Background
Fanstone was born in Brazil, the son of James Fanstone, a British Christian missionary to Brazil, and Elizabeth Baird. He grew up in Brighton in England and was home schooled by his mother until the age of ten.
Fanstone was born in Brazil, the son of James Fanstone, a British Christian missionary to Brazil, and Elizabeth Baird. He grew up in Brighton in England and was home schooled by his mother until the age of ten.
Educated in England. Bachelor in medicine and surgery, University of London, 1915, Doctor of Medicine, 1921, diploma in tropical medicine and hygiene, 1921. Doctor of Medicine, University de Minas Gerais, Brazil, 1923.
In the early 1900s he traveled into the interior of Brazil to live and work as a surgeon and doctor in the remote town of Anapolis in the Brazilian state of Goias, a remote region which had a population of over 500,000, but had no doctors and no schools. He built the first hospital in the region. He began playing the organ at the age of eight and became the organist at his local Sunday School.
He continued playing the organ in this type of role for the rest of his life.
As part of an educational scholarship, Fanstone learned carpentry. When he was 15 his father ceased his travel to Brazil, becoming instead a non-conformist pastor, and the family moved to the country.
During World War I, he treated casualties in Britain and later served in a field ambulance in France for four years. When the war ended, he resumed his training, and gained an Doctor of Medicine in tropical diseases from the University of London and a diploma in tropical medicine and hygiene.
He joined a mission, the Evangelical Union of South America, and studied theology for two years in Glasgow.
The Fanstones studied Portuguese and Jim obtained medical accreditation in Brazil. In 1924 they traveled to Anapolis, a small town of 2000 inhabitants in interior Brazil. They set up a medical practice and Jamese built a hospital with the help of local workers.
At the time it was the only hospital within 800 miles.
By the 1950s there were 100 hospital beds and about 1000 major operations each year. By 1981 there were 300 hospital beds and 200 nurses either serving or in training.
Fanstone was awarded the Order of the British Empire for his work. Fanstone eventually designed a six storey hospital building,which he built with the help of local workers trained.
The hospital had x-ray and other modern equipment.
He included a lake and tennis courts on the hospital grounds for recreation for their nurses. Wealthy patients were charged for surgery. The poor received free treatment.
Fanstone planned and supervised the building of other facilities in Anapolis, including church buildings and community projects using locally raised funds.
The also started a school and a college which were then run by local residents. The college they founded later became a university, called “The Evangelical University of Anapolis”.
In addition they set up a nursing school. Daisy died in 1971 at age 81.
In recognition of Daisy"s contribution to education, in 1971 the governor of the state of Goias named a new 1800 student capacity secondary school after her.
Jim lived to over 91 years of age. He co-founded the Help for Brazil Mission.
Member: Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (England), Royal Institute of Public Health (London), Rotary (president, Anápolis).