Dr. Lindsay andhiswifeAlice (front row, 3rdand4th fromright)with colleagues inChengdubefore their return toCanada in1950. Photo: University of Toronto Archives Dr. Lindsay receivinganhonoraryDoctorofLawsdegree fromUofTin1945. Photo: University of Toronto, Dentistry Museum Collection Dr. Lindsay played a significant role in the administration of the university and supported its growth as an educational institution. He took on the role of vice-chancellor. He served as a member of the Board of Governors of the university and as the last chairman of the council. Even with his administrative and teaching duties, Dr. Lindsay still found time to publish books, articles, and editorials on dental education and practise in dental journals in China, Canada, and the US. He also translated Frederick Bogue Noyes’ dental histology textbook into Chinese. Continued Scholarship Each time Dr. Lindsay returned to Canada for sabbaticals, he raised funds to continue the work he was doing in China and invited other dentists to join him there. He also conducted professional research and continued his graduate education. In 1928, he obtained a Bachelor of Dental Science and wrote a thesis called “Direct Approach Mandibular Block,” which revolutionized local anesthesia of the mandible. “He may not have been the first to advocate the direct approach technique, but he was the first to systematically dissect and portray the retro-molar anatomy in clear and readily understood line drawings,” wrote dental historian Dr. P. Ralph Crawford, CDA president 1984–85. The technique is still widely used around the world. In 1936, Dr. Lindsay was awarded an MSc in Dentistry by U of T. Then in 1937, he was recognised as one of the top four aestheticians of the Direct Approach Technique in Mandibular Block Anesthesia by the American Dental Association. The Sino-Japanese war, from 1937 to 1945, was a difficult and chaotic time. There was an exceptionally high inflation rate of approximately 600%. An operating chair and unit, previously priced at NC$850 before the war, skyrocketed to NC$11,000. For Dr. Lindsay and other members of the missionary community in Chengdu, the situation was dire. They sold their clothes and personal possessions to meet their basic needs. In a 1944 interview, Dr. Lindsay recalled, “I sold my old, second-hand bicycle for NC$15,000, only to find that someone was willing to pay NC$20,000 for it the very next day.” At that time, bicycles were rare in China and whenever Dr. Lindsay rode it, he attracted the attention of curious onlookers. In June 1939, West China Union University was badly damaged in an air strike by Japanese bombers. Despite the challenges and suffering they had faced in war-torn China, both Dr. Lindsay and Alice wanted to carry on with their mission in China. The reporter wrote that “his eyes lighted at the thought of returning.” Dr. Lindsay and Alice returned to Canada in 1944, not directly because of the war, but instead because inflation prompted the university to grant furloughs to staff. When students learned of the Lindsays’ departure, they expressed their appreciation in a letter that read in part, “…you have done a lot to benefit us by establishing the Dental Department in the University from this we learn new knowledge and new sciences, which we use … to serve our country. We appreciate so much that we do not even know how to express our gratitude to you, the founder of dentistry in China.” In 1945, U of T conferred the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws on Dr. Lindsay for the study and organization of the system of dental education and practise most suitable to the needs of China. In 1946, Dr. Lindsay founded the Dental Journal of West China Union University, the first dental journal in China. 33 Issue 2 | 2024 | Issues and People
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