Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, Melbourne

Identity area

Identifier

daa/369

Authorized form of name

Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, Melbourne

Parallel form(s) of name

Other form(s) of name

  • RACS

Type

  • Medical

Contact area

 

Archivist

Type

Address

Street address

250-290 Spring Street, East Melbourne

Locality

Melbourne

Region

Victoria

Country name

Postal code

3002

Telephone

03 9249 1200

Fax

03 9249 1219

Note

Description area

History

The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) is a bi-national organisation administering training, examinations and fellowship services for surgeons in Australia and New Zealand. The College was established in 1927, and the first meeting of the College Council was held in Dunedin, New Zealand in 1927.

Geographical and cultural context

Mandates/Sources of authority

Administrative structure

Officer in charge: Archivist

Records management and collecting policies

The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons’ collections comprise material documenting the history of College and the development of surgical practice. They include records from New Zealand (some are held in Wellington) and from the Australian regional offices. Some records of individual surgeons and related specialist societies are also held.

Buildings

Located in an award winning building in Melbourne's central business district, the main office was opened in 1935. There is also an office in New Zealand and branch offices in the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia and Queensland.

Holdings

Format: digital and physical. Significant collections include:

  • Fellowship and biographical files, 1926- present
  • Photographs, 1930- present
  • Minutes and agenda papers, 1926- present
  • Correspondence files, 1930- present
  • Archibald Watson: Diaries and correspondence, 1882-1940
  • Queen Mary’s Hospital, Sidcup, United Kingdom: Watercolours of facial injuries etc by Daryl Lindsay and individual case files, 1916-1919
  • Heidelberg Hospital, Melbourne: B K Bank wartime and post WW II plastic surgery records, 1943-1967
  • Road trauma, c1965- present.

Finding aids, guides and publications

Milford, E and Watters, D, editors, 'Anzac Surgeons of Gallipoli', 2015.
Beasley, A W, 'The Mantle of Surgery', 2002.
Beasley, A W, 'Portraits at the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons', 1993.

Access area

Opening times

Open Monday to Thursday 8.30am-4.30pm.

Access conditions and requirements

Upon request, RACS is able to provide reference and research services to Fellows, trainees and members of the public. Fellows of RACS are welcome to visit the Archives during opening hours. Others can visit the Archives by appointment. Applications to view records less than 30 years old will be assessed on a case by case basis.

Archives staff can conduct biographical research about deceased Fellows of RACS but, in accordance with privacy legislation, information about living Fellows will not be provided without permission. Biographical information can also be viewed via 'in memoriam' on the website.

Accessibility

Limited disabled access.

Services area

Research services

See Access conditions and requirements above.

Reproduction services

Public areas

Control area

Description identifier

Institution identifier

Rules and/or conventions used

Status

Level of detail

Dates of creation, revision and deletion

Revised 20 March 2018

Language(s)

Script(s)

Sources

Maintenance notes

Access points

Access Points

  • Education (Thematic area)
  • Medicine and Health (Thematic area)
  • Clipboard

Primary contact

250-290 Spring Street, East Melbourne
Melbourne, Victoria 3002