Guelph’s John McCrae is one of six “medical heroes” being inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame in 2015 for contributions to the field of medicine and health sciences.
An event to honour the late McCrae and five other inductees will be held on April 23, in Winnipeg.
Guelph Museums has partnered with the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada to create a compelling nomination that highlights McCrae’s medical career.
“It is so fitting that this honour is happening 100 years after he wrote the famous First World War poem, In Flanders Fields.”
The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame honours innovators and pioneers in the field of medicine and health sciences whose contributions significantly improve the state of health and health care in Canada and the world.
“Guelph is very proud to be the birthplace of John McCrae. Most of us know about his contributions as a poet and soldier, but this honour shines a new light on his tremendous contributions as a doctor,” says mayor Karen Farbridge.
McCrae was an incredibly accomplished physician in his lifetime and his research significantly advanced an understanding of tuberculosis, scarlet fever, nephritis and lobar pneumonia. He served as a medical officer during the First World War, writing In Flanders Fields on May 3, 1915, following the Second Battle of Ypres. The hall of fame nomination letter observes McCrae’s poem In Flanders Fields, has impelled Canada to the forefront during subsequent wars.”
