MacEachern, Malcolm Thomas, 1881-1956
Dates
- Existence: 1881 - 1956
Biography
Malcolm Thomas MacEachern was born August 27, 1881, at Argyle, Ontario, Canada, the son of Hector G. and Ann (Smith) MacEachern. MacEachern took a diploma in 1901 from Lindsay (Ontario) High School and then taught in area secondary schools between 1902 and 1906. He took his M.D. and C.M. degrees from McGill University in 1910 and served at the Montreal Maternity Hospital as a resident (1910-1911) and medical superintendent (1911-1913). He was general superintendent of the Vancouver General Hospital between 1913 and 1922 and then became director general of the Victorian Order of Nurses for Canada. In 1923 MacEachern accepted appointment as associate director and director of hospital activities of the American College of Surgeons, headquartered in Chicago. He became chairman of the American College of Surgeon’s administrative board in 1935, director of that organization in 1949, and director emeritus in 1950. MacEachern was a forceful proponent for the development of hospital standardization, inspection, and certification as mechanisms for the improvement of medical care. He founded in 1943 the Program in Hospital Administration at Northwestern University and directed that program from its inception to 1955. He also was an associate professor of medicine at the Northwestern University Medical School from 1943 to 1948. Other teaching appointments included a lectureship in hospital administration at the Cook County (Illinois) School of Nursing and a professorship in hospital administration at DePaul University’s School of Nursing Education.
MacEachern was active professionally in, among other organizations, the American Hospital Association; the American College of Hospital Administrators; the Western, Inter-American, and International Hospital Associations; and the Tri-State Hospital Assembly. He served as president of the American Hospital Association (1924-1925), the Chicago Medical Society (1946-1947), and the American Protestant Hospital Association (1949-1950).
A frequent speaker before professional associations, MacEachern also was a writer and editor. He was a member of the editorial board of The Modern Hospital and the author of two books, Hospital Organization and Management (1935) and Medical Records in the Hospital (1937). He also wrote a revision of Thomas Ritchie Ponton’s The Medical Staff in the Hospital (1953).
MacEachern was the recipient of many awards and recognitions including the first Award of Merit (1939) given by the American Hospital Association for outstanding contributions to hospital advancement. He also received the Golden Key of Merit from the American Congress on Physical Therapy (1940), the City of Winnipeg Crest for outstanding contributions to human welfare (1950), a resolution of commendation from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals, a citation from the Comité des Hôpitaux du Quėbec, an honorary doctor of science degree in hospital administration from Marquette University (1925) and an honorary doctor of laws degree from McGill University (1950).
MacEachern died at his home in Chicago on February 3, 1956, following a cerebral hemorrhage. He was survived by his wife, Fannie Brandon MacEachern, and a daughter, Frances Isobel Mackie.