Robin McLeod (August 24, 1951 – February 6, 2024) was a Canadian surgeon and medical researcher known for her contributions to

clinical epidemiology Clinical epidemiology is a subfield of epidemiology specifically focused on issues relevant to clinical medicine. The term was first introduced by virologist John R. Paul in his presidential address to the American Society for Clinical Investigat ...

, health services research, and evidence-based surgery. She played an important role in transforming surgical education, patient care, and medical research in Canada. She was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

in 2019.

Early life

Robin McLeod was born on August 24, 1951, in

Spruce Grove, Alberta Spruce Grove is a city that is west of Edmonton, Alberta, in Canada. The city is adjacent to the Town of Stony Plain and is surrounded by Parkland County. With a 2021 population of 37,645, Spruce Grove is the ninth-largest city in Alberta. ...

, to Doug and Frances McLeod. She obtained her

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

and

Doctor of Medicine A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin language, Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of ph ...

degrees from the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta (also known as U of A or UAlberta, ) is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta, and Henry Marshall Tory, t ...

. Encouraged by her uncle, Trevor Sandy, a general surgeon in Vancouver, she pursued a medical degree and graduated in 1975, at a time when few women entered the field.

Career

McLeod started her surgical career with a residency at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

and also had stints at

McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood, Ontario, Ainslie Wood and Westdale, Ontario, Westd ...

and the

Cleveland Clinic Cleveland Clinic is an American Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Academic health science center, academic Medical centers in the United States, medical center based in Cleveland, Ohio. Owned and operated by the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, an O ...

. McLeod joined the University of Toronto in 1986, where she became a professor of surgery, training residents in general and

colorectal surgery Colorectal surgery is a field in medicine dealing with disorders of the rectum, anus, and colon. The field is also known as proctology, but this term is now used infrequently within medicine and is most often employed to identify practices rela ...

. McLeod's works on evidence-based medicine and clinical trials resulted in studies that significantly impacted surgical practices, particularly in colorectal surgery and

inflammatory bowel disease Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a group of inflammatory conditions of the colon and small intestine, with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis (UC) being the principal types. Crohn's disease affects the small intestine and large intestine ...

. As an advocate for evidence-based medicine, she made a case for post-operative patients to get back on their feet and move after surgery as against then prevailing guidance which had encouraged patients to stay in bed; moving right away was found to improve recovery times. Some of the other practices that she had advocated included pre-operative patients being asked to exercise and quit smoking, and surgeons being asked to keep patients warm and avoid catheters and tubes to the extent possible. McLeod served as the president of the

Canadian Association of General Surgeons The Canadian Association of General Surgeons is a professional association for general surgery, general Canadian surgeons, surgeons in Canada. It was founded in 1977. History The Canadian Association of General Surgeons held its inaugural m ...

, Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract, and the

American Surgical Association The American Surgical Association is the oldest surgical organization in the United States. History It was founded in 1880. Their publication, ''Annals of Surgery'', was started in 1885. A collection of the association's papers are held at the Na ...

. She also served as the vice president for Clinical Programs & Quality Initiatives at Cancer Care Ontario. McLeod started ''Evidence Based Reviews in Surgery'', a journal study group for North American surgeons. In 2019, she was appointed an

Officer of the Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian national order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the centennial of Canadian Confederation, the ...

, in recognition of her influence on medical practice, knowledge translation, and surgical education.

Personal life

In 1981, McLeod married John Fauquier, and together they had two daughters. McLeod died on February 6, 2024, at the age of 72. She had been diagnosed with

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

three years earlier. Her daughter had run ten triathlons across Canada to raise awareness of Alzheimer's disease and in support of her mother.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McLeod, Robin 1951 births 2024 deaths Deaths from Alzheimer's disease University of Alberta alumni University of Toronto people Canadian surgeons Canadian epidemiologists Canadian cancer researchers People from Spruce Grove Officers of the Order of Canada American Surgical Association members