Dr.
John Havard
Class of 1994
Background:
John David Jayne Havard was born in 1924 in Lowestoft, Suffolk,
England. He was educated at Malvern College, then at Cambridge
University, Jesus College where the BA degree was conferred
in 1946, the MA MB BChir in 1949, the LLB in 1954, the MD
in 1964, and the LLM in 1987. He is a Fellow of the Royal
College of Physicians and was called to the English Bar in
1953.
Professional
Experience:
In 1950 he served as House Physician Professorial Medical
Unit at the Middlesex Hospital in London, then in 1950-52
he served in the Royal Air Force Medical Service. He went
on to become a principal in general medical practice in the
National Health Service in 1952-58. He was on the official
staff of the British Medical Association, from 1958 until
1989. During that time he became secretary (the chief executive
officer) of the British Medical Association, where he served
until his retirement in 1989. For his lengthy service, he
was awarded the association's gold medal for distinguished
merit. In 1960 Dr. Havard's book, Detection of Secret Homicide,
was published as a volume in the Cambridge Studies in Criminology,
and in 1984 he was elected president of the British Academy
of Forensic Sciences. Upon retirement, he went on to resuscitate
the Commonwealth Medical Association. Since 1986, under Havard's
leadership, the CMA has made great strides in strengthening
the medical associations in developing nations throughout
the world. This organization has consultative status with
the United Nations and has ongoing projects on reproductive
health and safe motherhood, the role of women in the prevention
of AIDS, and medical ethics in the protection of human rights,
all of which have attracted international interest. While
Dr. Havard's medical activity was principally directed at
health and public health, it was not without deep interest
in medical safety and highway safety.
Career
Highlights:
The United Kingdom became interested in the impact of alcohol
and other drugs on highway traffic safety in the early 1960s.
The British Medical Association, and therefore Dr. Havard,
played an important role in documenting the scientific evidence
to support legislation. He worked closely with Regius Professor
Sir Edward Wayne in a series of committees leading to the
United Kingdom Road Safety Act of 1967. This resulted in a
period of great productivity for Dr. Havard. A partial list
of his publications on alcohol and drugs in highway safety
in important journals numbers more than 50. One publication,
Research into the Effects of Alcohol and Drugs on Driver Behaviour,
conceived jointly by Dr. Havard and Dr. Leonard Goldberg of
Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden, deserves special
recognition. This publication was developed for the Organisation
for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Paris, in
1968. The European Conference of Ministers of Transport based
its recommendation for a 0.08% blood alcohol content limit
on this report. This recommendation had great impact in Europe,
also in Canada and Australia, and in some parts of the United
States. It is now included in the Uniform Vehicle Code of
the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Laws and Ordinances
(U.S.). Dr. Havard served as secretary of the International
Committee on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety from 1962-71,
receiving the Committee's Widmark Award in 1989. He was chair
of the International Driver Behaviour Research Association.
