Henri J. Breault (4 March 1909 – 9 October 1983) was a Canadian medical doctor and medical researcher who was instrumental in the creation of the first

child-proof container Child-resistant packaging or CR packaging is special packaging used to reduce the risk of children ingesting hazardous materials. This is often accomplished by the use of a special safety cap. It is required by regulation for prescription drugs ...

. Born in

Tecumseh, Ontario Tecumseh () is a town in Essex County in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is on Lake St. Clair east of Windsor and had a population of roughly 23,300 as of the 2021 census according to Statistics Canada. It is part of the Windsor census me ...

, Breault graduated from the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO; branded as Western University) is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thame ...

in 1936 with his medical degree, and practiced medicine in

Windsor, Ontario Windsor ( ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is situated on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from the U.S city of Detroit, Detroit, Michigan. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Esse ...

for over 40 years. As Chief of Pediatrics and Director of the Poison Control Centre at Hotel Dieu Hospital beginning in 1957, where he helped develop the child-safety cap. His Ontario Association for the Control of Accidental Poisoning, established in 1962, enabled the 1967 adoption of a cap design known as the "Palm N Turn", which was endorsed by the Ontario College of Pharmacy. The incidence of poisoning by accidental medicine ingestion, which had previous been over 1000 per year, dropped by 91 percent. Ontario was the first province to make child-proof lids mandatory for medicine bottles in 1974, and other provinces did the same shortly thereafter. Breault died in 1983. The Hotel Dieu Hospital established a pediatrics centre named after him to recognize his contributions to medicine. He was inducted into the

Canadian Medical Hall of Fame __NOTOC__ 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 an exhibit hall in London, ...

in 1997.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Breault, Henri Canadian medical researchers People from Essex County, Ontario University of Western Ontario alumni Franco-Ontarian people 1983 deaths 1909 births