Donald Mackay Medal

The Donald Mackay Medal is a joint Medal, which is awarded in alternating years by the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (even years) and by the American Society of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene (odd years). It is open for those mid-career or senior in their career and recognises outstanding work in tropical health, especially relating to improvements in the health of rural or urban workers in the tropics.

Eligibility and nominations

• The Medal is awarded in alternating years by the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (even years) and by the American Society of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene (odd years)
• Nominees should preferably be medically qualified, from anywhere in the world, but those in other disciplines are eligible
• Nominees should have conducted outstanding work in tropical health, especially relating to improvements in the health of rural or urban workers in the tropics
• In RSTMH years nominations should come from RSTMH members and Fellows ONLY
• Nominees should be RSTMH members or Fellows ONLY
• Self nominations are accepted for this medal

2024 Donald Mackay Medal recipient: Professor Lorenz von Seidlein

The winner of the 2024 Donald Mackay Medal was Professor Lorenz von Seidlein. He was nominated by Professor Nick Day.

Lorenz studied medicine in Dublin, trained in pediatrics in Miami, and in infectious diseases in Los Angeles. In 1995 Lorenz moved to The Gambia to work on the first antimalarial ACT trials (artemether- lumefantrine and sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine-artesunate) in Africa. Lorenz acquired experience in vaccinology at the International Vaccine Institute in Seoul, Korea where he coordinated enteric vaccine related field studies in Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, India, Pakistan and Mozambique. In 2006 Lorenz moved to Tanzania to coordinate a of set of trials to evaluate the malaria vaccine RTS,S/AS01. 

Since 2014 Lorenz lives in Bangkok working on malaria elimination including mass administrations of antimalarial drugs, in Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. With colleagues in Bangladesh Lorenz is currently preparing a mass vaccination with R21/MM and drug administration campaign (MVDA) to interrupt malaria transmission. Over the last decade Lorenz is collaborating with colleagues from Denmark, UK, Thailand, and Tanzania on the evaluation of health benefits of novel house designs in Tanzania.

“Donald Mackay worked on Health and Safety Improvements, disease prevention, and community health initiatives in what is now Sylhet, Bangladesh.  I am delighted that the society is recognizing the continued need for a range of interventions to eliminate and ultimately eradicate malaria. Immediate access to correct diagnosis and appropriate treatment wherever malaria is prevalent remains paramount.”

Professor Lorenz Von Seidlein

The Medal

The Donald Mackay Medal

In the wake of Dr Mackay’s death at age 61, his numerous admirers among his colleagues and friends in the UK and abroad contributed towards the Donald Mackay memorial fund. The fund was initially conceived to commemorate his life and work and to support medical education, training and research in plantation industries.

The criteria were ambitious: “innovative, practical, propagative, evaluable and designed so as not to absolve companies or governments of their responsibilities”. This proved challenging at a time of economic downturn and slashed funding for tropical medicine, together with potential barriers posed by shifting attitudes regarding foreign projects in the developing nations.

These factors led to donor recommendations for a revised focus on recognition by a prize and lectureship of leading contributors to advances in tropical medicine whose work had advanced the original memorial fund goals.

The regulations for the medal and technical details were shepherded by Dr David Bradley and the first award was presented to Dr Ralph Henderson of the WHO at Cambridge University in July 1990.

The award is for outstanding work in tropical health, especially relating to improvements in the health of rural or urban workers in the tropics. 

The medal, which is silver gilt, bears a likeness of Dr Mackay in profile on one side, and on the reverse is a representation of a mosquito with a background of tropical plants.

History and prize

Dr Donald Mackay

During his career, Dr Donald Mackay was a pioneer of early tropical medical care, particularly renowned for his work on improving the health of tea plantation workers in South Asia.

Dr Mackay was Chief Medical Officer of the Sylhet tea plantations of the James Finlay Company, originally established in Bengal in 1901. The Mackay medal is a living tribute to Donald’s remarkable life and a commemoration of his lifelong promotion of UK-US collaboration in medical education and research.

Dr Mackay, who was Deputy Director of the Ross Institute at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, died in 1981 after many years of outstanding work in tropical occupational health, especially on the tea plantations of South Asia. He was an outstanding physician, brilliant teacher, and a man of the greatest integrity and commitment.