Lumen Summer 2015 - Flipbook - Page 18
story by Erica Benn
Distinguished Alumni Award
Celebrating our
high achievers
Every year the University of Adelaide celebrates the outstanding contributions made by our alumni
in their specialist fields. This year Distinguished Alumni Awards went to four people who have all
tasted international success in their chosen careers – Professor David David, Philip Laffer, Frances
Adamson and Philip Wollen.
A pioneer of craniofacial surgery
P
rofessor David David AC is an
international leader in craniofacial
surgery who has transformed
the lives of thousands of people
across the Asia Pacific region.
He graduated with a medical degree
from the University of Adelaide in 1966
and continued his medical studies
in the UK before completing his
doctorate at the University in 1998.
But it was those early days during
his medical degree that inspired
David’s future career.
“The University was the leading
medical school with wonderful
teachers, particularly the Professor
of Surgery, Professor Jepson,”
he said. “We had access to a
fine body of academics who
participated widely in university
and community life.”
His fellow students also had
a lasting impact. “It was
at university that I first met
students from Malaysia and
Indonesia,” David said. “This
led to life-long friendships and
inspired my interest and work
in craniofacial surgery.”
For more than 30 years David has
been committed to craniofacial
surgery, a type of plastic surgery that
deals with malformations of the skull.
He established the Australian Cranio
Maxillo Facial Foundation, the Asian
Pacific Craniofacial Association and
the Australian and New Zealand
Society of Craniofacial Surgeons.
He has also worked extensively in
Asia, offering complex craniofacial
surgery to children from poorly
resourced areas and educating
medical teams in Indonesia and
Malaysia. In recognition of his work,
David was awarded the Companion
of the Order of Australia (AC) in 1988
and was named South Australian of
the Decade in 1990.
|e University was the leading
medical school with wonderful
teachers, particularly the Professor
of Surgery, Professor Jepson.
16 Lumen | Summer 2015
