Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Brian Leslie Cornish AM, RFD, ED, MBBS(Adel), FRCS(Edin), FRCS, FRACS, FA(Orth)A         By Robert Bauze

Brian Cornish was born in the small town of Blyth in the Clare Valley, South Australia and reared on a cereal farming block at nearby Kybunga.  Primary schooling was in Kybunga with one teacher and 28 pupils. In 1936 the family moved to a grazing property about 11 km from Coleraine Victoria. Brian, with a bursary, completed high school as a weekday border at the Presbyterian College in Hamilton, 35 km from the family property. With support from a maternal uncle, in 1942 he enrolled in Medicine at The University of Adelaide, graduating in 1947.

He represented the university in hockey and at an intervarsity competition in Hobart he met a nurse, Betty Cheek. In 5th year he somehow achieved a student attachment at Royal Hobart Hospital, renewing his acquaintance with Betty. The two interests combined again in his first year after graduation when he represented SA in the national hockey championships in Tasmania.

Brian’s junior year at RAH was followed by a year of Army service in the Occupation Force in Japan, ending as temporary Major.  There followed 6 months at Adelaide Children’s Hospital and, in December 1950,  marriage to Betty Cheek and a move to Victoria where Brian worked for a year as a medical officer on the Kiewa hydroelectric scheme.

 The next 3 years saw them in Adelaide, Brian as a surgical registrar at RAH. He was particularly influenced in trauma management by prominent surgeon and anatomist, Russel Barbour (whom he referred to as “my pin-up boy”) with his maxim of - “Put the bones straight boy!”. In 1955 they travelled to UK where he quickly passed the Fellowship examinations of Royal Colleges of Surgeons of Edinburgh and of England before working for a year in Walthamstow, London.

 Returning to Australia, Brian took a position as a GP/General Surgeon, back in Hamilton during which he gained Fellowship of Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and periodically visited Barbour at RAH. In 1959, with 4 children, they settled in Adelaide. Brian was now an orthopaedic surgeon, with an honorary sppointment at RAH, consulting in Barbour’s rooms. His skills as a surgeon and a negotiator in 1961 helped Barbour establish the SA Spinal Injuries Unit which he subsequently led for 20 years. Acute and rehabilitation management came under orthopaedic care. The paralysed were helped integrate into the community with his foundimg and leadership of the Paraplegic and Quadriplegic Association of SA. For the next 23 years he was active in teaching students and training future orthopaedic surgeons at RAH, and on three trips to Fiji with the RACS Fiji Orthopaedic Training Programme. He published on spinal injuries and joint replacements. Of particular interest: Traumatic Spondylolisthesis of the Axis: B.L.Cornish, Journal of Bone  & Joint Surgery vol.50B, No.1, Feb.1968, and The Viability of the Femoral Head Following Resurfacing Hip Arthroplasty in Humans: Howie DW, Cornish BL, Vernon-Roberts B. Clinical Orthopaedics &  Related Research. 1993;291:171–184

He combined a busy surgical practice with extensive community and professional involvement on Boards, including as chair: Bedford Industries, SA Branch of Australian Medical Association (President), Australian Orthopaedic Association (Vice President),  Medical Defence Association (Chair), National Committee on Spinal Injuries (Chair), Mutual Community Health Fund, St Andrews and Wakefield Memorial Hospitals,  SA State Statutory Boards of Physiotherapy and of Medicine.

 During the Vietnam War Brian’s sense of duty saw him serve twice for 3 months: with a civilian surgical team in Bien Hoa (1967) and as Lieutenant Colonel and Senior Surgeon of the First Australian Field Hospital in Vung Tau (1968-69). His Army service from 1958 to 1984 was recognised with the Reserve Forces and Efficiency Decorations. His military experience led him to streamline management of civilian casualties in Adelaide by negotiating for, establishing, then directing the Emergency Surgical Service at RAH (1975-77) where he championed delayed primary closure of traumatic wounds and initial high dose penicillin.

By 1984 he had been instrumental in amalgamating the orthopaedic surgery units at RAH into a department and encouraging the vision of orthopaedic research and academia as Chairman of the Adelaide Bone and Joint Reseach Foundation. He was then a valued honorary emeritus consultant at RAH, until 2000. In 1989 the Australian Orthopaedic Asociation presented him with its highest award – The LO Betts Medal “for exceptional contributions to orthopaedics”. Five weeks before his death he enjoyed the RAH Orthopaedic Consultants’ Dinner. (picture above)

The land was always in his heart. In 1972 he purchased a grazing property Boolara in Conawarra, South Australia, which he developed further with an extensive tree plantation. He soon had leadership roles – Chairman of Australian Forest Growers SA Chapter and Member of its National Board; and awards – National Tree Farmer of the Year (1998).

Brian Cornish’s service was recognised in the Australia Awards: in 1993 the Order of Australia Medal, OAM, and in 2013 - for service to medicine as an orthopaedic surgeon, to forestry and conservation, and to the community - Membership of the Order of Australia, AM.

He was always physically active and adventurous, attempting golf at RAGC, sailboarding or yachting on the Murray, crewing on the concrete-hulled Anaconda II in the Sydney-Hobart race; and curious – studying archeological artifacts at the SA Museum..

Brian leaves behind him a history of care and service, skills and achievement, and a lasting influence on all who knew him – patients, family, friends and colleagues, perhaps especially those juniors he nurtured and patiently mentored.