospital, veterinary clinic and research institute and thus the University is currently (2003) in the process of moving its Veterinary and Medical Faculties there (and quite possibly also the School of Nursing). It has two large lecture theatres and a medical library. It is connected to the new Edinburgh Royal Infirmary by a series of corridors.

The Polish School of Medicine at the University of Edinburgh

Polish School of Medicine plaque

The Polish School of Medicine was established in 1941 as "a wartime testament to this spirit of enlightenment". Students were to be those drawn from the Polish army to Britain and were taught in Polish. Classes in pre-clinical subjects were held at the Medical School. Clinical teaching was carried out mainly at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh in Lauriston Place. Former nurses' quarters in the grounds of the Western General were designated The Paderewski Hospital and used to provide care for members of the Polish armed forces and Polish civilians.[11]

The project was initiated by Lt. Col. Professor Francis Crew, then Commanding Officer at the Military Hospital in Edinburgh Castle, and Lt. Col. Dr Antoni Jurasz, the School's organiser and first Dean.

The school was closed in September 1950. 336 students matriculated, of which 227 students graduated with the equivalent of an MBChB. A total of 19 doctors obtained a doctorate or MD. A bronze plaque commemorating the existence of the Polish School of Medicine is located in the Quadrangle of the Medical School in Teviot Place.[11]

The Edinburgh Model

The Edinburgh Model was a model of medical teaching developed by the University of Edinburgh in the 18th century and widely emulated around the world including at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and the McGill University Faculty of Medicine. It was a two-tiered education model, revolutionary and well suited to the medical system of the UK at the time. First, the model offered its students studies in all branches of science, not just medicine. According to Mary Hewson, "every branch of science was regularly taught, and drawn together so compactly from one to the other."[12] Edinburgh offered the most extensive selection of courses in any university in Britain.

Furthermore, it had a two-tiered education model which allowed a great number of students to matriculate, but allowed few to graduate. The requirements for an MD were very stringent. Students had to attend all lectures with the exception of midwifery (although it was strongly encouraged nonetheless), they had to study for at minimum 3 years, had to write a series of oral and written examinations in Latin and had to compose a Latin thesis and defend it before the whole faculty. Consequently, the majority of students attended Edinburgh with the intention of learning medicine for 1 year before leaving due to the costs of a degree and the fact that a MD degree was not required to practice medicine. Between 1765 and 1825, only 20% of Edinburgh students graduated with an MD.[12]

Later on this Edinburgh Model developed into a more formal university medical education curriculum, which was spread around the world by its graduates. In 1825, the years of medical education increased from three to four years and in 1833, English replaced Latin as the language of examination.[13]

Admission

Gaining admission to study medicine at the University of Edinburgh is highly competitive. In 2013, there were 2150 Home/EU applications for 190 Home/EU positions leading to an applicant to place ratio of 17 to 1. In addition, there were 715 overseas applications for 17 international spots, an applicant to place ratio of 42 to 1.[14]

The minimum entry qualifications include:

SQA Highers: AAAAB. AAAAB at one sitting to include Chemistry and two of Biology, Maths or Physics. Students unable to take two of Biology, Maths, Physics in S5 may take the missing subject(s) in S6. Human Biology may replace Biology. Standard Grade Credit (or Intermediate 2) in Biology, Chemistry, English, Maths.

GCE A Levels: AAA. AAA plus grade B at AS-level. A levels must include Chemistry and one of Biology, Maths or Physics. Biology at AS level required as minimum. Only one of Maths or Further Maths will be considered. Human Biology may replace Biology. GCSE grade B in Biology, Chemistry, English, Maths. Double Award Combined Sciences at grade BB may replace GCSE grades in sciences.

International Baccalaureate: 37 points. Including 667 at Higher Level with Chemistry and at least one other science subject (Biology preferred). For the 2012 admissions year, no offer was given to a student who achieved below 41 IB points with 776 at Higher Level.[15]

Additional requirements include the UK Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT) is a mandatory requirement for all students applying to study Medicine at Edinburgh and applicants are required to sit the test during the summer prior to application.

Most applicants including overseas applicants are not interviewed prior to admission.[16]

The 5 year MBChB course can extend a pre-entry year for applicants without adequate subject choice but with the right qualifications who otherwise would be admitted on to the 5-year programme, or an extra 'intercalated year' between years 2 and 3 to gain a BSc or BMedSci in a separate scientific discipline.

The Current Course and Curriculum

Degrees available for study: Medical Sciences (BSc), Medicine (5-year course) (MBChB) with optional intercalated Medical Sciences (BMedSci).

Years 1 & 2

Students undertake the study of Biomedical Science and Health and Society, which provide an introduction to the scientific, sociological and behavioural principles for the practice of medicine. Practical clinical and resuscitation skills are also taught. Contact is made with patients and their families in Talking with Families and Health Needs of Older People and will have the opportunity to work in a clinical setting and investigate a chosen healthcare issue.

In year 2, students undertake basic history-taking and examination in teaching general practices.

Intercalated year

This optional year achieves the student an intercalated Bachelor of Medical Sciences honours degree. 18 fields of scientific study are available and covered in great depth.

Years 3 & 4

Clinical attachments are undertaken, and an understanding of clinical medicine is taught. Bedside teaching is enhanced with lectures and opportunities are made available to students within the Royal Infirmary.

Year 5

Recovers all the topics of year's 1–4 and includes an elective period of eight weeks, when many students broaden their clinical experience by studying overseas.

Facilities

Undergraduate teaching through year 1 and 2 centre mainly in the Medical School buildings on Teviot Row in the university quarter of Edinburgh city centre. Clinical years, 3, 4 and 5 are spent spread across the three main teaching hospitals in Edinburgh, the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh in Little France, in the city's southern Green Belt; the Western General Hospital just west of the city centre, and the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in the centre of the city.

The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh is the main clinical teaching environment of the Medical School. The Chancellor's Building at Little France, next to the new Royal Infirmary was opened on 12 August 2002 by HRH Prince Phillip Duke of Edinburgh, then Chancellor to the University.

Edinburgh Electronic Medical Curriculum

Edinburgh Electronic Medical Curriculum is an online virtual learning environment (VLE) which allows students securely protected access direct to any of the information on or for the MBChB course. It also encompasses announcements, discussions and the use the tools embedded in EEMeC to facilitate and manage students' progress through the course including exam results and computer aided learning programmes. Created in 1998 this was one of the first of its kind in the world and has since provided a model for other medical schools to follow. In 2005 The University of Edinburgh was awarded a Queen's Anniversary Prize for EEMeC and The Virtual Hospital Online.

Research

Edinburgh Medical School was ranked 3rd in the UK in the Research Excellence Framework 2014 for Neuroscience and Biological Sciences and top 5 for Clinical Medicine.

Edinburgh University is a member of the Russell Group of universities, receiving a quanta of a third of British research funding. In the last UK-wide Research Assessment Exercise, three-quarters of the College's research staff were in academic units rated 5 or 5 star (the maximum possible ratings). This was more noteworthy in view of the large size of the College's research groupings. The College has average research income in excess of £45 million/annum, and the figure has been steadily increasing each year.

Main sources of research funding include UK research councils, UK medical and veterinary medical charities, industry and commerce and European Union bodies.

The University is home to 7 MRC Centres, tied for 2nd in the UK with the University of Oxford and behind the University of Cambridge, a BHF Centre, a Wellcome Trust Centre, a Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Facility, a Cancer Research UK Centre, the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, the Usher Institute and the Euan MacDonald Centre :

Recent research and discoveries:

Textbooks

Many medical textbooks published around the world have been written by Edinburgh graduates:

Royal Medical Society

The Royal Medical Society, the medical society at the University of Edinburgh is the oldest medical society in the UK, founded in 1734. Known originally as 'the Medical Society' from 1734 it became known as 'the Royal Medical Society' from 1778 after it was awarded a Royal Charter. It remains the only student medical society in the UK to hold a royal charter.[17] It has its own premises and a fine library built up throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, sold at 3 sales at Sotheby's London in 1969. Much of the collection was purchased by the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Ties to the United States and Canada

The Edinburgh Medical School has very strong ties to the United States and Canada. Graduates of the medical school went on to found 5 out of the 7 Ivy League medical schools (Pennsylvania, Yale, Columbia, Harvard and Dartmouth). The McGill University Medical School in Montreal and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine were modelled after Edinburgh by Edinburgh graduates. Graduates became senators, representatives and participated in the American Revolutionary War. A great number of the early presidential physicians and surgeon generals were trained at Edinburgh. Today, the medical school maintains the strong ties through an exchange program with the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.[18]

Ties to the Rest of the World

The Edinburgh Medical School has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Christian Medical College, Vellore to establish a Masters of Family Medicine program.

Famous alumni

Pioneers in Medicine

Name Class year Notability Reference(s)
John Fothergill MD 1736 Scottish physician, first identified and named trigeminal neuralgia
James Lind MD 1748 Scottish military surgeon, pioneer of naval hygiene, conducted the first ever clinical trial, developed cure for scurvy and typhus, first proposed fresh water could be obtained from distilling sea water
Alexander Monro MD 1755, Prof. Anatomy and Surgery 1754–1798 Scottish physician and anatomist, described the lymphatic system, elucidated the musculo-skeletal system, described the foramen of Monro, described the Monro-Kellie doctrine on intracranial pressure
William Hewson 1762 English surgeon, isolated fibrin, known as the "father of haematology"
William Withering MD 1766 English botanist and physician, discovered Digoxin
Benjamin Bell 1767 Scottish surgeon, Father of Edinburgh's school of surgery, first to suggest syphilis and gonnorhea were not the same disease
Robert Willan MD 1780 English physician, founder of the speciality dermatology, described several dermatological diseases including impetigo, lupus, psoriasis, scleroderma, erythema infectiosum and ichthyosis
Philip Syng Physick MD 1792 American surgeon, "father of American surgery", pioneered the use of the stomach pump, designed needle forceps
John Cheyne MD 1795 Scottish physician, discovered Cheyne-Stokes respiration, Physician General to the British Armed Forces in Ireland
Abraham Colles MD 1797 Irish physician, discovered and described the Colles' fracture, Colles' fascia and Colles' ligament
Charles Bell MD 1798 Scottish anatomist and neurologist, discovered Bell's palsy and the functions of the roots of the spinal nerves, founder of the Middlesex Hospital Medical School, now UCL Medical School [19]
John Collins Warren MD 1801 American surgeon, performed the first surgery under ether anaesthesia in 1846, first dean of Harvard Medical School, co-founder of Massachusetts General Hospital, founder of the New England Journal of Medicine and President of the American Medical Association
George Kellie MD 1803 Scottish surgeon, described the Monro-Kellie doctrine on intracranial pressure
James Blundell MD 1813 English obstetrician, who performed the first successful human to human blood transfusion
Richard Bright MD 1813 English physician, discovered Bright's disease, known as the "father of nephrology"
Thomas Addison MD 1815 English physician, discovered Addison's disease, pernicious anaemia and Addison-Schilder syndrome
Robert Liston 1815 Scottish surgeon, inventor of artery forceps and the Liston knife, known as "the fastest surgeon alive"
Henry Hill Hickman 1820 Scottish general practitioner, considered one of the "fathers of anesthesia", first experimented with carbon dioxide as anaesthesia on dogs
James Begbie MD 1821 Scottish physician, first described Graves' Disease also known as Begbie's disease, and localised chorea, President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
Thomas Hodgkin MD 1823 English pathologist, described Hodgkin's lymphoma
Martin Barry MD 1823 English pathologist, discovered the segmentation of yolk in the mammalian ovum and demonstrated that sperm could be found inside the ovum
Dominic Corrigan MD 1825 Irish physician, described Corrigan's pulse and was Liberal MP for Dublin.
James Hope MD 1825 English physician, discovered the murmur of mitral stenosis [20]
William Stokes MD 1825 Irish physician, discovered Cheyne-Stokes respiration and Stokes-Adams syndrome
Thomas Wharton Jones 1827 Scottish ophthalmologist, discovered the germinal vesicle in the mammalian ovum and described the origin of the chorion [19]
Sir William Brooke O'Shaughnessy MD 1829 Irish physician, introduced Cannabis, also known as medical marijuana, into Western medicine, inventor of IV therapy, pioneered work on telegraphy and installed 3500 miles of telegraph lines in India
John Reid MD 1830 Scottish physician, described the function of the glossopharyngeal and vagus nerves.
Sir James Young Simpson MD 1832 discovered chloroform anaesthesia in 1847, revolutionising obstetric and surgical practice
James Spence 1832, Prof. Systemic Surgery 1864–1882 Scottish surgeon, President of the Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh, the tail of Spence is named after him
John Murray Carnochan 1834 American neurosurgeon, performed the world's first successful surgery for trigeminal neuralgia
John Hughes Bennett MD 1837, Prof. Institutes of Medicine 1848–1874 English physician, first to describe aspergillosis and first identified leukaemia as a blood disorder
William Budd MD 1838 Scottish physician, first recognised that infectious disease was contagious and could be spread through feces
Alexander Wood MD 1839 Scottish physician, invented the first hypodermic syringe
Edward Henry Sieveking MD 1841 English physician, pioneer in epilepsy treatments, invented the aesthesiometer, used to measure two-point discrimination, Physician to King Edward VII
John Struthers MD 1845 Scottish anatomist, discovered and described the vestigial organ Ligament of Struthers which was used by Charles Darwin to argue the case for evolution
Sir Henry Littlejohn MD 1847, Prof. Medical Jurisprudence 1897–1906 Scottish surgeon and public health officer, developed IV saline injection for cholera, Edinburgh's first Medical Officer of Health and co-founded the Royal Hospital for Sick Children [21]
George Harley MD 1850 Scottish physician, demonstrated that the colour of urine was due to urobilin
Sir Thomas Grainger Stewart MD 1858, Prof. Medicine 1876–1900 Scottish physician, described multiple neuritis
Thomas Annandale MD 1860, Regius Chair of Clinical Surgery 1877–1907 Scottish surgeon, performed the first repair of the meniscus, the first successful removal of an acoustic neuroma and introduced the pre-peritoneal approach to inguinal hernia repair.
Thomas Richard Fraser MD 1862, Professor of Medicine 1877–1918 Scottish physician, described the calabar bean and the strophanthus hispidus
Sir Thomas Lauder Brunton BSc 1867, MD 1868, DSc 1870 discovered organic nitrates had the ability to alleviate angina pectoris
David Ferrier MB 1868, CM 1868, MD 1870 Scottish neurologist, mapped the cortical function of the brain, the idea that specific areas of the brain are associated with specific behaviours [22]
Graham Steell MB 1872, CM 1872, MD 1877 described the Graham Steell murmur
Robert Marcus Gunn MB 1873, CM 1873 Scottish ophthalmologist, discovered Gunn's Sign and the Marcus Gunn pupil
James Rutherford Morison MB 1874, CM 1874 Scottish surgeon, discovered Morison's pouch
Sir George Beatson MD 1878 surgical oncologist who pioneered oophorectomy, the removal of the ovaries in the treatment of breast cancer [23]
David Bruce MB 1881, CM 1881 Scottish pathologist, identified the cause of sleeping sickness and discovered Malta fever and brucellosis
William Cleaver Woods MB 1882, ChM 1882, MD 1882 British Australian, physician, politician and pioneer in Australian medical science specializing in X-rays for diagnostic applications and perhaps the first in the world to utilize X-rays for the treatment of cancer
John Scott Haldane MB 1884, CM 1884 Scottish physiologist, invented the decompression chamber, first proposed placing a "canary in the coal mine" to warn of dangerous carbon monoxide levels, international authority on ether and respiration, discovered the Haldane effect on haemoglobin
James Hogarth Pringle MB 1885, CM 1885 Scottish surgeon, developed the Pringle manoeuvre a technique of occluding the portal triad to control haemorrhage, first surgeon in Britain to carry out a saphenous vein graft, pioneered the hindquarter amputation
Harold Stiles MB 1885, CM 1885, FRCS(Edin) 1889, Regius Chair of Clinical Surgery 1919–1925 British surgeon, known for research in tuberculosis and breast cancer, performed first pyloromyotomy
John Clarence Webster MB 1888, CM 1888 Canadian OB/GYN, known for the Baldy-Webster operation to retrovert the uterus by shortening the round ligaments
Percy Theodore Herring MB 1896, CM 1896, MD 1899 English physician, discovered herring bodies
Samuel Wilson MB 1902, ChB 1902, BSc 1903, MD 1912 British neurologist, described Wilson's disease
Arthur Cecil Alport MB 1905, ChB 1905, MD 1919 South African physician, described Alport syndrome
Thomas Addis MB 1905, ChB 1905, MD 1908 Scottish-American physician, described the pathogenesis of haemophilia as well as the concept of renal clearance, demonstrated that normal blood plasma could correct the defect in haemophilia
William John Adie MB 1911, ChB 1911, MD 1926 British physician, described Adie syndrome and narcolepsy
Cuthbert Dukes MD 1914 English pathologist, devised the Dukes classification system for colorectal cancer
Mary Broadfoot Walker MD 1935 Scottish physician, demonstrated the effectiveness of physostigmine in the treatment of myasthenia gravis
Robert Edwards PhD 1955 British physiologist, developed in-vitro fertilisation (IVF), awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Matthew Kaufman MB 1967, ChB 1967, Prof. Anatomy 1987–2007, FRS(Edin) 2008 British physician, first to derive embryonic stem cells from mouse embryos, author of The Atlas of Mouse Development
Randy Schekman 1970 American cell biologist, discovered cell membrane trafficking, discovered machinery regulating vesicle traffic, awarded the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Peter C. Doherty PhD 1970 Australian veterinary surgeon, discovered how T cells recognise antigens in combination with major histocompatibility complex proteins, awarded the 1996 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Adrian Peter Bird PhD 1970, Buchanan Prof. of Genetics 1990–present British geneticist, discovered the protein MeCP2 involved in DNA methylation, awarded the 2011 Gairdner Foundation International Award for discoveries in DNA methylation and gene expression [24]
Valentin Fuster PhD 1971, Research Fellow 1968–1971 Prominent Spanish cardiologist, only cardiologist to receive the 2 highest gold medals and all 4 major research awards from the world's four major cardiovascular organisations, named as "one of the best doctors in America and New York" since 1992, leader of the CNIC-Ferrer polypill project, demonstrated platelets role in CABG occlusion
Ian Frazer BSc 1974, MB 1977, ChB 1977 Scottish-Australian physician, discovered the link between HPV and cervical cancer, co-invented the HPV vaccine for cervical cancer, CEO and Director of Research at the Translational Institute of Research, University of Queensland
David Baulcombe PhD 1977 British plant scientist, discovered small interfering RNA, awarded the 2008 Lasker Award and the 2010 Wolf Prize in Agriculture.
Richard Eastell MB 1977, ChB 1977, MD 1984 British physician, pioneered treatments in osteoporosis
Olivier James Garden BSc 1974 MB 1977, ChB 1977, MD 1987, FRCS(Edin) 1994, Regius Chair of Clinical Surgery 2000–present British surgeon, performed the first liver transplant in Scotland in 1992, president of the International Hepato-Pancreto-Biliary Association 2012–2014 [25]
Nanshan Zhong MD 1981 Chinese pulmonologist, discovered the SARS virus in 2003, President of the Chinese Medical Association
Gordon Wishart MB 1983, ChB 1983, MD 1992 British breast surgeon, identified P-glycoprotein in breast cancer, introduced early patient discharge following breast surgery, pioneered minimally invasive parathyroid surgery, pioneered pre-operative axillary lymph node breast cancer staging

Founders of Medical Schools and Universities

Name Class year Notability Reference(s)
John Morgan MD 1763 Founder of the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, founder of the American Philosophical Society, served as Chief Physician and Director General of the Continental Army
Samuel Bard MD 1765 Founder and President of the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, described diphtheria, presidential physician to George Washington, Founder of the New York-Presbyterian Hospital
Benjamin Rush MD 1768 Founding Father of the United States, Surgeon General of the Continental Army, founder of Dickinson College
Benjamin Waterhouse 1778 Co-founder of Harvard Medical School
Nathan Smith 1797 New England physician and founder of the Yale School of Medicine, Dartmouth Medical School, University of Vermont College of Medicine and the medical school at Bowdoin College
George Birkbeck MD 1799 English physician and founder of Birkbeck, University of London
Andrew Fernando Holmes MD 1819 Co-founder and dean of the McGill University Faculty of Medicine
John Stephenson MD 1820 Co-founder of the McGill University Faculty of Medicine
Francis Badgley MD 1829 Co-founder and professor of the Université de Montréal Faculty of Medicine
Godfrey Hewitt MD 1830 Co-founder of the University of Melbourne Medical School
Charles Nicholson MD 1833 Co-founder and chancellor of the University of Sydney, co-founder of the University of Sydney Faculty of Medicine
Sophia Jex-Blake 1873 Founder of the London School of Medicine for Women, now part of the UCL Medical School and founder of the Edinburgh School of Medicine for Women.
Thomas Peter Anderson Stuart MB 1880, CM 1880, MD 1882 Co-founder of the University of Sydney Faculty of Medicine
Dugald Christie MB 1882, CM 1882 Founder of Mukden Medical College in China, now known as the China Medical University
Francis Richard Fraser MB 1910, ChB 1910, MD 1922 Founder and first director of the Royal Postgraduate Medical School, now part of the Imperial College School of Medicine, vice-chancellor of the University of London

Leaders in Medicine

Name Class year Notability Reference(s)
Robert Whytt 1734 President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, First physician to the King in Scotland, wrote book on diseases of the nervous system
William Cullen 1736, Prof. Physiology 1756–89 President of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow (1746–47), President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (1773–75), first physician to the King in Scotland
Francis Home MD 1750, Prof. Materia Medica 1768–1798 President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, co-founder of the Royal Medical Society, made the first attempt to vaccinate against measles
James Craik MD 1750 Physician General of the Continental Army, Personal Physician and close friend of George Washington
William Shippen Jr. MD 1761 Surgeon General of the Continental Army, co-founder and president of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia
Andrew Duncan Sr. 1768, Prof. Medicine 1773–1824 President of the Royal Medical Society and the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, First physician to the King in Scotland, founder of the Harveian Society, founder of the first lunatic asylum in Edinburgh
Adam Kuhn MD 1768 Co-founder and President of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, founding Professor of Materia Medica at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
John Coakley Lettsom 1768 Philanthropist, Founder of the Medical Society of London
Sir Gilbert Blane 1773 Physician to the King (George IV and William IV) and the Prince of Wales, instituted health reform in the Royal Navy
Caspar Wistar MD 1786 American physician and anatomist, described the posterior part of the ethmoid bone, President of the American Philosophical Society and Society for the Abolition of Slavery
Sir James McGrigor, 1st Baronet 1788 Founder of the Royal Army Medical Corps
James Gregory MD 1774, Chair of Medical Theory 1776–1790, Head of Edinburgh Medical School 1790–1821 President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, and author
Andrew Duncan Jr. MA 1793, MD 1794, Prof. Med Jurisprudence 1807–1832 Creator of the journal Edinburgh New Dispensatory, Chief Editor of the Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal
Thomas Stewart Traill MD 1802, Prof. Med Jurisprudence 1833–1862 Founder of the Royal Institution of Liverpool and the Liverpool Mechanics' Institution
John Abercrombie MD 1803 Wrote the Pathological and Practical Researches on Diseases of the Brain and Spinal Cord the first textbook on neuropathology, known for Abercrombie's degeneration, the deposition of amyloid between cells
David Maclagan MD 1805 Physician to the Forces, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
Walter Channing 1811 American obstetrician, Co-founder of Boston Lying-In Hospital now Brigham and Women's Hospital, Professor of Obstetrics and Medical Jurisprudence at Harvard Medical School 1815–1854
William Alison MD 1811, Prof. Medicine and Physic 1822–1856 Scottish physician, President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, advocate of preventative social medicine
Charles Hastings MD 1818 English physician, co-founder of the British Medical Association
Robert Christison MD 1819, Prof. Medical Jurisprudence 1822–1832, Prof. Materia Medica and Therapeutics 1832–1877 Scottish physician, President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, President of the British Medical Association, Physician in Ordinary to the Queen in Scotland, expert in toxicology and key witness in the Burke and Hare trial.
John Conolly MD 1821 English psychiatrist, co-founder of the British Medical Association
Douglas Maclagan MD 1833, Prof. Forensic Medicine 1864–1885 Scottish physician, President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, President of the Royal Medical Society and the President of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Thomas Graham Balfour MD 1834 Scottish physician, President of the Royal Statistical Society, Staff Surgeon at the Royal Military Asylum
Thomas Bevill Peacock MD 1842 English cardiologist, founder of the London Chest Hospital and expert on valvular heart disease
William Tennant Gairdner MD 1845 President of the British Medical Association
John Smith MD 1847 Founder of the Edinburgh school of dentistry, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, President of the British Dental Association, co-founder of the Royal Hospital for Sick Children
Normand MacLaurin MD 1854 Vice-President of the Executive council of the Legislative Council of New South Wales, Chancellor of the University of Sydney
Huang Kuan MD 1855, PhD 1857 First Chinese student to study medicine in the west, Deputy-Chief of Boji Hospital
Joseph Bell MD 1859 Scottish surgeon, lecturer at the University of Edinburgh Medical School and personal surgeon to Queen Victoria, served as the inspiration for Sherlock Holmes
Joseph Fayrer MD 1859 English physician, physician to King Edward VII, expert on snake venom
Frederick Montizambert MD 1865 Canadian physician, first Director-General of Public Health in Canada, President of the Canadian Medical Association, President of the American Public Health Association, inductee to the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
David John Cunningham MD 1876, Prof. Anatomy 1903–1909 Scottish physician and anatomist, author of Cunningham's Textbook of Anatomy and Cunningham's Manual of Practical Anatomy
Robert Muir MA 1884, MB 1888, CM 1888, MD 1890 Scottish pathologist, author of Muir's Textbook of Pathology
Obadiah Johnson MB 1886, CM 1886, MD 1889 Nigerian physician, second Nigerian to qualify as doctor, author of A History of the Yorubas from the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the British Protectorate
Lim Boon Keng MB 1892, CM 1892 Singaporean physician, co-founder of the Singapore Chinese Girls' School, recipient of the Order of the British Empire as an officer, President of Xiamen University
Sir Robert Hutchison, 1st Baronet MB 1893, CM 1893, MD 1896 Scottish physician, author of Hutchison's Clinical Methods
Andrew Balfour MB 1894, CM 1894, MD 1898, BSc 1900 Scottish physician, Medical Officer of Health in Khartoum, Director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
George Newman MD 1895 English physician, Chief Medical Officer of England
David Wilkie MB 1904, ChB 1904, MD 1909, ChM 1909, Prof. Systematic Surgery 1924–38 Scottish surgeon, regarded as the "father of British academic surgery"
James Couper Brash BSc 1908, MB 1910, ChB 1910, Chair of Anatomy 1931–1954 British anatomist, President of the Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland from 1945–1947
John C. Boileau Grant MB 1908, ChB 1908 Anatomist, author of Grant's Atlas of Anatomy
Alexander Biggam MB 1911, ChB 1911, MD 1942 Scottish physician, Major General in the British Army, Honorary physician to King George VI
Sydney Smith MB 1912, ChB 1912, MD 1914, Regius Chair of Forensic Medicine 1928–1953, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine 1931–1953, Rector of the University of Edinburgh 1954–57 Scottish forensic pathologist, published the textbook Textbook of Forensic Medicine in 1925
Stanley Davidson MB 1919, ChB 1919, Chair of Medicine 1938–1959 British physician, author of Davidson's Principles and Practice of Medicine, the first medical textbook to sell over a million copies
Robert Lim MB 1919, ChB 1919, PhD 1920, DSc 1924 Singaporean physician, Lieutenant General and Surgeon General of the Army of the Republic of China
Charles Illingworth MB 1922, ChB 1922, MD 1929, ChM 1939 President of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, Surgeon to the Queen in Scotland
Alexander Burns Wallace MB 1922, ChB 1922, Reader 1946–1970 Scottish plastic surgeon, co-founder and president of the British Association of Plastic Surgeons and founding editor of the British Journal of Plastic Surgery, developed the Wallace rule of nines, a guide to estimate the proportion of body affected by burns
John George Macleod MB 1938, ChB 1938 Scottish physician, author of Macleod's Clinical Examination
Ekkehard von Kuenssberg MB 1939, ChB 1939 Founder and President of the Royal College of General Practitioners, one of the first GP's to discover the side effects of thalidomide
Sydney Selwyn BSc, MB, ChB, MD Authority on the history of medicine, designed the Florence Nightingale 10 pound note, pioneer in bone marrow transplantation
Hugh Robson MB 1941, ChB 1941 Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Edinburgh and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sheffield
Sheila Sherlock MB 1941, ChB 1941, MD 1945 First woman in the UK to be appointed professor of medicine, published over 600 papers, founded the liver unit at London's Royal Free Hospital
Yao Zhen PhD 1949 Co-founder and editor in chief of the journal Cell Research, first president of the Asia-Pacific Organization for Cell Biology
Seneka Bibile PhD 1952 Founder of the Sri Lanka National Pharmaceuticals Policy
Graham Creasey BMSc 1970, MB 1972, ChB 1972, FRCSEd 1979, Residency in Neurosurgery 1972–1986 Scottish neurosurgeon, Professor of Spinal Cord Injury Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine
Philip Raffaelli MB 1979, ChB 1979 Surgeon General of the British Armed Forces, Vice Admiral in the Royal Navy, Governor of the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
Alan B. Lumsden MB 1981, ChB 1981 Scottish vascular surgeon, Professor and Chief of Vascular Surgery at the Baylor College of Medicine
Austin Smith PhD 1986, MRC Prof. of Stem Cell Research 2003–2006 Co-recipient of the Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine, Director of the Wellcome Trust/MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute
Stuart Carney MB 1996, ChB 1996 Dean of Medical Education at King's College London, Deputy National Director of the UK Foundation Programme

Pioneers in Science and Humanities

Name Class year Notability Reference(s)
James Hutton 1747 Scottish physician, geologist, known for theories on Deep time and Gaia Hypothesis
Joseph Black MD 1754, Professor of Chemistry and Medicine 1766–1795 Scottish physician and chemist, discoverer of carbon dioxide, latent heat and specific heat
Erasmus Darwin 1755 physician, poet, author and evolutionary biologist.
Daniel Rutherford MD 1772, Prof. Medicine and Botany 1786–1819 Scottish physician, chemist and botanist, first to isolate nitrogen in 1772
Thomas Charles Hope MD 1787, Prof. Medicine and Chemistry 1799–1843 Scottish physician, chemist, discovered the element strontium, demonstrated that water reached its maximum density at 4C in an experiment called Hope's experiment, President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
Robert Brown 1793 Scottish botanist, named and described the cell nucleus and cytoplasmic streaming, discovered Brownian motion, discovered the difference between gymnosperms and angiosperms
Thomas Young 1795 English polymath and physician, established the Wave theory of light with the double-slit experiment, first to describe astigmatism, described the Young–Laplace equation and helped decipher the Egyptian hieroglyphs
Thomas Brown MD 1803 Scottish metaphysician
William Prout MD 1811 English physician and chemist, known for Prout's hypothesis, discovered hydrochloric acid in the stomach and improved the barometer
James Braid 1814 Scottish surgeon, pioneer of hypnotism and hypnotherapy
Robert Edmond Grant MD 1814 Scottish physician, biologist, mentor of Charles Darwin
Edward Turner MD 1819, Lecturer in Chemistry 1823–27 Scottish chemist, first Professor of Chemistry at University College London
Richard Owen 1825 English biologist, coined the word Dinosauria, described the false killer whale, opponent of the theory of evolution
Charles Darwin 1827 English naturalist, published the theory of evolution, author of On the Origin of Species and The Descent of Man
William Gregory MD 1828, Chair of Chemistry 1844–1858 Scottish chemist, introduced "muriate of morphia" and "Gregory's salt" a mixture of morphine and codeine
David Boswell Reid MD 1830 Scottish physician, inventor, expert on ventilation, President of the Royal Medical Society
Charles Wyville Thomson MD 1845 Chief scientist of the Challenger expedition, discovered animal life at depths of 1200m
John Kirk MD 1854 Scottish physician, botanist, companion of David Livingstone, identified the Zanzibar Red Colobus, British Consul in Zanzibar
Alexander Crum Brown MA 1858, MD 1861, Prof. Chemistry 1869–1908 Scottish physician and chemist, discovered the double bond of ethylene, introduced the name kerogen for insoluble organic matter in oil shale.
John Anderson MD 1862 Scottish zoologist, first curator of the Indian Museum in Calcutta
Neil Gordon Munro MB 1888, CM 1888, MD 1909 Scottish physician, anthropologist, one of the first people to study the Ainu people of Hokkaido

Non-Medical Accomplishments

Name Class year Notability Reference(s)
John Moultrie MD 1749 American politician, acting governor of East Florida
Samuel Seabury 1753 first American Episcopal bishop, first bishop of Connecticut
Oliver Goldsmith 1754 Anglo-Irish novelist, playwright, author of the novel The Vicar of Wakefield and the children's tale of The History of Little Goody Two-Shoes
William Buchan MD 1761 Author of the book Domestic medicine
Gustavus Richard Brown MD 1768 United States Representative from Maryland, physician at George Washington's deathbed.
Thomas Tudor Tucker MD 1770 United States Representative from South Carolina, longest serving Treasurer of the United States, presidential physician to James Madison
Henry Latimer MD 1775 United States Senator from Delaware
George Logan MD 1779 United States Senator from Pennsylvania
William Crawford MD 1781 United States Representative from Pennsylvania's 5th and 6th Congressional districts
Samuel L. Mitchill MD 1786 United States Senator from New York
Mungo Park 1791 Scottish explorer, first westerner to have travelled to the Niger River
James Jones MD 1796 United States Representative from Virginia
Peter Mark Roget MD 1798 British physician and author, published Roget's Thesaurus
William Jardine MD 1802 Co-founder of Hong Kong conglomerate Jardine, Matheson and Company, Whig MP for Ashburton
John Crawfurd MD 1803 Scottish physician, Governor of Singapore
James C. Crow MD 1822 Scottish inventor of the sour mash proceess for creating Bourbon whiskey, creator of the Old Crow brand of Bourbon whiskey
Samuel Smiles MD 1832 Scottish author and biographer, wrote the book Self-Help
John Rae MD 1833 Scottish explorer, discovered the fate of the Franklin Expedition, discovered Rae Straight, showed that King William Land was an island
David Monro MD 1835 Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives, MP representing Waimea
William Johnston Almon 1836 Nova Scotian physician, Canadian Senator from Nova Scotia, Canadian MP for Halifax
Logan Campbell MD 1839 New Zealand physician, Mayor of Auckland, co-founder of Auckland Savings Bank, Superintendent of Auckland, known as the "Father of Auckland"
Sir Charles Tupper MD 1843 6th Prime Minister of Canada and father of confederation
Valentine Munbee McMaster MD 1853 British army surgeon, recipient of the Victoria Cross, for the intrepidity with which he exposed himself to the fire of the enemy, in bringing in, and attending to, the wounded, on 25 September, at Lucknow [26]
William Henry Thomas Sylvester LRCS(Edin) 1853 British army surgeon, recipient of the Victoria Cross, for coming to the aid of an officer who was mortally wounded and remained with him, dressing his wounds, in a most dangerous and exposed situation on 8 September, and again on 18 September. [27]
Campbell Mellis Douglas MD 1861 Canadian army surgeon, recipient of the Victoria Cross, for risking their lives in manning a boat and proceeding through dangerous surf to rescue some of their comrades who had been sent to the island to find out the fate of the commander and seven of the crew. [28]
James Graham MA 1879, MB 1882, CM 1882, MD 1888 Australian physician, 38th Mayor of Sydney [29]
Henry Halcro Johnston MB 1880, CM 1880, MD 1893, BSc 1893, DSc 1894 Scottish botanist, represented Scotland internationally in rugby union, Colonel in the British Army
William Babtie LRCP(Edin) 1880, LRCS(Edin) 1880 Scottish surgeon, recipient of the Victoria Cross, he exposed himself to heavy fire to tend to the wounded including going with Captain Walter Norris Congreve to bring in Lieutenant Frederick Hugh Sherston (The Hon.) Roberts who was lying wounded on the veldt during the Second Boer War, Lieutenant General in the British Army
Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle MB 1881, CM 1881, MD 1885 novelist, creator of the character Sherlock Holmes
John Batty Tuke MB 1881, CM 1881, MD 1890 Scottish psychiatrist, Conservative MP for the University of Edinburgh and St Andrews
Robert Stirton Thornton MB 1884, CM 1884 Minister of Education for Manitoba, President of the Medical Council of Canada
George Ernest Morrison MD 1895 Australian adventurer, The Times correspondent in Peking during Boxer Rebellion
Bhagvat Singh MB 1895, CM 1895 Indian prince, Maharaja of the princely state of Gondal
Henry Edward Manning Douglas LRCP(Edin) 1898, LRCS(Edin) 1898 Scottish surgeon, recipient of the Victoria Cross, he showed great gallantry and devotion under a very severe fire in advancing in the open and attending to Captain Gordon, Gordon Highlanders, who was wounded, and also attending to Major Robinson and other wounded men under a fearful fire. Many similar acts of devotion and gallantry were performed by Lieutenant Douglas on the same day, Major General in the British Army
Alec Boswell Timms LRCP(Edin) 1903, LRCS(Edin) 1903 Scottish-Australian rugby union forward, played for Scotland and participated in the 1899 British Lions tour to Australia
Bernard Friedman MB 1921, ChB 1921 South African surgeon, co-founder of the anti-apartheid Progressive Party
Robert McIntyre MB 1938, ChB 1938 Scottish politician, leader of the Scottish National Party from 1947–56, first SNP MP for Motherwell
Hastings Banda MB 1941, ChB 1941 Malawian politician, 1st President of Malawi from 1966 to 1994
Lim Chong Eu MB 1944, ChB 1944 Malaysian politician, served as Chief Minister of Penang for a record 21 years, co-founder and president of Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia
Kerry Lang MB 1998, ChB 1998 British triathelete, British Triathlon Vice Champion of the Year 2009
Craig Fletcher BMSc 2001 British CEO, founder and CEO of Multiplay

Faculty

List only includes faculty who were not graduates of the medical school. Faculty that were also graduates of the medical school are listed under alumni.

Name Department Notability Reference
Robert Sibbald Prof. of Medicine 1685–1722 Scottish physician, first described the blue whale, founder of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
John Rutherford Prof. of Practice of Medicine 1726–1765 Scottish physician, first to introduce clinical teaching in Edinburgh known as the "Edinburgh method"
William Cullen Prof. of Chemistry and Medicine 1755–1766, Prof. of Institutes of Medicine 1766–1773, Prof. of Medicine 1773–1790 Scottish physician, first demonstrated artificial refrigeration
James Syme Regius Chair of Clinical Surgery 1833–1848, FRCS(Edin) 1823, Scottish surgeon, invented Mackintosh, conducted the first exarticulation of the hip, known for Syme's amputation
Douglas Argyll Robertson Lecturer 1860–1893, Consultant Ophthalmologist 1870–1897 Scottish ophthalmologist, described the Argyll Robertson pupil a sign of neurosyphilis [30]
Sir William Turner Prof. Anatomy 1867–1903, Principal of Edinburgh University 1903–1916 Scottish anatomist, President of the Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland
Joseph Lister Regius Chair of Clinical Surgery 1869–1877, FRCS(Edin) 1855, Scottish surgeon, developed antiseptic surgery using carbolic acid to sterilise surgical instruments
Edward Albert Sharpey-Schafer Chair of Physiology 1883–1933 English physiologist, regarded as the founder of endocrinology, discovered adrenaline, coined the terms endocrine and insulin
George Barger Prof. Chemistry in Relation to Medicine 1919–1937, British chemist, identified tyramine, contributed to the synthesis of thyroxine and Vitamin B1
Vincent du Vigneaud National Research Council Fellow 1928–1929, American biochemist, discovered oxytocin, awarded the 1955 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Hermann Joseph Muller Post-doctoral researcher 1937–1940, American geneticist, discovered that mutations could be caused by X-rays, awarded the 1946 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
John Gaddum Chair of Materia Medica 1942–1958, British pharmacologist, discovered Substance P, a neuropeptide
James Learmonth Regius Chair of Surgery 1939–1956, Scottish surgeon, performed lumbar sympathectomy on King George VI to treat his vascular disease
Alexander Fleming Rector 1951–1954, Scottish biologist, discovered penicillin, awarded the 1945 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
John Crofton Prof. Respiratory Disease and Tuberculosis 1952–1977, Dean of Medicine 1964–1966, Vice Principal of the University 1969–1970 British physician, pioneered the treatment of tuberculosis, which was known as the Edinburgh method. [31]
Michael Woodruff Chair of Surgical Science 1957–1976, British transplant surgeon, performed the first ever kidney transplant in the UK at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary in 1960.
John Forfar Edward Clark Professor of Child Life and Health 1964–1983, British paediatrician, President of the British Paediatric Association (1985–1988) and awarded the Military Cross during the Second World War
Kenneth Murray Head of Molecular Biology 1967–84, Biogen Professor of Molecular Biology 1984–1998, FRSE 2000 Developed recombinant DNA technology, developed the vaccine for Hepatitis B, co-founder of biotechnology company Biogen [32]
Edwin Southern Post-doctoral researcher MRC Mammalian Genome Unit 1967–1985 Developed the Southern blot, founder of Oxford Gene Technology, received the 2005 Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research [33]
Robert Evan Kendell Chair of Psychiatry 1973–1990, Dean of the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine 1990–1994 Welsh psychiatrist, Chief Medical Officer of Scotland from 1991–1996 [34]
Paul Nurse Post-doctoral researcher 1973–1979 Discovered the proteins cyclin and cdk as well as the genes cdc2 and cdk1 that are involved in the cell cycle, awarded the 2001 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine [34]
Richard G. Morris Wolfson Professor of Neuroscience 1986–present, FRS 1997, CBE 2007 Scottish neuroscientist, developed the Morris water navigation task
Andrew H. Wyllie Prof. Experimental Pathology 1992–1998, FRS 1995, Scottish pathologist, discovered the importance of programmed cell death and coined the term apoptosis
Edvard Moser Post-doctoral researcher 1994–1996, Norwegian neuroscientist, discovered entorhinal grid cells, awarded the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
May-Britt Moser Post-doctoral researcher 1994–1996, Norwegian neuroscientist, discovered entorhinal grid cells, awarded the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Andrew H. Wyllie Prof. Experimental Pathology 1992–1998, FRS 1995, Scottish pathologist, discovered the importance of programmed cell death and coined the term apoptosis
John Savill Prof. Medicine 1998–present, Dean of the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine 2002–present Scottish physician, CEO of the Medical Research Council 2010–present
Sir Ian Wilmut Prof. Emeritus 2006–present, FRS(Edin) 2000 Scottish embryologist, first to clone a mammal, a Finn Dorset lamb named Dolly
Clare Blackburn Chair of Tissue Stem Cell Biology 2011–present British embryologist, first to grow a whole organ, a thymus, inside an animal

In popular culture

Doctors Pub

Situated directly across the road from the medical school buildings and the old Royal Infirmary, "Doctors" has been the refuge since the 1970s of many Edinburgh Medical School graduates and students. History drapes the walls in the forms of plaques and photographs.[35]

References

  1. ↑ "University guide 2012: Medicine". The Guardian (London). 17 May 2011. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
  2. ↑ Watson, Roland; Elliott, Francis; Foster, Patrick. "Good University Guide 2010". The Times (London).
  3. ↑ QS World Rankings by Faculty Life Science/Medicine. QS http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/faculty-rankings/life-sciences-and-medicine/2014#sorting=rank+region=+country=+faculty=+stars=false+search=. Retrieved 15 September 2014. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. ↑ "NHS hospital ranking". Daily Mail (London). 21 March 2006.
  5. ↑ pageid=stats "University of Edinburgh Medicine" Check |url= value (help) (PDF). www.ed.ac.uk. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  6. ↑ "FOI request Edinburgh Medicine A100" (PDF). Retrieved 23 August 2013.
  7. ↑ "2012–2013 Undergraduate Admissions Statistics" (PDF). University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 19 July 2014.
  8. ↑ "University guide 2014: league table for medicine". Guardian University Guide. Retrieved 3 December 2013.
  9. ↑ Roger L. Emerson, "The Founding of the Edinburgh Medical School," Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences (2004) 59#2 pp 183–218 in Project MUSE
  10. ↑ "Edinburgh 1880–1914" (PDF). Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  11. 1 2 "The Polish School of Medicine at the University of Edinburgh (1941–1949)". University of Edinburgh. 9 April 2014. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  12. 1 2 "Thistle on the Delaware: Edinburgh Medical Education and Philadelphia Practice, 1800–1825" (PDF). Social History of Medicine 5 (1): 19–42. 1992. doi:10.1093/shm/5.1.19. Retrieved 19 July 2014.
  13. ↑ Correira, Janine. "Edinburgh, the Scottish pioneers of anatomy and their lasting influence in South Africa". Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  14. ↑ "Entry Requirements". University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 4 September 2014.
  15. ↑ "FOI University of Edinburgh A100 Medicine". Retrieved 23 August 2013.
  16. ↑ http://www.mvm.ed.ac.uk/studying/admissions/MBChB%20Applications%20FAQ.pdf
  17. ↑ "RMS – About". RMS. RMS. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  18. ↑ "International Exchange Programs Columbia". Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  19. 1 2 "Sir William Turner: a chapter in medical history". Retrieved 1 May 2014.
  20. ↑ Rolleston, Humphry (July 1939). "The History of Clinical Medicine (Principally of Clinical Teaching) in the British Isles" (PDF). Proc R Soc Med 32: 1189. PMC 1997910. PMID 19992039. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
  21. ↑ "Henry Littlejohn helped win cholera fight". Scotsman. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  22. ↑ "David Ferrier". Dictionary of Neurology Project. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
  23. ↑ "George Beatson" (PDF). Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  24. ↑ "Prof. Adrian P. Bird". zoominfo. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
  25. ↑ "Professor O James Garden". University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 31 December 2013.
  26. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 23828. p. 595. 16 February 1872.
  27. ↑ (PDF). europepmc http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC2337460/pdf/brmedj06762-0034a.pdf. Retrieved 15 November 2013. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  28. ↑ "Three Licentiates of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh who were decorated with the Victoria Cross.". PubMed.
  29. ↑ Caldwell, Margaret. "Graham, Sir James (1856–1913)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
  30. ↑ Timoney, P. J; Breathnach, C. S. (13 January 2010). "Douglas Argyll Robertson (1837–1909) and his pupil" (PDF). Irish Journal of Medical Science 179: 119–121. doi:10.1007/s11845-009-0460-z. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  31. ↑ "Obituaries: Sir John Weynman Crofton". Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  32. ↑ "Professor Sir Kenneth Murray". Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  33. ↑ "Edwin Southern, DNA blotting, and microarray technology: A case study of the shifting role of patents in academic molecular biology" (PDF). LSSP Journal. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
  34. 1 2 "Nobel prize winners". University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
  35. ↑ "Edinburgh Doctors". Retrieved 1 March 2009.

Further reading

David S Crawford, Canadians who graduated with an MD from the University of Edinburgh 1809 – 1840 and Canadians who graduated in medicine from the University of Edinburgh 1841–1868. http://internatlibs.mcgill.ca/

Matthew Kaufman, Medical Teaching in Edinburgh during the 18th and 19th Centuries (Edinburgh, the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, 2003), ISBN 0-9503620-8-5

Tara Womersley, Dorothy H Crawford, Bodysnatchers to Lifesavers: Three Centuries of Medicine in Edinburgh (Luath Press Ltd, Edinburgh, 2010), ISBN 978-1-906817-58-9

External links

Coordinates: 55°55′19.42″N 3°8′11.86″W / 55.9220611°N 3.1366278°W / 55.9220611; -3.1366278

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