Ian Donald

For the footballer, see Ian Donald (footballer).

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Ian Donald
Portrait of Ian Donald
Born(1910-12-27)27 December 1910
Liskeard, England
Died19 June 1987(1987-06-19) (aged 76)
Resting placeSt Peters, Paglesham, England[1]
NationalityBritish
EducationFettes College, University of Cape Town, University of London, University of Glasgow
Known forDeveloping obstetric ultrasound
AwardsCBE
Scientific career
FieldsObstetrics and Gynaecology
InstitutionsSt Thomas's Hospital Medical School, Royal Free Hospital, Western Infirmary

Ian Donald CBE FRFPSGlas FRCOG FRCP (27 December 1910 – 19 June 1987) was an English physician who pioneered the diagnostic use of ultrasound in obstetrics, enabling the visual discovery of abnormalities during pregnancy.[2] Donald was born in Cornwall, England, to a Scottish family of physicians. He was educated in Scotland and South Africa[3] before studying medicine at the University of London in 1930, and became the third generation of doctors in his family.[4] At the start of World War II, Donald was drafted into the Royal Air Force as a medical officer, where he developed an interest in radar and sonar.[5] In 1952, at St Thomas' Hospital, he used what he learned in the RAF to build a respirator for newborn babies with respiratory problems.

In 1952 Donald became a reader at Hammersmith Hospital.[6] He developed a device called the Trip Spirometer, which measured the respiratory efficiency of a neonate.[6] In 1953, he improved its design and made a positive-pressure respirator device that was known as the Puffer.[7] In September 1954, Donald was promoted to Regius Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Glasgow.[3] While working at the Western Infirmary, he met Tom Brown, an industrial engineer who worked for Kelvin Hughes, which led to a series of collaborations between Western Infirmary clinicians and Kelvin Hughes' engineers. They designed and built a series of instruments that enabled the unborn to be examined with obstetric ultrasound,[8] which allowed Donald to build the world's first obstetric ultrasound machine in 1963: the Diasonograph.[9]

Donald also secured the construction of the Queen Mother's Maternity Hospital that was built next to the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow.[10]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference ThomasBanerjee2004 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Ian Donald". Munks Roll – Lives of the Fellows. VIII. Royal College of Physicians: Royal College of Physicians: 136. 20 June 1987. Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  3. ^ a b "Ian Donald". The University of Glasgow Story. University Roles: University of Glasgow 2018. Archived from the original on 22 December 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference ember was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference WBp16 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference NicolsonFleming2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference puf was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference HoMBRG was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Hinds, Alice (18 June 2019). "How the first scans of pioneering doctors transformed treatment of babies before birth". DC Thomson Publishing. The Sunday Post. Retrieved 12 July 2019.
  10. ^ "Papers of Ian Donald, obstetrician and developer of ultrasound, Glasgow, Scotland". JISC. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Archives: Archive Hub GB 812 HB110. Retrieved 2 December 2019.