Many of you working in global child health 鈥 whether you were serving within the NHS at home or in resource-limited countries 鈥 will remember Jean. Her uncompromising commitment to children鈥檚 health, neonatology, and paediatrics shines through a lifetime of contribution. In 2016, Jean was made an RCPCH Honorary Fellow 鈥 a much-deserved recognition of her unfailing charm and quiet energy, pushing the College to be and do better.
Jean鈥檚 life was marked by extraordinary variety and adventure. Whilst still a medical student, she worked with Save the Children in Jordan and, after qualifying, in Lebanon and Jeddah. In the UK, over 25 years as a consultant paediatrician, she dedicated time and skill to teaching and developing training programmes for young paediatricians. Her encouragement and guidance to younger colleagues was hugely valued. She was an inspiration to so many.
Jean was a long-standing supporter of RCPCH鈥檚 global programmes with a lifelong commitment to supporting Palestinian communities, families and children, both in the Occupied Territories, across the region and globally. She supported the College鈥檚 early programme interventions in the West Bank and Gaza, forging relationships with child health partners and supporting the development of RCPCH's programmatic support for children with disability in Palestine between 2014 and 2017. From 2005, Jean served as senior tutor for a child health diploma, which became the basis for a master鈥檚 in child health for doctors and nurses in the West Bank. She was a leading supporter of Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), becoming a Trustee and then Chair of one of its Board over nine years.
Jean was instrumental in establishing the College鈥檚 global partnerships in East Africa, playing a key role in rolling out and popularising the Expanded Emergency Triage, Assessment, and Treatment (ETAT+) training model, and adapting this for implementation in other regions including Myanmar. In recent years, rather than slowing down, Jean actually expanded her engagement with the College鈥檚 global programme, bringing a lifetime of clinical expertise and geopolitical insight to many areas of work. She led the development of programme protocols for improving paediatric care in Myanmar, supported developmental and disability screening in Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon (helping to navigate a complex local landscape), and developed an online neonatal care education and training package. From the committee rooms of the College to the refugee camp clinic, Jean鈥檚 untiring commitment to supporting others came with characteristic calmness, kindness, and clarity.
Dr Camilla Kingdon, past President of the RCPCH and fellow neonatologist, warmly remembers Jean: 鈥淛ean was an outstanding clinician and brilliant teacher. Her main impact probably and the reason we particularly remember her, is her enormous contributions to global child health over many decades. She will be sorely missed.鈥
A memorial service will take place at 11:30 on 5 March 2025 at St Mary's Charlton Kings, Cheltenham. Colleagues are welcome to join, or if you are at a distance as so many friends and colleagues were, please think of her fondly and celebrate her memory at this time.