James Dermot Manning (10 September 1917 in Georgetown, British Guyana – 30 June 1989 in Wellington, New Zealand) was a surgeon, pathologist and public health administrator. He was a leading authority on the laboratory diagnosis of Toxoplasmosis.[1]
During the Second World War, Manning was Surgeon Lieutenant, RNVR 1940–1946,[3] and was on destroyer duties from 1940 until 1942.[2] He was based at Haslar Naval Hospital and St Vincents Fleet Air Arm Hospital at Portsmouth from 1942 until 1944.[2] In the final year of the war, Manning was in charge of the laboratory on the hospital ship Ophir.[2]
Post-war career in London and Nigeria
Following the end of the war, Manning took the position of Pathology Registrar at Edgware General Hospital in London in 1946.[2] In 1947, he went to Nigeria where through 1952, he was the Pathologist in the Nigerian Medical Services at Lagos General Hospital, at the Kano General Hospital[1] and later at the Medical Research Institute in Yaba.[3]
Career in New Zealand
Manning arrived in Wellington in 1953 to take up the position of Assistant Director (Microbiology) at the National Health Institute.[3] He became Director of the Institute upon the sudden death of Dr James Blakelock in August 1955 and held this position until 1970.[2] Manning started the New Zealand Reference Culture Collection (NZRCC) at the Institute in 1955.[1] This involved establishing and running both the general and reference laboratories for bacteriology and virology with a special interest in antibiotic sensitivity methods and a haemagglutination test for toxoplasmosis.[1] The collection was later designated as the national repository of organisms of national interest. The bacteriologist Sydney Josland worked under the direction of Manning at the Institute. Manning undertook a World Health Organisation Fellowship in 1966 and studied advances in laboratory organisation and methods.[2] Between 1970 and 1982, he was the Consultant Medical Microbiologist at Wellington Hospital.[2] In 1980, he became the first chairman of the Management Committee of the Department of Laboratory Services.[1] Manning was Clinical Lecturer at the Wellington School of Medicine in 1978 and became Clinical Reader in 1982.[2]
Manning was "a shrewd and exceptional clinician – highly skilled at the laboratory bench – an excellent committee man – (with) diplomacy and breadth of experience".[4]
Personal life
Manning married Grace O'Brien in 1943 and they had one daughter and four sons,[3] one of whom is the British New Zealand atmospheric scientist, Martin Manning.[5]