Ann Woolcock
Professor Ann Woolcock (1937–2001) was an Australian respiratory scientist and one of the world's leading asthma experts. She contributed greatly to the field of asthma research and founded the Institute of Respiratory Medicine, Sydney.
She was the first woman in clinical medicine to be elected to the Australian Academy of Science in 1992.[1] and a founding member and President of the Asian Pacific Society of Respirology, and was the Principal Scientist of the Co-operative Research Centre for Asthma (CRC for Asthma) in 1999.[2]
Family life
Ann Janet Woolcock was born in Reynella, South Australia on 11 December 1937 and was the oldest of four children.[3] In 1968 she married Ruthven Blackburn, professor of medicine, Sydney University. The couple raised two sons Simon and Angus.[4]
Early academic career
After attending Reynella Public School, she completed her secondary education in Adelaide at Walford Church of England Girls Grammar.[3]
Woolcock then went on to study Medicine at University of Adelaide,[3] before beginning her postgraduate studies in respiratory medicine at University of Sydney to complete 'a thesis on the mechanical behaviour of lungs in asthma' (awarded 1967)[5][6] with a focus on hyper-inflation.[1] Woolcock lived in Montreal, Canada from 1966-1968 as the Overseas Research Fellow for the Asthma Foundation of NSW at McGill University.[1][5] Woolcock then returned to Australia as a 'Senior Research Fellow of the Asthma Foundation of NSW and then Basser Research Fellow, Royal Australasian College of Physicians, Department of Medicine, University of Sydney' [1] She was appointed as Senior Lecturer at the University of Sydney Department of Medicine in 1973 and became Associate Professor in 1976. Woolcock went on to be appointed to a Personal Chair in 1984.[1]
Contribution to asthma research
Woolcock has published over 300 journal articles and book chapters making major contributions to the field of Asthma research. Her early work was influential, revolutionising understanding of the mechanisms and consequences of the physiology of airway obstruction of acute asthma.[1] Woolcock worked in the New Guinea Highlands, Sydney and rural New South Wales in later work focusing on allergen sensitivity, airway responsiveness and the development of asthma in children. Woolcock's work on asthma epidemiology and population health resulted in her international acclaim as she led research in the field in Australia, promoting respiratory health throughout the Asia-Pacific region.[4] Woolcock instigated the organisation of Asthma Research Days in Sydney. The aim of these events was to encourage collaboration and communication between researchers in the field.[4]
In 1985 Woolcock founded the Institute of Respiratory Medicine, Sydney. This institute has become one of the top six world leading institutes in the field. In 2002, the Institute was renamed Woolcock Institute of Medical Research in memory of Professor Ann Woolcock, following her passing in 2001.
Awards and honours
- Officer of the Order of Australia in 1992 [1]
- fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, 1992 [1]
- Corresponding Member of the Académie de Médicine Française in 1993 [1]
- Society Medal of the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand, 1998 [1]
- Distinguished Achievement Award of the American Thoracic Society, 1998 [1]
- European Respiratory Society Presidential Award 2000 for Enhancing the Profile of Respiratory Medicine Worldwide [1]
- Honorary Doctorate of Medicine from the University of Ferrara, Italy 2001