Critical Care Medicine

Article by Tanya Talaga, Health Reporter for the Toronto Star
Reproduced with permission - Torstar Syndication Services

A doctor with the soul of a teacher, a father who took great joy in his five children and his medical students, Dr. William (Bill) John Sibbald thrived on pushing forward those who dared to dream.

Sibbald was a founder of critical or intensive care medicine in North America — a pioneer of setting up intense medical units to treat fragile patients recovering from traumatic accidents, exhaustive surgeries or life-threatening disease.

As physician-in-chief at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Sibbald also presided over the hospital's critical care unit, which is one of the largest in Canada, with almost 120 beds.

Surrounded by family, Sibbald, 60, died of cancer at home Thursday, just days after he resigned from his position at Sunnybrook.

"I have met few scholars in medicine with his breadth and boundless curiosity," said Dr. David Naylor, president of the University of Toronto.

The two men were friends for nearly 20 years.

"Bill Sibbald was an international giant in critical care medicine — truly one of the pioneers in the
field."

Long before it was fashionable, Sibbald was drawing together physicians, surgeons, anesthetists, nurses and others and creating a team-based approach to treat medically fragile patients, said Naylor.

"He built the Critical Care Trauma Unit at Victoria Hospital, now London Health Sciences Centre, into a magnet for trainees from around the world."

The author of countless academic papers and the editor of many books, Dr. Sibbald's research interests and output was simply, "extraordinary," said Naylor. "Toronto was fortunate to recruit him."

Sibbald graduated from the University of Western Ontario's medical school in 1970.

He went on to specialize in internal medicine.

A passionate physician with a love of learning, Sibbald held a variety of leadership positions at London, Western, the U of T and at Sunnybrook.

"I'm glad people know of his international achievements," said his son Robert Sibbald. "But his greatest achievements were with his family. That's what he focused on."

Sibbald and his wife Connie spent most of their lives in London, Ont., where they worked and raised a family of five. Sibbald refused all offers from big health centres and universities in the United States because he wanted to keep his then-young family in London.

"He worked some pretty crazy hours but he still found time to coach myself and my brother Martin in hockey," said Robert.

Leaving London was difficult for the Sibbalds, but when the children grew older and there was the chance to come to Sunnybrook and the U of T, the family took it.

"He had a brilliant mind," said Leo Steven, Sunnybrook's chief executive officer. "Whenever I met him, he'd be going a mile a minute. He was constantly thinking of ways to promote medicine."

Enquiries, tributes and emails from colleagues all over the world have been pouring into Sunnybrook during these past few days, said Sunnybrook's Dr. Robert Fowler, who is Sibbald's friend and colleague.

Hospital staff are mourning his passing; the critical care unit he loved so deeply has been a "somber place" of late, added Fowler.

The chance to work with Sibbald was largely the reason Fowler came back to Toronto from Stanford University in northern California.

"He really had this genuine passion in what he did and it was infectious. He could spend five minutes with someone and he could fire them up to take on the world."

Team building to care for patients and mentoring medical students, health-care staff and aspiring leaders was a lifelong interest of Sibbald's.

Those who knew him regard this as one of his greatest strengths. "He made people more productive and enthusiastic about their own lives," said Fowler.

In his quest to educate the public on the importance of critical care medicine, Sibbald was extremely supportive in providing the Toronto Star exclusive access to Sunnybrook's staff and medical units. The Star series "Situation Critical" was published last November.

Sibbald continued his position at Sunnybrook until his illness made it impossible for him to continue working.

"He died at peace, surrounded by his family, after a very courageous two-year battle with cancer," said Naylor. "I miss him."