Wilbert Keon

Wilbert Joseph Keon, OC, BSc, MD (born May 17 1935) is a heart surgeon, researcher and Canadian Senator.

Born in Sheenboro, Quebec, he received a Bachelor of Science from St. Patrick's College, Carleton University and a Doctor of Medicine from the University of Ottawa.

After a period of studying and teaching at Harvard University in Boston, he returned to Ottawa in the early 1970s, Dr. Keon founded the University of Ottawa Heart Institute at the Ottawa Civic Hospital and acted as its CEO for more than thirty years until his retirement in 2004. In 1986, he was the first Canadian to implant an artificial heart into a human as a bridge to transplant. He still performs over 300 surgeries annually.

In 1990 he was appointed to the Senate by Governor General Ray Hnatyshyn on the advice of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, where he sits as a Conservative.

In 1960 he married Anne Jennings. They have three children: Claudia, Ryan and Neil.

Honours

 * In 1984 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.
 * He was appointed an Officer of the Order of Malta by Pope John Paul II.
 * In 1994 he was awarded an honorary D.Sc. from Carleton University.
 * In 2007, he was inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame.