Wallace (Wal) Gladstone Grigor was born in a “cottage hospital” in Ryde, Sydney on the 9th December 1929, son of Bruce Grigor, Police Superintendant, and his wife, Edna Irene (nee Dean). Sister, Deidre, was born in 1934. Their ancestors, John Small and Mary Parker were First Fleet convicts who met after arriving in Australia on the “Charlotte” and the “Lady Penrhyn” respectively.

Wal attended Ryde Public School until 6th Class when he was selected to spend a year at the newly established Opportunity Class (OC) at Eastwood Public School. He subsequently attended Fort Street High School and was awarded a state bursary in 3rd Year. He was a member of the school debating team which won the City of Sydney Eisteddfod and he represented the school at water polo and Rugby Union in the
1st XV. He played at centre and at times second row, as well as being team goal kicker. He continued playing Junior Rugby for the Drummoyne Club (“The Dirty Reds”) with school friends and also represented RPAH in the inter-hospital competition during his residency.

He started Medicine at Sydney University in 1947 on a Commonwealth Scholarship and graduated with Honours in 1953. He was appointed to RPAH for his first 2 years residency and spent a third year as O & G Registrar at King George V Hospital in preparation for planned General Practice following a proposed 6 month term at Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children. He remained associated with the hospital all his active life. He was influenced by Sir Lorimer Dods, Professor of Paediatrics, and became his Registrar and subsequently Chief RMO and passed his MRACP exams at the first attempt in 1957. This was a considerable achievement for someone working in Paediatrics as the exam was conducted by Adult Physicians in Adult Medicine in those days. Some 30 years later, when President of the Australian College of Paediatrics (ACP) he played an important role in having Paediatric training and the RACP examination of Paediatric candidates under the complete control of Paediatricians.

In 1961 he was appointed to the honorary staff of the hospital (RAHC) and entered private consultant practice. He also had appointments to RPAH and St. George Hospital.

Although busy in private practice, he still made time to contribute to other areas of Paediatrics. At RAHC he was an Honorary/Visiting Medical Officer 1961-1998. He became a member of the Board of Management 1971-1989 and was Vice President 1984-89. He was Chairman and Head of the Department of Medicine 1981-1984 and Director of Clinical and Physician Training 1995-98, then Emeritus Consultant Physician. He was a member of the Board of Management of the Children’s Medical Research Foundation 1970-1989 and Acting Director 1979-1981.

From 1978-1994 he was on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee as Chairman, the first Paediatric Physician to hold that position. He was a member of the Child Accident Prevention Foundation of Australia (NSW Branch) and Chairman 1991-95. In this capacity he was responsible for the campaign to make fencing of domestic swimming pools compulsory. He also helped produce a booklet – “A Safer Home for Children”.

He also held memberships of the ACP (President 1989-1991) and also the Professional Services Review Committee, Canberra, Deputy Director. He was on the Board of Management at the Royal Institute for Deaf & Blind Children. He was Medical Advisor to the NSW Health Care Complaints Commission from 1995-2003.

For 15 years he was Paediatric Consultant to the Royal Flying Doctor Service and did Outreach Clinics in remote locations.

During the early 1980s, in his capacity as Head of Department of Medicine with Dr. Doug Cohen, Head of Surgery, he was responsible for overseeing undergraduate teaching and examinations at the Children’s Hospital in the period between the resignation of Professor Tom Stapleton and the appointment of Professor R.K. Oates to the Chair of Child Health at Sydney University.

Other interests included golf, as a long time member of Royal Sydney Golf Club, where he also played lawn bowls, live theatre, reading and music. He started jogging in 1967 and was very proud of the fact that he ran the 1979 City to Surf race in 60mins 29sec.

In 1986 he was awarded the A.M. for services to Medicine, especially Paediatrics.

Wal Grigor died on 7/3/2012 at 82 years. He will be best remembered by his many friends and colleagues in the Paediatric fraternity as an outstanding clinician – caring, considerate and extremely knowledgeable. He was a role model for younger Paediatricians and was doyen of Sydney Paediatricians for much of the latter part of the 20th Century.

He is survived by his second wife, Kate Jones, whom he married in 1985, his sister Deidre, and three children from his first marriage – Tony, Judith and Sally, as well three grandchildren.