MBE for Dr John McLure
The man who looked after a generation of children in Ayrshire and Arran recently received his MBE at Buckingham Palace following his award in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list.
Retired consultant paedatrician John McClure, 73, is now chairman of the Scottish Cot Death Trust and a regular visitor to Arran as he has a house in Corrie.
Dr McClure started as a junior doctor at Seafield Hospital, Ayr, in October 1970 and returned as a consultant in 1975. He remained there until services were transferred to Seafield Wing at the new Ayr Hospital in 1991.
Over the years Dr McClure treated thousands of youngsters, many of whom actually looked forward to seeing him and discovering what pattern would be on his bow tie that day.
He became a trustee of the Scottish Cot Death Trust in 1991 and took over the chair in 2002. Dr McClure kept a focus on sudden infant death ever since the first Scottish surveys were conducted in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
He was also concerned with ensuring that good support for bereaved families was available across Scotland, and is recognised as a driving force in establishing a system of case reviews of sudden unexpected infant death.
Leading role
As a paediatrician he was involved in major transformations in children’s health, taking a leading role in developing services for cystic fibrosis, children’s cancer and neonatal services in Ayrshire.
Since retirement he has enthusiastically continued as not only as the major player in the Scottish Cot Death Trust but also in campaigning on the risks and consequences of maternal alcohol consumption in pregnancy (foetal alcohol spectrum).
Dr McClure is an active campaigner on sudden unexpected death in infancy. He and colleagues at the Scottish Cot Death Trust are hosting an international conference on SIDS, stillbirth and baby survival in Glasgow next year, the first time this event has come to Scotland.
Lynsay Allan, executive director of the Scottish Cot Death Trust, said: ‘Dr McClure gives of his time and energy so generously. The fact that he has done so for so many years, ably supported by his wife Jean, is testament to his dedication to help children and their families across Scotland.’