Name Robert Douglas | ||
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Robert Matheson Douglas AO MB BS (Adel) MD MA FRACP FRACGP FAFPHM (born 8 December 1936). He studied medicine at the University of Adelaide, graduating in 1959. In 1968 he took up a position as Specialist Physician and Deputy Medical Superintendent of the Port Moresby hospital in Papua New Guinea.
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Life
Robert M. Douglas prefers to be called Bob. He was born to Rev. John and Ruth Douglas and was the second of three boys. He attended Newcastle Boys High School and later Fort Street High School in Sydney. He is married to Rosemary with three children and 13 grandchildren. Bob enjoys working on his organisation, Australia 21, writing poetry, reading and spending time with his family.
Career
In Papua New Guinea, he developed an interest in respiratory infections particularly the prevention of pneumonia, which led to work in the USA on licensure of pneumococcal vaccine. This interest led to a position with the World Health Organisation, working on programs to reduce child deaths from pneumonia. After working as an academic in public health he became Dean of Medicine at the University of Adelaide, and later Director of the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, and Coordinating Editor of the Acute Respiratory Infections Group of the Cochrane Collaboration. He is a former President of The Public Health Association of Australia and of The Australasian Epidemiological Association.
Community
In 2001, after retiring as Emeritus Professor at The Australian National University, he founded with five others, Australia 21 - a non-profit organisation developing research networks on issues of importance to Australia's future. From 2002 to 2012 he was Chairman of the Board and continues as a Director
Along with the Nature and Society Forum Bob helped to develop a community body, SEE-Change in Canberra. This NGO works to enable Australians to connect with each other and the environment and to refurbish our spirit, our hope and our understanding of the future. A place where ordinary Australians have the opportunity to debate and consider new directions for our society.
He is also a committed environmentalist. and a Committee member of The Canberra Alliance for Participatory Democracy.
Honours
In recognition of his contribution to medicine, particularly respiratory disease and the development of public health training in Australia, he was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2000.
In 2006 he was nominated as the Australian of the Year.