Professor Hugh MacLean: One of the First British Military Research Nephrologists and the Pioneer of the First United Kingdom Veterans’ Renal Clinic

Few people have been as successful in bringing together basic research, clinical science and a contribution to military medicine as Prof. Hugh MacLean. However, today he is almost forgotten. During World War 1 practicing within the realms of the new field of renal medicine, with minimal resources and in a military hospital he conducted one of the first large scale Medical Research Committee’s investigations into war nephritis involving 60,000 subjects. After the war he set up and practiced, amongst other specialties, in the field of veteran medicine and established the concept of the one stop renal clinic. After achieving significant academic recognition he was unfortunately affected by mental health problems, possibly related to his war time experiences, which brought an illustrious career to an untimely end.