Sir Robert Reynolds Macintosh (17 October 1897 – 28 August 1989) was a

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

-born British

anaesthetist Anesthesiology, anaesthesiology or anaesthesia is the medical specialty concerned with the total perioperative care of patients before, during and after surgery. It encompasses anesthesia, intensive care medicine, critical emergency medicine, a ...

. He was the first professor of anaesthetics outside the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Early life

Macintosh was born 17 October 1897 in

Timaru Timaru (; ) is a port city in the southern Canterbury Region of New Zealand, located southwest of Christchurch and about northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to peo ...

and baptised with the Māori name Rewi Rawhiti. He was the youngest son of Charles Nicholson Macintosh, newspaper editor and mayor of

in 1901, and his wife, Lydia Beatrice Thompson. He spent part of his childhood in Argentina, but returned to

when he was thirteen years old. He was educated at

Waitaki Boys' High School Waitaki Boys' High School is a secondary school for boys located in the northern part of the town of Oamaru, Otago, New Zealand, with day and boarding facilities, and was founded in 1883. , it has a school roll of approximately 400 students. The ...

, where he was head of school and excelled academically and athletically. In December 1915, he travelled to Britain and was commissioned in the

Royal Scots Fusiliers The Royal Scots Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1678 until 1959 when it was amalgamated with the Highland Light Infantry (City of Glasgow Regiment) to form the Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Ma ...

, soon transferring to the

Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC sup ...

. He was shot down behind enemy lines on 26 May 1917 and taken prisoner, escaping several times.

Medical

After the war, Macintosh trained at

Guy's 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 (Southwark), King's College Hospital ( Denma ...

, qualifying MRCS LRCP in 1924 and FRCS Ed in 1927. While studying surgery, he earned a living by giving dental anaesthetics and developed an interest in anaesthetics. In 1936, the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

approached

Lord Nuffield William Richard Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield (10 October 1877 – 22 August 1963), was an English motor manufacturer and philanthropist. He was the founder of Morris Motors Limited and is remembered for establishing the Nuffield Foundation, th ...

to consider endowing three chairs in medicine, surgery, and obstetrics and gynaecology. Nuffield, who had received an anaesthetic from Macintosh, agreed, but against the university's wishes, insisted on the addition of a chair in anaesthetics, to be held by Macintosh. They could not ignore the £2 million on offer and Macintosh took up his appointment in February 1937, the first professor of anaesthetics outside America. In the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Macintosh held the rank of

Air Commodore Air commodore (Air Cdre or Air Cmde) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...

and trained anaesthetists for the armed services. His research included hazardous experiments to test life jackets (immersing Edgar Alexander Pask in a wave tank while anaesthetised), the provision of respirable atmospheres in submarines and survival during parachute descent from high altitudes. Macintosh designed equipment that now bears his name: a

laryngoscope Laryngoscopy () is endoscopy of the larynx, a part of the throat. It is a medical procedure that is used to obtain a view, for example, of the vocal folds and the glottis. Laryngoscopy may be performed to facilitate tracheal intubation during ge ...

, an

anaesthetic vaporiser An anaesthetic machine (British English) or anesthesia machine (American English) is a medical device used to generate and mix a fresh gas flow of medical gases and inhalational anaesthetic agents for the purpose of inducing and maintaining anae ...

, spray and endobronchial tube. The laryngoscope he designed in 1941 remains the most-used today. It was developed from a Boyle-Davis mouth gag, used for

tonsillectomy Tonsillectomy is a surgical procedure in which both palatine tonsils are fully removed from the back of the throat. The procedure is mainly performed for recurrent tonsillitis, throat infections and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). For those wit ...

. Macintosh noted that this mouth gag indirectly elevated the

epiglottis The epiglottis (: epiglottises or epiglottides) is a leaf-shaped flap in the throat that prevents food and water from entering the trachea and the lungs. It stays open during breathing, allowing air into the larynx. During swallowing, it closes ...

and exposed the laryngeal aperture. Macintosh studied unexplained deaths that occurred under anaesthesia and established a training programme. He travelled widely, giving demonstrations of "safe and simple" anaesthesia. Macintosh married Dorothy Manning, whose sister Mary, was married to Archie Forbes.

Honours

Macintosh was knighted in 1955, and received many honorary doctorates and fellowships.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macintosh, Robert 1897 births 1989 deaths New Zealand medical researchers New Zealand academics Fellows of Pembroke College, Oxford Statutory Professors of the University of Oxford New Zealand anaesthetists People from Timaru People educated at Waitaki Boys' High School 20th-century New Zealand medical doctors

Early life

Medical

Honours

See also

References

External links