David Butler-Jones
{{Short description|Canadian civil servant}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2012}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=May 2020}}
{{BLP sources|date=April 2021}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = David Butler-Jones
| office = 1st Chief Public Health Officer of Canada
| appointer =
| primeminister = Paul Martin
Stephen Harper
| successor = Gregory W. Taylor
| termstart = October 23, 2004
| termend = June 2013
| occupation = Physician
| birth_date =
| birth_place =
}}
David Butler-Jones is a Canadian physician and public servant who served as the first chief public health officer of Canada from the position's formation in October 2004 until stepping down in June 2013.
Biography & career
Butler-Jones was born in Toronto. In 1978, he graduated with a doctorate of medicine from the University of Toronto. He completed his residency in family medicine at Queens University, obtaining his Canadian College of Family Medicine certification in 1980. He also obtained a master of health science degree in community health and epidemiology from the University of Toronto.{{cite news |last1=Sault Star staff. |title=MOH named |work=The Sault Star |publisher=Southam Press |date=March 21, 1983}}
Having worked as a physician for a time in Newfoundland and Labrador, in March 1983 the Algoma Health Unit appointed him the medical officer of health for the district of Algoma in northern Ontario, including Sault Ste. Marie.{{cite news |last1=Sault Star staff. |title=MOH named |work=The Sault Star |publisher=Southam Press |date=March 21, 1983}} In 1985, he helped to lead referendums to add fluoride to municipal drinking water. While voters in the town of Wawa approved the plan, voters in Sault Ste. Marie rejected it for a third time.{{cite news |last1=Nichol |first1=Wendy |title=Sault defeat leaves fluoridation proposal a three-time loser |work=The Sault Star |publisher=Southam Press |date=November 13, 1985}}
In Algoma, he also helped to create a community psychiatric program to provide support for adults with mental illness in their own homes to prevent what he called "the revolving door syndrome" where people coping with chronic mental illness would repeatedly find themselves in hospital.{{cite news |last1=Lewis |first1=Karen |title=Psychiatric support program gains govn't funds |work=The Sault Star |publisher=Southam Press |date=January 17, 1986}}
In September 1986, Butler-Jones became the medical officer of health for Simcoe County.{{cite news |last1=Sault Star staff. |title=Butler-Jones going to Simcoe |work=The Sault Star |publisher=Southam Press |date=July 3, 1986}}
From 1995 to 2002, Butler-Jones served as the chief medical health officer and executive director of the Population Health and Primary Health Services branches for the province of Saskatchewan.{{cite web |title=Biography: Dr. David Butler-Jones Chief Public Health Officer |url=https://epe.lac-bac.gc.ca/100/202/301/chronic_diseases_canada/html/2010/v31n01/cpho-acsp/cpho-acsp-bio-eng.php |website=Public Health Agency of Canada |publisher=Government of Canada |access-date=16 January 2025}}
Previously, he taught at both the undergraduate and graduate levels and was involved as a researcher in public health issues. He was a professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Manitoba as well as a clinical professor with the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology at the University of Saskatchewan's College of Medicine.{{cite web |title=Biography: Dr. David Butler-Jones Chief Public Health Officer |url=https://epe.lac-bac.gc.ca/100/202/301/chronic_diseases_canada/html/2010/v31n01/cpho-acsp/cpho-acsp-bio-eng.php |website=Public Health Agency of Canada |publisher=Government of Canada |access-date=16 January 2025}}
=Public Health Agency of Canada=
As the chief public health officer, Butler-Jones was both the lead health professional in the government and the deputy minister for the Public Health Agency of Canada. Over the course of his career, he worked in many parts of Canada in both public health and clinical medicine.{{cn|date=January 2021}}
The chief public health officer was the head of PHAC until the 2014 omnibus budget bill, in which the government of Stephen Harper decided to reorganize the management structure of PHAC to institute a parallel presidential structure to govern the organization that then could be staffed by non-medical and non-scientific personnel.{{cite news |last1=Grant |first1=Kelly |title=Ottawa to limit power of Canada's top doctor |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-to-limit-power-of-canadas-top-doctor-the-chief-public-health-officer/article21550260/ |publisher=The Globe and Mail |date=November 12, 2014 |archive-date=September 27, 2024 |access-date=January 16, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240927163849/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-to-limit-power-of-canadas-top-doctor-the-chief-public-health-officer/article21550260/ |url-status=live }}
After a stroke in 2012, Butler-Jones stepped down as chief public health officer in June 2013 to focus on rehabilitation. He was succeeded by Gregory Taylor.{{Cite web|title=Federal government hasn't filled top doctor's job, 15 months later|url=https://ottawacitizen.com/news/politics/federal-government-hasnt-filled-top-doctors-job-15-months-later|website=Ottawa Citizen|language=en-CA|date=September 19, 2014|access-date=January 16, 2025|archive-date=March 9, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230309075215/https://ottawacitizen.com/news/politics/federal-government-hasnt-filled-top-doctors-job-15-months-later|url-status=live}}
Following his recovery, Butler-Jones has worked in a variety of roles, speaking, teaching and serving on boards, as well as advising on public health and health system issues, especially as they relate to indigenous health.
=Professional organizations=
In professional organizations, he has served as president of the Canadian Public Health Association; vice president of the American Public Health Association; chair of the Canadian Roundtable on Health and Climate Change; international regent on the board of the American College of Preventive Medicine; member of the Governing Council for the Canadian Population Health Initiative; chair of the National Coalition on Enhancing Preventive Practices of Health Professionals; and co-chair of the Canadian Coalition for Public Health in the 21st Century.{{cn|date=January 2021}}
Honours
In recognition of his work in the field of public health, York University's Faculty of Health and Carleton University have awarded him an honorary doctor of laws degree.
The University of Waterloo conferred a doctor of science degree on him in 2017.
He is also a recipient of The Canadian Public Health Association's R D Defries Award, its highest honour.
He has also been recognized by the College of Family Physicians and Scotiabank Family Medicine Lectureship and received the Medal of Service from the Canadian Medical Association for "his outstanding and exceptional contribution to health care in Canada" as well as the President's Award of the Public Health Physicians of Canada.{{cn|date=January 2021}}
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler-Jones, David}}
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)