Dr. Ian McWhinney Memorial

The Department of Family Medicine at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, Western University, joined friends and family of the late Dr. Ian McWhinney, for a memorial service on Friday, November 30 at St. Paul's Cathedral in London.

Dr. McWhinney passed away on September 28, 2012 at the age of 85. He was widely regarded as the "father of Canadian family medicine." He came to Canada from England in 1968 and became the first Professor of Family Medicine in Canada and the first Chair of the Department of Family Medicine at Western.

The memorial service celebrated the life of Dr. McWhinney and recognized his contribution in establishing Family Medicine as an academic discipline.

Dr. McWhinney was the founder of the Graduate Studies Program in Family Medicine at Western in 1975. In 1986 he founded the Centre for Studies in Family Medicine which is known worldwide for the quality of its research. He has been the author of over 100 papers and the widely acclaimed Textbook of Family Medicine, first published in 1989 and now in its third edition.

In honour of his work, Dr. McWhinney was named Officer of the Order of Canada in 1998 and was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame in 2006.

Western has created an endowment fund to support a research Chair in Family Medicine, named in his honour. The Ian McWhinney Chair of Family Medicine Studies (currently held by Dr. Stewart Harris) provides a senior level physician-researcher with the opportunity to meaningfully advance the practice of family medicine at the local, regional, national and international level.

All donations are being directed to Foundation Western. Foundation Western accepts credit cards, cheques and cash (however they prefer to receive cash only in person, not by mail or intercampus mail).

Donors can also make a donation online by visiting: http://www.givingtowestern.uwo.ca/howtogive/ and choosing "Memorial/Tribute Gift." The donor fills out the online form and notes the gift is in memory of Ian McWhinney. Foundation Western is aware the gifts are being directed to the Ian McWhinney Chair in Family Medicine.