In October we had our class reunion from Glasgow University Medical School some 42 years after we qualified. We met for dinner at the iconic Central Hotel Glasgow for dinner.
It was an evening full of nostalgia and it was great to see old classmates, several who had come from as far away as New Zealand and Malaysia to meet up again. Our very hard, and long working hours as junior doctors, forged deep friendships and common bonds of respect. 120 to 145 hours a week was usual, and pay was one third of the basic rate after the first 40 hours of work.
We have had several reunions over the years and I’m fortunate to have attended all of them. I graduated when I was 22, on the younger side, since I went to university from 5th year rather than the more common 6th year at secondary school. At university, some students, perhaps looking for more academic or science based careers, also added science degrees and graduated later than 1982.
We had reunions at various life stages: early parent-hood around our mid thirties, settled in our careers, around our mid forties, around the age of early retirement in our mid 50s, and now with almost everyone retired in our mid 60s.
This was for me, the happiest reunion, because I was finally completely retired from medical practice. At the last reunion, around half of the doctors who had become GPs had retired. Although I was extremely envious of their new found freedom, I was determined to avoid the unfair financial penalty on our pensions and vowed to continue till the age of 60. Due to having a portfolio career, I did a step-wise reduction, stopping forensic/custody work when I was 61 and legal work when I was 63.
It took just over a year after that, before I was finally free of court appearances, follow up reports, and case decisions. It took many months to finally declutter my house and to dispose of my case reports and paperwork. Retirement is an event or series of events, but it is also a process.
The doctors who are still working were mainly in laboratory based roles, where patient contact is very limited, or in medical politics, education or academia, where there has been a long and competitive climb to the top. Some surgeons and consultants who have well established private practices are also continuing. There were very few NHS doctors still at “the coalface”. And to those few that are, I warmly salute you! There are real staffing problems and access to experienced doctors is so necessary.
It was uplifting to hear of the achievements of so many doctors. One Mauritian doctor had set up the first renal service with dialysis and transplants there. Not only had he spent years away from home as a student in Scotland: he had to return to London for years to gain the expertise to develop services and train people in Mauritius. My experience of Mauritius has sadly only been from watching romantic comedies on Netflix, but I do know where I would rather have been!
One woman had become the first female head of the medical school and head of the university Senate. This was smashing a few glass ceilings. This was all while working as a GP and bringing up a family.
Several doctors had great achievements in sports medicine. A daughter of one, gained a medal in the recent Paris games. Another has taken young women players on football matches abroad and attended Wimbledon as an events doctor. Some have been well known football and rugby club doctors.
When it comes to sports, there were several accomplished sailors and one woman who seemed quite normal in her 20s but who has transformed into Wonder Woman. She can swim, cycle, sail and do almost anything better than any man.
It doesn’t always work out for the sporty ones. One man had a terrible accident and sustained punctured lungs and seven fractures. He lived to tell the tail and is even back skiing. (He must be mad).
One woman had six children while working as a GP for over 30 years. One man had married three times. That’s optimism for you!
There had been huge successes in transplant and other surgery techniques from within our year group. One man had become the head of the NHS in England and you will have seen him on the television. Several doctors had fallen in love with people of different nationalities and moved to the other side of the world. Others were in Europe and Scandinavia, but not only changed countries but languages too.
Several people who started in one field or another changed medical careers completely. GP to Palliative care, GP to Psychiatrist, Surgeon to Radiologist, Surgeon to Politician, Psychiatrist to Research Fellow. It is difficult to change to careers in medicine because essentially you have to start right at the bottom of the heap again in another field of study, apprenticeship and exams.
It was with considerable sadness that we also remembered the doctors who have died. One died of cancer in his mid thirties, several have died of cancer and heart attacks around their early 50s.
As the years continue, I expect we will see a diminishing number of people coming back. Some will be happy to just be living their lives, some will find the journey and expense too daunting, some have family and health burdens of their own.
I remember the fresh, young, hard working, fun and idealistic people we once were, and I’m grateful to see that we got through our careers, had the families we wanted to have, and can have some time to ourselves at last.
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