Albert Baikie was born in Lowestoft, England, of Scottish parents. His father worked in the fishing industry, but came from a farming background in Thurso in the north of Scotland, and his mother came from Caithness. Albert commenced schooling in Lowestoft, but later he went to Glasgow Academy. His education was interrupted by asthma which troubled him greatly in early life. It became quiescent in his teens and early adulthood, only to return to plague him when he came to Australia in 1963.

His undergraduate training was at the University of Glasgow. He wanted to do two degrees concurrently, but he was prevented by wartime restrictions. He somehow managed to complete a diploma course in public administration while studying medicine.

After his internship he undertook full-time research in Glasgow, being awarded the Beit Memorial Research Fellowship in 1952, when he studied haemolytic anaemias. He became a medical registrar in Glasgow in 1955, but in 1957, he was invited by Dr Court Brown to be a member of an MRC team at the Western General Hospital Edinburgh, to research the clinical effects of radiation. It was this team which discovered several of the chromosomal anomalies including trisomy 21, although in the latter case French research workers were the first into print.

In 1963, Baikie and his family came to Australia and he joined the late Professor Carl de Gruchy's unit as first assistant at St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne, where he continued his research in cytogenetics and haematology, particularly the leukaemias.

He was appointed foundation professor of medicine in the new faculty of medicine of the University of Tasmania, and moved to Hobart in 1967. His unit was originally housed in a converted carpet warehouse, and there were major problems in developing his concepts of medical education and in continuing his research interest. He succeeded in establishing a viable and effective department in a remarkably short time through sheer strength of personality, determination and unquestioned ability. Despite continuing health problems, which he successfully concealed from all but those closest to him, he worked 12 or more hours daily, although he was prone to doze in lectures.

He was co-author of a book and wrote chapters in several others. He published over 90 papers in national and international journals. He was a dedicated, kindly doctor; a superb teacher, demanding high standards of work from his students; and a meticulous research worker. His administrative methods caused frustrations to the bureaucrats, as he refused to be hurried. Every decision or opinion was made only after thorough study and analysis of the problem, the result being a perpetual backlog of faculty and university matters awaiting his attention. He was formidable in debate as he spoke well and had an excellent memory for detail. He disliked humbug, and fools usually received short shrift, but he had a keen sense of humour which surfaced frequently when either strife or boredom was imminent.

Albert Baikie had interests outside medicine and in each, except possibly golf, he became remarkably competent. He valued medicine's rich historical background and he read and often spoke on this topic. He was very interested in music and art, particularly etchings, and he knew a great deal about the history of art. He enjoyed good food, liked wine and he made an interesting and excellent host. His wife Margaret, whom he met in Glasgow when he was a registrar, shared his interests. He took great pride in the achievements of his two children.

He was on study leave in England when he had a coronary thrombosis, dying following cardiac surgery. The University of Tasmania's clinical library is named after him.