The Australian Cranio-Facial Unit 1974-1994

This paper addresses the beginnings of the Australian Cranio-Facial Unit in the early 1970's and traces its evolution over the next twenty years. The structural developments are seen against the background of the state of knowledge at the time and the real and perceived needs of patients and communities for this form of health care. The development of the unit can be examined not only by reference to its size and workload but also by reference to parallel developments in the diagnosis, investigation and treatment of craniofacial conditions. An appropriate political and administrative climate is necessary for the establishment of a structure that can deliver this type of health care to a community. Once that has been achieved, progress can be made on the clinical and wider scientific front. In addition to reviewing the factors influencing the Australian Cranio-Facial Unit's establishment and how it was achieved, selected cases are reviewed that are representative of the milestones in the progress to the present position. These milestones are organizational, surgical, technical, in data collection, and philosophical, and deal with access to, and relationships with, other specialists and other communities.