The Medical Council of Canada was established in 1901 by an Act of Parliament. Its purpose was to establish uniform professional qualification procedures in all provinces, maintain a register of medical practitioners and set standards for inclusion, establish a board of examiners, facilitate registration of Canadian physicians in the U.K., and promote consistency and cooperation in provincial medical legislation. Its membership is drawn from provincial medical councils, and from the body of practitioners at large.

J.C. Meakins joined the Faculty of Medicine of McGill University in 1909 as demonstrator in clinical medicine. He subsequently held a number of positions in pathology and experimental medicine before becoming Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, 1941-1948. As well, he was director of the Department of Experimental Medicine, 1918-1919, 1924-1948, and Director of the University Medical Clinic, 1927-1948. He held the first full-time position in Medicine at McGill. Dr. Meakins served in the Canadian Army Medical Corps from 1914 to 1919. He was also in function during World War II with the rank of Brigadier as Deputy Director of Medical Services, R.C.A.M.C. from 1942 to 1945, and was awarded the C.B.E. for his services. A prolific writer, his best known work, "The Practice of Medicine," reached its 6th edition in 1956.