Lives Lived: Dr John R. Taylor

John was born in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, on April 28, 1939. His father was a mining engineer and his mother was a home economist. The importance of education was communicated to him at an early age and as such, core values of hard work and determination have described his ethic throughout his life. John enjoyed academics and picked the career that would keep him at school the longest—medicine. He received his medical degree from Queen's University in 1963. During his internship, while rotating at Sick Kids in Toronto, he met the love of his life, Pat, a nursing student, and they were married in 1965. Pat later recalls that it was “love at first sight.”

After completing medical school and internship, Dr Taylor was concerned about finding himself trapped in a box like he saw many specialists, so he decided to practice family medicine for a year in Apsley, Ontario, to broaden his horizons but he soon realized that this was not his calling. After being inspired by Dr Tom Dooley, he and Pat traveled to Malaysia for two years with Care Medico, and worked in a government hospital in Kuala Lipis and later Kluang practicing general medicine and assisting in surgery. John ran a TB clinic and learned Malay during his time there. Pat worked as a nurse until their first child Cathy was born on May 1, 1966. David and Peter were born later in Toronto in 1968 and 1969. Later, Dr Taylor completed other overseas volunteer work and eventually became the chair of Care Medico Canada.

Dr Taylor returned to Toronto with the expanded family and started his plastic surgery residency in 1968. He describes his notable influencers not as mentors, but rather as heroes and they include Drs Hoyle Campbell, W.K. Lindsay, Arnis Freiberg, Hugh Thomson, and Lloyd Carlsen. Reflecting on his hero Dr Hoyle Campbell, Dr Taylor remembers that he was “someone that we admire for some reason either because of their ability or their attitude, their characteristics, or their qualities. He is the person I wanted to be like if I could be, optimistic.” John then took a position at the Queensway General Hospital and later Etobicoke General Hospital. He eventually started his own cosmetic surgery unit with Pat in 1991 which was the 11th of its kind in the country. Pat was a partner in this endeavor and worked hard to make it succeed. John also participated in plastic surgeon resident training in aesthetic surgery at the Toronto Western Hospital with Dr Arnis Freiberg.

Dr John Taylor was a Canadian Plastic Surgery pioneer. In 1989, he and Dr Leith Douglas with others created the Dr A Ross Tilley Foundation which has been providing scholarships for the fellowship training of plastic surgeons in Canada ever since. In the spring of 1993, Drs Taylor and Peter Wyshynski founded the Canadian Journal of Plastic Surgery which was later renamed “Plastic Surgery.” This journal became the official organ of the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgery, the Canadian Society for Aesthetic (Cosmetic) Surgery, Groupe pour l’Avancement de la Microchirurgie (GAM) Canada, and Canadian Society for Surgery of the Hand and was the first journal of Canadian plastic surgeons. John wrote insightful and bold editorials for the journal for many years. Two community plastic surgeons, Drs Taylor and Wyshynski, volunteered their time to keep the journal afloat in spite of chronic challenges. Thanks to John and Peter, the journal did survive and flourish. It continues to give Canadian Plastic Surgeons a voice.

John also had a deep fascination with history of the Canadian Plastic Surgery and plastic surgery in general. The Ross Tilley Collection at the University of Toronto Archives is the product of Dr Taylor's dedication to preserving history. Dr Taylor recorded the history of the Guinea Pig Club who were a group of former patients burned in World War II and treated by Dr A. Ross Tilley at the Canadian Wing in East Grinstead, England. Their courage and ability to survive with a meaningful quality of life after these devastating injuries, is a testament to Dr Tilley's treatment of burns and a part of history that John felt strongly should be documented and remembered.

John held many leadership positions during his career including historian, Vice-President, and then President of the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgeons (1996), President of the Canadian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (1992–1993) as well as a member of the Nucleus Committee of Plastic Surgery at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (1992–1996). John also held Chairman positions on the Ethics Committee ASPS, CSPS, CSAPS as well as the Secretary-Treasurer of the Canadian Association for the Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgical Facilities. John was recognized by receiving numerous awards including the Queen Elizabeth 25th Anniversary Medal in 1977, the Canadian Distinction Award in 1988, and the lifetime achievement award of the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgeons in 2009.

John loved to fly his own plane and had an airstrip in the backyard at the farm. He was the medical officer of the Air Cadets 164 Squadron for many years. John's plans to write the perfect murder mystery novel were never completed, although he authored a book “The Patient's Guide to Cosmetic Surgery.” John had a strong interest in the history of the Canadian Society and recorded the history of Fulton Risdon, Hoyle Campbell, and Ross Tilley, helping to maintain their place and role in creating the fabric and pedigree of our specialty. He was a consultant on the current history of the Canadian Plastic Surgery project.

John hoped that people would respect him for being a caring physician who followed the Hippocratic oath. He was an earnest father who tried his best to be open and bring up his children in a way that they could disagree on a topic but still share a mutual understanding at a very early stage in their life. Together with Pat, they dedicated themselves to their family and treasured their time together. John was always a devoted father and enthusiastic grandfather.

We are sad to report the passing of Dr John Robert Taylor on April 20, 2022.

Two of John's favorite quotes were:

“Never do today what you can honorably put off until tomorrow”

—Dr Harold Gillies

“We repair the body so that it may elevate the spirit”

—Dr Gaspare Tagliacozzi.

Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Pat, children Cathy, David (Cecilia), Peter, and his grandkids Taylor, Maja, Anna, and Isla. We will miss John's humor, smile, and chuckle! Some of us will miss his encyclopedic knowledge of the history of our practice. Thank you for all you have done for us, John.

John and Pat Taylor, 2016