Robert Evan Kendell (28 March 1935 − 19 December 2002) was a British psychiatrist. He was

Chief Medical Officer of Scotland In the United Kingdom, a chief medical officer (CMO) is the most senior government advisor on matter relating to health. There are four chief medical officers in the United Kingdom who are appointed to advise their respective governments: * His M ...

from 1991 to 1996 and President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists from 1996 to 1999.

Background

He was born on 28 March 1935 in Yorkshire, the son of teachers and spent some of his childhood in Wales. He was educated at the

Mill Hill School Mill Hill School is a 13–18 co-educational Private schools in the United Kingdom, private, Day school, day and boarding school in Mill Hill, London, England that was established in 1807. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' ...

in London then won a scholarship to

Peterhouse, Cambridge Peterhouse is the oldest Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate stud ...

, where he was awarded a Double First in the Natural Sciences Tripos. After further study at the

King's College Hospital Medical School King's College London GKT School of Medical Education (often referred to simply as GKT) is the medical school of King's College London. The school has campuses at three institutions, Guy's Hospital (London Borough of Southwark, Southwark), Kin ...

and a brief stint in internal medicine he joined the

Maudsley Hospital The Maudsley Hospital is a British psychiatric hospital in south London. The Maudsley is the largest mental health training institution in the UK. It is part of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, and works in partnership with the I ...

and trained under Sir

Aubrey Lewis Sir Aubrey Julian Lewis (8 November 1900 – 21 January 1975), was a British-Australian psychiatrist. He was the first Professor of Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, London (now part of King's College London), and is credited with bei ...

. Kendell was later awarded the Gaskell Medal. Aged 38 he was appointed to the chair of psychiatry in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

. In 1986 he was made the Dean of the Medical School and during his four years in this post he supervised a period of expansion. In 1991 he was appointed the Chief Medical Officer of Scotland. In 1997 he was elected the president of the

Royal College of Psychiatrists The Royal College of Psychiatrists is the main professional organisation of psychiatrists in the United Kingdom, and is responsible for representing psychiatrists, for psychiatric research and for providing public information about mental healt ...

and served for a three-year term. As Chief Medical Officer, he worked to build awareness of the influence of diet and smoking on health, as well as contributing to the responses to

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, is an incurable and always fatal neurodegenerative disease of cattle. Symptoms include abnormal behavior, trouble walking, and weight loss. Later in the course of th ...

and

HIV/AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

Research

He published more than 200 papers during his career, continuing after he had retired from employment. Much of his work focussed on the classification and diagnosis of mental disorders

Awards and honours

He was made a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) in 2002. He was elected

Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

(FRSE). He was awarded the Paul Hoch Medal of the

American Psychopathological Association The American Psychopathological Association (APPA) is an organization "devoted to the scientific investigation of psychopathology, disordered human behavior, and its biological and psychosocial substrates." The association’s primary purpose is r ...

; and the Marce Medal. He was a member of the World Health Organisation's Expert Advisory Panel on Mental Health for 12 years. In 1982 he was elected a member of the

Harveian Society of Edinburgh The Harveian Society of Edinburgh was founded in April 1782 by Andrew Duncan (physician, born 1744), Andrew Duncan. The Society holds an annual Festival in honour of the life and works of William Harvey, the physician who first correctly des ...

and in 1984 he was elected a member of the

Aesculapian Club The Aesculapian Club of Edinburgh is one of the oldest medical dining clubs in the world. It was founded in April 1773 by Dr. Andrew Duncan. Membership of the club is limited to 11 Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and ...

Death

On 19 December 2002 he collapsed and died later that day, of an unsuspected brain tumour.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kendell Robertevan 1935 births 2002 deaths People educated at Mill Hill School Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal College of Psychiatrists Welsh scholars and academics 20th-century Welsh medical doctors Welsh psychiatrists Chief Medical Officers for Scotland Academics of the University of Edinburgh Commanders of the Order of the British Empire