Jim Dornan

James Connor Dornan (5 February 1948 – 15 March 2021) was a Northern Irish obstetrician and gynaecologist. He was also a professor and frequently lectured both nationally and internationally, holding the Chair in Foetal Medicine at Queen's University Belfast and that in Health & Life Sciences at the Ulster University. Early life Dornan was born in Holywood, County Down. His father, also Jim, was an accountant who served as the General Manager of the Northern Ireland Institute for the Disabled. His mother, Clare, was the first Occupational Therapist in Northern Ireland. Dornan attended Bangor Grammar School and from there went on to study medicine at Queen's University Belfast where he was mentored by Harith Lamki, Buster Holland and Ken Houston. Career Qualifying in 1973, he did his Houseman's year in the Belfast City Hospital before training in his chosen career. He once considered acting as a career. In 1976, he was seconded to Queen's University in Kingston, Canada as a perinatal resident. On returning to Ireland, he rotated around the north to complete his training and obtain an Honours MD from Queen's in 1981 for his research into Fetal Breathing. In 1986, he was appointed a consultant Senior Lecturer and subsequently Reader, before he followed Professor Graham Harley at the Royal Maternity Hospital.