And I think that just listening - and my husband[57] was a bit peripheral because he'd gone through the Children’s and knew Vernon as a Resident and Howard as a member of the Clinical Research Unit - he knew there was this contest and was a bit surprised at Vernon Collins’ appointment because he appreciated Howard’s skills as a clinician and his research focus. But I think listening to everybody here that, at that time, what was needed was somebody like Vernon Collins to establish it. But I think that contest goes on in every university department endlessly.

Roger Hall[58] : Anecdotally, my presence at the Children's Hospital began in 1960 and it was due both to Howard and to Vernon, and most directly to Vernon. When I graduated [in dentistry] I went down to the Orthopaedic Section of the Children’s Hospital at Mt Eliza which stimulated my interest in paediatrics. The following year I joined the Dental Faculty of the University and I wrote my first paper on tooth defects in patients with Vitamin D deficient rickets.[59] Howard Williams helped me write and publish it.

At that time I expressed my interest in some day coming to the Children's Hospital if a position arose. Howard then actually referred me to Vernon [who was Medical Superintendent] and there must have been discussions among the senior medical staff prior to that. Dr Lawrence was the dentist at the time; they weren’t entirely comfortable with him.[60] He wasn’t full time and Vernon wanted a full time appointment. He said I should go away to England and do my postgraduate training and come back. The timing would probably be about right. [While I was in England] I received a telegram from Professor Atkinson (my department head) at the Dental Faculty who was also on the selection committee, stating that if I wanted this job, I’d better get on a boat and come home!

I had finished my paediatric dentistry training at the Eastman Dental Hospital in London and I had to cut short my oral surgery training. I returned and subsequently appointed. At that time I was very involved in research, as I had been ever since I graduated. I retained my research interest through the Dental Faculty initially. I think a few other people did research in other University Departments while they were appointed to the Children's where it wasn’t very easy to get research funding or to get a project up and running.

With the [establishment of the Royal Children's Hospital] Research Foundation [in 1960] I obtained a grant and did a long period of animal research on developmental anomalies of tooth enamel.

Also Vernon was mentoring me all the way and he was also indirectly responsible for the establishment of Paediatric Dentistry as a specialty. I started to promote that in the 1970s but it was Vernon's influence and our occasional conversations that gave me the drive, together with my experience in London.

That's all anecdotal, but it’s my experience of the two men, both of whom contributed in significant ways to my career at the Royal Children’s Hospital and to the recognition of Paediatric Dentistry as a specialty area of dentistry and medicine, both at the Hospital and in Australia.

Witness to the History of Australian Medicine