The Glamour of Research
In January, 1967 the Committee on Research which governed the Research Institute decided to make a recommendation to the Board of Trustees that a Scientific Advisory Committee be established to provide expert advice to the Board on broad policy matters affecting the Research Institute. The committee was to be made up of six individuals external to SickKids and would be asked to meet once a year and provide a report to the Board.
This Board of Trustees accepted the recommendation at their Executive Committee meeting in April of 1968 and the SickKids Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) was established. The members of the first committee were an illustrious group:
- Dr. Charles A. Janeway, Boston: At the time he was serving as Physician-in-Chief at Boston Children’s Hospital at Harvard. Dr. Janeway was described in the Board minutes as, “without doubt the current senior paediatrician of the United States.”
- Dr. Charles H. Best, Toronto: A co-discoverer of insulin, Dr. Best served as Director of the Banting and Best Department of Medical Research at the Banting Institute for three decades. The minutes describe him as an experienced administrator of a complex organization and raved that, “his personal achievements as Canada’s leading scientist make his advice welcome to us.”
- Dr. Frederick G. Robbins, Cleveland: He was a professor of Paediatrics at Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio who was respected for his research into microbiological diseases, particularly in children. Dr. Robbins was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1954.
- Dr. Omand Solandt, Toronto: Described as, “probably Canada’s most prominent medical administrator,” Dr. Solandt was Chancellor of the University of Toronto and had at one time, served as the head of a special committee to the Prime Minister concerning higher education and research.
- Dr. Michael DeBakey, Houston: He was a Professor of Surgery at Baylor University in Houston, Texas and was known as one of the pioneers in developing cardiac surgery.
- Dr. Carl F. Cori, Boson: A recipient of the 1947 Nobel Prize, Dr. Cori was noted for his contributions to the field of diabetes and for his early contributions to our understanding of glycogen disease in children. Dr. Cori was a member of the Massachusetts’ General Hospital Research Institute.
The Scientific Advisory Committee presented its first report to the SickKids Board of Trustees on February 11 1969. Their main message was that this relatively young Institute would benefit from the recruitment of a, “top flight investigator” to aid in, “providing both leadership and glamour.” Sound advice that has clearly been adhered to!
The SickKids archives have records of the work of the Scientific Advisory Committees from its beginning in 1969 until 1995. The Research Institute re-constituted this body with the establishment of the Scientific Advisory Board in 2008.