Dr. Jim Dosman (BA’59, MD’63, MA’69) is considered the “Father of Agricultural Medicine” in Canada for his contributions to the health and wellbeing of patients in Saskatchewan and beyond. A highly regarded clinician-scientist, Dosman recognized a need in his home community related to health and safety in the agricultural industry and began investigating the impacts of respiratory diseases in farm environments. With the vision of putting his research into action, he shone a bright light on these pressing issues, raising awareness and developing programs to prevent and treat agricultural-related health conditions.

Dosman grew up on a Saskatchewan farm, attending school in Annaheim, Sask., before enrolling at St. Peter’s College in Muenster, Sask. He later attended USask, where he graduated from the College of Medicine in 1963. For four years he practiced as a family doctor before specializing in respiratory medicine at McGill University in Montreal. One of Dosman’s first respiratory research studies introduced the concept that grain dust can damage lungs, and his early work resulted in the Canadian Grain Dust Medical Surveillance Program, a historic federal program protecting workers highly exposed in grain elevators.

Throughout his long and impactful career, Dosman has led or been involved in the founding of numerous research centres, associations, and societies dedicated to agricultural safety and rural health, including the Canadian Centre for Health and Safety in Agriculture, now the Canadian Centre for Rural and Agricultural Health. His commitment to finding a local solution to a global problem has influenced health and safety in agriculture across the world. For example, he has worked with the International Labour Organization of the United Nations to establish an International Code of Safe Practice in Agriculture. This code has been translated into numerous languages and helps to protect workers in the industry.

Dosman’s many accomplishments show excellence in all areas expected of a clinician-scientist—clinical care, teaching, research, and administration—and his influential work in agriculture and rural health continues today. In 2013, he became certified in sleep medicine through the American Board of Internal Medicine and has an active medical practice in sleep medicine and research, working to expand health-care access in remote, rural, and Indigenous communities. In 2007, Dosman was instrumental in founding Agrivita Canada Inc., a not-for-profit company that established the Canadian AgriSafety Applied Science Program supported by Agriculture and AgriFood Canada, and he continues to serve as the company’s president and CEO. Throughout his career, Dosman’s accomplishments have been recognized by numerous awards, honours, and organizations, including the Saskatchewan Order of Merit (2005), Officer of the Order of Canada (2010), and the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame (2019).

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