James Fraser Mustard
Encyclopedia
James Fraser Mustard, was a Canadian
physician
and scientist. Born, raised and educated in Toronto
, Ontario
, Mustard began his career as a research fellow at the University of Toronto
where he studied the effects of blood lipids, their relation to heart disease and how Aspirin could mitigate those effects. In 1966, he was one of the founding faculty members at McMaster University
's newly established medical school. In 1982, he helped found the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
and served as its founding president, serving until 1996. He wrote several papers and studies on early childhood development, including a report used by the Ontario Government that helped create a province-wide full-day kindergarten program. He won many awards including being made a companion of the Order of Canada
– the order's highest level – and was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
. He died in Toronto on November 16, 2011, after a short battle with cancer.
graduating in 1946. He received an MD
from the University of Toronto in 1953. He interned at the Toronto General Hospital
and spent two years of postgraduate study at the Department of Medicine, University of Cambridge
, where he earned his Ph.D
.
Upon returning to Canada, he was a senior intern at Sunnybrook Hospital and then a senior research associate with the Department of Veterans Affairs and a fellow in the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto. In 1958, Mustard received a Medal of the Royal College of Physicians of Canada for an essay entitled, "A Study of the Relationship Between Lipids, Blood Coagulation
and Atherosclerosis
." His work demonstrated the link between acetylsalicylic acid (Aspirin
) as a preventative for heart attacks and stroke. From 1960 to 1961, he was a research associate with the National Heart Foundation of Canada, and from 1962 to 1963 a research associate with the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, and a senior research associate with the Canadian Heart Foundation. He became a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
in 1965.
, and the first chairman of the Department of Pathology. In 1972, he became Dean and Vice-President of the Faculty of Health Sciences.
, for the Government of Ontario on early childhood learning. The report was issued asThe Early Years Study - Reversing the Real Brain Drain on April 20, 1999. The report emphasized promoting early childcare centres for young children and parents; boost spending on early childhood education to the same levels as kids in K to 12; focus on programs that are available to all income levels, because even the middle-class children need these services; and encourage local parent groups and businesses to setup these programs instead of the government, when possible. Recognition of this led Dr. Mustard and his colleagues to emphasize to all sectors of society the crucial nature of the early years to provide a healthy and competent population.
A follow up report in the Early Years series was completed in 2007 by Mustard, McCain, and Dr. Stuart Shanker. The second report criticized Canada for being "dead last" in spending on early childhood education, and called for national early
childhood development programs.
, University of Toronto. The main recommendation was that children as young as 2-years-old should start receiving formal education, due to the "avalanche of evidence". This education should be community-based, and voluntary, leaving parents to decide how much time they want their children in these programs. The report also revealed that even though the federal Canadian government cancelled a national childcare program back in 2007, full-day kindergarten has grown, mostly due to provincial governments funding these initiatives. It also introduced the Early Childhood Education Index, which measures 20 factors, arranged into five broad categories: integrated governance, funding, access, learning environment and accountability.
in Pakistan in emphasizing the enormous importance to society of early childhood development. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
in 1976, and the winner of the 1993 Sir John William Dawson
Medal
for his "varied and important contributions to Canadian academic and public life." In 1985 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada
and was promoted to Companion in 1993. In 1992, he was appointed to the Order of Ontario
.
In 2003 he was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
. He was a member of the board of PENCE (Protein Engineering Network Centre of Excellence), the Centre of Excellence of Early Child Development, the Aga Khan University
in Karachi, Pakistan, Beatrice House (a residential program for homeless mothers and their children) and was Chairman Emeritus of the Council for Early Child Development.
He was also the Past Chairman of Ballard Power Systems
. In all, Mustard was the recipient of fifteen honorary degree
s. In 2006 and 2007 he was a Thinker in Residence
, a program in Adelaide
, South Australia, which brings leaders in their fields to work with the South Australian community and government in developing new ideas and approaches to problem solving.
A biography of his life, written by Marian Packham, entitled J. Fraser Mustard : Connections & Careers, was published in 2010. He died in Toronto, a month after his 84th birthday, on November 16, 2011. He was diagnosed with cancer of the ureter
in October 2011, and it was the cause of his death. He was predeceased by his wife, Betty.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
and scientist. Born, raised and educated in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Mustard began his career as a research fellow at the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
where he studied the effects of blood lipids, their relation to heart disease and how Aspirin could mitigate those effects. In 1966, he was one of the founding faculty members at McMaster University
McMaster University
McMaster University is a public research university whose main campus is located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land in the residential neighbourhood of Westdale, adjacent to Hamilton's Royal Botanical Gardens...
's newly established medical school. In 1982, he helped found the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research enables Canadian researchers to work on international research teams that are custom built to transform their fields of study...
and served as its founding president, serving until 1996. He wrote several papers and studies on early childhood development, including a report used by the Ontario Government that helped create a province-wide full-day kindergarten program. He won many awards including being made a companion of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
– the order's highest level – and was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame is a Canadian charitable organization, founded in 1994, that honours Canadians who have contributed to the understanding of disease and improving the health of people. It has a museum in London, Ontario, and has an annual induction ceremony.-2012:*Terry Fox*John...
. He died in Toronto on November 16, 2011, after a short battle with cancer.
Education
Born on October 16, 1927 in Toronto, Ontario, he attended Whitney Public School and the University of Toronto SchoolsUniversity of Toronto Schools
The University of Toronto Schools is an independent secondary day school affiliated with the University of Toronto in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
graduating in 1946. He received an MD
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
from the University of Toronto in 1953. He interned at the Toronto General Hospital
Toronto General Hospital
The Toronto General Hospital , is a part of the University Health Network, and a major teaching hospital in downtown Toronto, Ontario. It is located in the Discovery District, directly north of the Hospital for Sick Children, across Gerrard Street West, and east of Princess Margaret Hospital and...
and spent two years of postgraduate study at the Department of Medicine, University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, where he earned his Ph.D
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
.
Upon returning to Canada, he was a senior intern at Sunnybrook Hospital and then a senior research associate with the Department of Veterans Affairs and a fellow in the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto. In 1958, Mustard received a Medal of the Royal College of Physicians of Canada for an essay entitled, "A Study of the Relationship Between Lipids, Blood Coagulation
Coagulation
Coagulation is a complex process by which blood forms clots. It is an important part of hemostasis, the cessation of blood loss from a damaged vessel, wherein a damaged blood vessel wall is covered by a platelet and fibrin-containing clot to stop bleeding and begin repair of the damaged vessel...
and Atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis is a condition in which an artery wall thickens as a result of the accumulation of fatty materials such as cholesterol...
." His work demonstrated the link between acetylsalicylic acid (Aspirin
Aspirin
Aspirin , also known as acetylsalicylic acid , is a salicylate drug, often used as an analgesic to relieve minor aches and pains, as an antipyretic to reduce fever, and as an anti-inflammatory medication. It was discovered by Arthur Eichengrun, a chemist with the German company Bayer...
) as a preventative for heart attacks and stroke. From 1960 to 1961, he was a research associate with the National Heart Foundation of Canada, and from 1962 to 1963 a research associate with the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, and a senior research associate with the Canadian Heart Foundation. He became a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada ' , French: Collège royal des médecins et chirurgiens du Canada, is a national, private, nonprofit organization established in 1929 by a special Act of Parliament to oversee the medical education of specialists in Canada...
in 1965.
Co-founding McMaster Medical School
In 1966, he was publicly criticizing the Canadian government's medical research funding practices, by stating that on average, 200 of the 900 medical doctors graduating from Canadian universities each year, were heading to the United States due to the lack of research funding in their home country. At the time, he said that medical schools would need to graduate 1500 doctors a year just to keep the standard of healthcare and research at its present level. He backed up his words by becoming a founding member of the McMaster University Faculty of Medicine in Hamilton, OntarioHamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, and the first chairman of the Department of Pathology. In 1972, he became Dean and Vice-President of the Faculty of Health Sciences.
Establishing CIFAR
In 1982, he took on the task of creating and establishing The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), and became its founding president. The institute, in a period of ten-years, built a network across Canada that linked researchers in the economics, education, social health and high-tech fields like robotics. He was awarded the Royal Bank outstanding service to Canada award in 1993 for his work in setting up and stewarding CIFAR. He continued on as President of CIFAR until 1996. From 1996 to the autumn of 2011, he was the head of The Founders' Network, an international collection of people interested in promoting CIFAR, science and technology, early childhood, economic issues, determinants of health and human development.The Early Years Study
He was a leader in Canada on questions about the socioeconomic determinants of human development and health. A particular emphasis was on early childhood and the role of communities. In the late 1990s, he co-chaired a seminal report, with former New Brunswick Lieutenant Governor, Margaret McCainMargaret McCain
Margaret Norrie McCain, is a Canadian philanthropist, the 27th and first female Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick.Born in Amos, Quebec, she received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mount Allison University and a Bachelor of Social Work from the University of Toronto...
, for the Government of Ontario on early childhood learning. The report was issued asThe Early Years Study - Reversing the Real Brain Drain on April 20, 1999. The report emphasized promoting early childcare centres for young children and parents; boost spending on early childhood education to the same levels as kids in K to 12; focus on programs that are available to all income levels, because even the middle-class children need these services; and encourage local parent groups and businesses to setup these programs instead of the government, when possible. Recognition of this led Dr. Mustard and his colleagues to emphasize to all sectors of society the crucial nature of the early years to provide a healthy and competent population.
A follow up report in the Early Years series was completed in 2007 by Mustard, McCain, and Dr. Stuart Shanker. The second report criticized Canada for being "dead last" in spending on early childhood education, and called for national early
childhood development programs.
Early Years Study 3
A third instalment in the Early Years series, Early Years Study 3: Making decisions, taking action, was posthumously published simultaneously in Montreal and Toronto on November 22, 2011, only a few days after his death. The third report was co-authored with McCain and Kerry McCuaig, the Senior Policy Fellow at the Atkinson Centre, Ontario Institute for Studies in EducationOntario Institute for Studies in Education
The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto is a teachers' college in Toronto, Ontario.-History:OISE/UT traces its origins to the founding of the Provincial Normal School in 1847...
, University of Toronto. The main recommendation was that children as young as 2-years-old should start receiving formal education, due to the "avalanche of evidence". This education should be community-based, and voluntary, leaving parents to decide how much time they want their children in these programs. The report also revealed that even though the federal Canadian government cancelled a national childcare program back in 2007, full-day kindergarten has grown, mostly due to provincial governments funding these initiatives. It also introduced the Early Childhood Education Index, which measures 20 factors, arranged into five broad categories: integrated governance, funding, access, learning environment and accountability.
Awards and recognition
Mustard was involved with governments in Canada, Australia, the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, UNICEF and the Aga Khan UniversityAga Khan University
The Aga Khan University is a coeducational research university spread over three continents. It was granted its charter in 1983 as Pakistan's first private, autonomous university. AKU was founded by His Highness the Aga Khan, and is part of the Aga Khan Development Network...
in Pakistan in emphasizing the enormous importance to society of early childhood development. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
in 1976, and the winner of the 1993 Sir John William Dawson
John William Dawson
Sir John William Dawson, CMG, FRS, FRSC , was a Canadian geologist and university administrator.- Life and work :...
Medal
Sir John William Dawson Medal
The Sir John William Dawson Medal is an award of the Royal Society of Canada, established in 1985 and named after the society's first president: John William Dawson...
for his "varied and important contributions to Canadian academic and public life." In 1985 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
and was promoted to Companion in 1993. In 1992, he was appointed to the Order of Ontario
Order of Ontario
The Order of Ontario is the most prestigious official honour in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier David Peterson, the civilian order is administered by the Governor-in-Council and is intended to...
.
In 2003 he was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
Canadian Medical Hall of Fame
The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame is a Canadian charitable organization, founded in 1994, that honours Canadians who have contributed to the understanding of disease and improving the health of people. It has a museum in London, Ontario, and has an annual induction ceremony.-2012:*Terry Fox*John...
. He was a member of the board of PENCE (Protein Engineering Network Centre of Excellence), the Centre of Excellence of Early Child Development, the Aga Khan University
Aga Khan University
The Aga Khan University is a coeducational research university spread over three continents. It was granted its charter in 1983 as Pakistan's first private, autonomous university. AKU was founded by His Highness the Aga Khan, and is part of the Aga Khan Development Network...
in Karachi, Pakistan, Beatrice House (a residential program for homeless mothers and their children) and was Chairman Emeritus of the Council for Early Child Development.
He was also the Past Chairman of Ballard Power Systems
Ballard Power Systems
Ballard Power Systems , located in Burnaby, British Columbia -- a suburb of Vancouver -- is a company that designs, develops, and manufactures zero emission proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells. This company has made a bus that uses only hydrogen fuel cells. These fuel cells combine hydrogen and...
. In all, Mustard was the recipient of fifteen honorary degree
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
s. In 2006 and 2007 he was a Thinker in Residence
Thinker in Residence
Thinkers in Residence is a program in Adelaide, South Australia, that brings leaders in their fields to work with the South Australian community and government in developing new ideas and approaches to problem solving, and to promote South Australia....
, a program in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, South Australia, which brings leaders in their fields to work with the South Australian community and government in developing new ideas and approaches to problem solving.
A biography of his life, written by Marian Packham, entitled J. Fraser Mustard : Connections & Careers, was published in 2010. He died in Toronto, a month after his 84th birthday, on November 16, 2011. He was diagnosed with cancer of the ureter
Ureter
In human anatomy, the ureters are muscular tubes that propel urine from the kidneys to the urinary bladder. In the adult, the ureters are usually long and ~3-4 mm in diameter....
in October 2011, and it was the cause of his death. He was predeceased by his wife, Betty.