BRIAN D. BEST

Adjust Text Size: A+ A-

BRIAN D. BEST, M.D., F.R.C.S.(Edin.), F.R.C.S.(Can.) It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Dr. Brian D. Best on May 30, 2004 at St. Boniface Hospital at the age of 93 years. Brian is survived by his beloved wife Jean (nee Prior) to whom he was married for 63 years, his daughter Shelagh Pickard (Les) of West Vancouver, his son Bob (Joyce) of Winnipeg, granddaughters Raina (David) of Winnipeg, Heather (Stuart) of Lions Bay, BC, sister Mona Waugh of Calgary, sister Moira McLean of Shoal Lake, MB, sister-in-law Betty Lou Best and several nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his parents Dr. Robert M. in 1942 and Ann (nee McBride) in 1961, his sister Kathleen in 1985, his brother Denis in 1988 and his identical twin brother Kevin in 2000. Dr. Best was born in Hampshire, England on August 20, 1910, but his family moved to Killarney, MB when he was a year old. He grew up in a medical household and often accompanied his father, a general practitioner, on house calls in a horse-drawn cutter. Dr. Best attended school in Killarney and in 1927, while in grade 11, he was awarded the Governor-Generals medal for scholastic, athletic and social achievement. That same year he played a part in the capture, by the police, of Earl Nelson, the Strangler, who was one of the most notorious murderers in North America at the time. At the University of Manitoba, Dr. Best had a distinguished record. In the first two years of his medical course, he won medals in Anatomy, Physiology and Biochemistry. In 1934, his final year in Medicine, he was awarded the Gold Medal for the highest standing in the entire medical course, the Silver Medal for the highest standing in the final year, the Chown prize in Medicine and the Chown prize in Surgery. Dr. Best was a member of the Theta Kappa Psi medical fraternity. After completing post graduate study for his Fellowship in Edinburgh in 1938, he returned to Winnipeg to begin an association with the Winnipeg General Hospital (now the Health Sciences Centre), Medical Arts, the Winnipeg Clinic and the University of Manitoba. His relationship with these institutions was to last for over 40 years. He was widely regarded as an outstanding surgeon and diagnostician, and one of the leading obstetricians and gynaecologists in Western Canada. As an obstetrician in Winnipeg, he personally delivered, or supervised the delivery of thousands of babies during his long career. Many of them were among the most complicated cases. As a surgeon, Dr. Best introduced to Manitoba, brand new procedures with respect to treatment for cancer of the cervix. He was also a passionate and dedicated teacher of medical students for many years. To this day, he is remembered by former students for his lucid explanations of intricate medical processes. Dr. Best was involved in numerous professional organizations over the years. He was Past President of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, Past President of the Canadian Gynaecological Society, Past President of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba, Past President of the Medico-Legal Society of Manitoba, an Examiner of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, the Canadian representative to the Radiumhemmett of Stockholm, Sweden for cancer of the cervix, member of the Board of Directors, Manitoba Cancer Treatment and Research Foundation, Manitoba Representative to the Medical Council of Canada, an Honorary Member of the Pacific Northwest Association of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, a member of the Canadian Medical Association, the Manitoba Medical Association and the Winnipeg Medical Society, and was Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Manitoba from 1952 to 1975 (and later, Professor Emeritus). He was the main force behind the establishment of a department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in the Winnipeg Clinic in 1944, and headed that section until 1975. Dr. Best contributed many scientific papers to various medical publications and journals on an international scale. Among his earlier colleagues was Dr. Alex Andison, who once observed of Dr. Best, "Brian is a man of insatiable curiosity, particularly in the realm of ideas, evident from even a cursory glance at his library, which embraces a catholic array of subjects by no means limited to his professional sphere. His sometimes esoteric studies partly explain the profundity of his observations on human behaviour". Dr. Best was very proud of his family: his wife Jean, his son Bob, his daughter Shelagh and his grandchildren Raina (who is following in his footsteps as an Obstetrician and Gynaecologist) and Heather (who also is following in his footsteps as an Educator). He was also very fond of his daughter-in-law Joyce, and his son-in-law Les. In the latter years of his long and distinguished life, Dr. Best found it more difficult to move around. However, his incisive mentality, aided by a prodigious appetite for reading and learning, was dominant to the end. A special thanks to all of the wonderful staff at St. Boniface Hospital and the Home Care workers who cared for Dr. Best. A memorial service will take place on Thursday, June 3, 2004 at 12:30 p.m. at Chapel Lawn Funeral Home, 4000 Portage Ave. In lieu of flowers, those wishing to do so may make a donation to a charity of ones choice. Family and friends are invited to sign the Book of Condolence at www.chapellawn.mb.ca CHAPEL LAWN FUNERAL HOME CREMATION AND RECEPTION CENTRE 885-9715

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jun 01, 2004