Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Beckett, MD
Dr. Andrew Beckett wants every soldier and civilian to have the best chance of surviving a devastating injury in a war zone, and that means ensuring quick access to easy-to-use and effective blood products. A trauma surgeon for the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), Dr. Beckett has partnered with Canadian Blood Services (CBS) to redevelop freeze-dried plasma as a resuscitation product – one that has a longer shelf life, can be stored at room temperature and can be easily reconstituted.
In addition, Dr. Beckett worked closely with CBS to gain approval from Health Canada in October 2022, to manufacture and distribute whole blood, leukocytes reduced, exclusively for military use. The product will be integral in the resuscitation of traumatic casualties overseas as it is the only source of platelets in remote environments.
Dr. Beckett is the medical director of trauma at St-Michael’s Hospital in Toronto and is president of the Trauma Association of Canada.
“Lieutenant Colonel Beckett has been a driving force within the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) to develop and provide leading-edge blood products and resuscitation methods for soldiers on the ground.” – Lieutenant Commander Christopher Funk, CAF
Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Beckett, MD is receiving the John McCrae Memorial Medal in recognition of his exemplary service as a clinical health service member of the Canadian Armed Forces.