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Harry Medovy
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Physician.
Born in Russia on 22 October 1904, son of Esrael Medovy (1874-1966) and Molly Medovy (1881-1974), he was one year old when his family moved to Canada to escape persecution against Jews. His parents settled in Winnipeg and he studied medicine at the University of Manitoba, graduating in 1928. He set up practice as a pediatrician in 1930, joined the staff of Children’s Hospital in 1933, and became Head of the Pediatrics Department at the University of Manitoba in 1954, a position he held until 1970. He has also served as Pediatrician-in-Chief at the Winnipeg General Hospital, where he also assumed duties as Director of Nurseries until his retirement in 1970.
In the 1950s, he began a crusade to stop young people from smoking. As part of his campaign, he targeted television personalities who, while on air, stopped repeatedly to light cigarettes. Medovy called on the public to write to celebrities and admonish them for smoking. One of these personalities was Nathan Cohen, host of the CBC’s 1950s show Fighting Words, who found out just how passionate Medovy could be on the subject. He confronted Cohen on air, warning him that he was sending out a bad message. Cohen quit smoking.
Throughout his lengthy career, Medovy remained devoted to the welfare of children. He was one of the first members of the medical community to urge parents to take steps to prevent small children from accidentally poisoning themselves with household products. He advocated the addition of vitamin C to milk and in 1950 he warned those living in rural communities that water from shallow wells caused blue babies because of the water’s high concentrations of nitrate. Two of his publications were “Blue Babies and Well Water” and “Cigarette Smoking, Lung Cancer and the Medical Profession’s Responsibilities.” He was active in the drive to get the Children’s Hospital of Winnipeg built, and he subsequently wrote A Vision Fulfilled (1979), an account of its history.
When he quit practicing medicine, he became a much sought after lecturer and travelled the world. He had one criterion for choosing which speaking engagement to accept, and that was whether there were concerts in that city he could attend. He was a musician who played his grand piano daily.
For his efforts as a children’s advocate, he received a Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (1977) and a City of Winnipeg Community Service Award (1979), an honorary doctorate from the University of Manitoba (1975), and a distinguished service award from the Manitoba Medical Association. He was made an Officer of the Order of Canada (1990) and received the Prowse Award in clinical research on diabetes in children.
On 28 October 1934, he married Mary Rosenblat (1906-1998) at Winnipeg and they had two daughters. He served on the Board for the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and the Eckhardt-Gramatte Musical Competition.
He died at the Health Sciences Centre on 10 October 1995 and was buried in the Shaarey Zedek Cemetery. There are papers at the Archives of Manitoba.
His articles for the Manitoba Historical Society:
The Early Jewish Physicians in Manitoba
MHS Transactions, Series 3, Number 29, 1972-1973 Season
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Harry Medovy House (671 William Avenue, Winnipeg)
Birth registration [Mary Rosenblat], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Marriage registration [Harry Medory, Mary Rosenblat], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Obituary [Esrael Medovy], Winnipeg Free Press, 26 March 1966, page 36.
Obituary [Molly Medovy], Winnipeg Free Press, 6 May 1974, page 35.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 12 October 1995, page 50.
Obituary [Mary Medovy], Winnipeg Free Press, 5 November 1998, page 39.
Dr Harry Medovy, FindAGrave.
We thank Jordan Makichuk for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 13 December 2024
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