SIR James Cameron, who died on Tuesday, could have made strong claim
to the title of architect of the shape of general practice in the
National Health Service, until the present Government's restructuring.
Born at Bridge of Earn in Perthshire in 1905, James Cameron was
educated at Perth Academy and St Andrews University, where he qualified
in medicine in 1929.
He had a distinguished war career with the Royal Army Medical Corps,
during which he was taken prisoner at the fall of Calais in 1940. From
1947, he was an active member of the British Medical Association,
becoming a member of the General Medical Services Committee in 1956 and
of the BMA Council in 1961.
In 1964, he was elected chairman of the GMSC to succeed Dr Alfred
Bentley Davies after Dr Davies interpreted a resolution on pay increases
at a BMA conference as a vote of no confidence in himself.
James Cameron oversaw a new era of negotiation with the Government
which ended the ''pool'' system of payment for GPs. He headed a
committee which drew up the principles of a new contract for family
doctors which eventually formed the framework of an agreement with the
then Health Minister Kenneth Robinson.
His achievement was recognised not only by the gold medal citation he
received from the BMA in 1974, when he resigned the chairmanship of the
GMSC, and the knighthood he was awarded in the Birthday honours list of
1979, but also in the establishment of a fund with the #800,000 surplus
from the ''pool'' system. Instead of dividing the cash amongst
themselves, GPs decided to use it to establish a charitable fund for
general practitioners in need, naming it after Sir James.
After failing to secure the chairmanship of the BMA Council in 1971,
he was elected to that post in 1976 at the age of 71, at a time when
Scots dominated the organisation, with Dr Jack Miller, of Hyndland,
Glasgow as treasurer and Dr Alistair Clark, Clydebank, chairman of the
BMA's representative body.
He held the chairmanship for three years and continued his association
with the many national and international medical bodies until his death.
His wife, Irene, died in 1986. He is survived by one son and two
daughters. A memorial service will be held at St Marylebone's church in
London on 22 November.
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