“He was a great thinker and a mentor to many of us. For me it is a profound personal loss. He will be missed by his colleagues in the Department of Community Health and Psychiatry”.

- Prof. Wendel Abel

The man considered to be one of Jamaica’s most renowned psychiatrists, Professor Frederick Hickling CD, has died at the age of 75. Professor Hickling transitioned in hospital on Thursday after being ill for an extended period. The University community is saddened at the passing of another member who has made such an indelible mark on his profession and indeed the world. We extend our condolences to his family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time. 

This Wolmer's Old Boy studied medicine and psychiatry at The UWI Mona and undertook specialist training in anatomy at St Thomas’ Hospital Medical School, University of London. He later pursued postgraduate training in psychiatry at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital, University of Edinburgh.

Professor Hickling was the former Head of the Department of Psychiatry at the The UWI Mona from 2000 to 2006 and was the Executive Director of the UWI Caribbean Institute of Mental Health and Substance Abuse (CARIMENSA). In 2011, he was appointed Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry. 

Professor Hickling was well respected among his local and international peers, to that end he was elected a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association in 2008, he was also a Fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists UK in 2011. In the same year, this gem of a professional was appointed Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry at UWI in 2011. 

During his academic career he has authored and co-authored more than 100 publications and was the author and editor of six (6) books. In recognition of his contribution to nation building through the pursuit of his passion, psychiatry, in 2012, he received the Order of Distinction (Commander) by the Government of Jamaica.