2008

AIMS

- to update the KMS database, deleting names of those who have died or moved away to work elsewhere
- thereby to achieve better communication & participation in KMS functions.

Method

A letter requesting verification of home postal addresses and e-mails was printed with a tear off reply slip.
These, with an addressed (but not stamped) envelope to return to me, were included with the New Year paper newsletter.
200 were printed. Known inappropriate names on the old database were deleted. 193 copies were posted out.

Results:

a) returns - 85 slips returned, 6 of which were from medical" couples".
b) postage - 1 completely unstamped
     1 first class.
     40 second class -
     43 various: 42 surgery or hospital franks
     1 spouse's business frank .
c) courtesy -2 responders provided the information requested but declared themselves content with electronic communication only.
d) legibility - a challenge to transfer handwritten responses onto computer - only 4 e-mails bounced back as "undeliverable"!
    A note was put in the Easter newsletter to those affected, requesting clarification - only one person bothered to reply.
e) omissions - lack of response from some prominent past members was so striking that (despite my warning that no paper editions would be sent
    to unverified addresses)
    Barrie & Angela added extra names.
    These 15 (including 2 couples) were recontacted:
    2 provided home snail & e-mail addresses
    4 only provided e-mails, and opted for electronic communication alone
    6 did not reply at all.
    1 person clearly did not understand that "home" and "snail mail" contact was requested & bounced back a sarcastic e-mail.

Conclusion

1) Partial success but worth the considerable effort involved posting copies involves folding A4 sheets, putting in AS envelopes, printing labels, applying labels & stamps. Halving the number of paper copies to be distributed clearly saves time and money.

2) Undetermined. The number of newsletters known to be reaching members (& spouses) seems likely to be higher than before. Assuming non-responders are probably insufficiently interested in the Medical Society to support events anyway, then the proportionate successful delivery rate scores even more.

Audit of the Kidderminster Medical Society Database Update - January 2008 AIMS - to update the KMS database, deleting names of those who have died or moved away to work elsewhere - thereby to achieve better communication & participation in KMS functions. Method A letter requesting verification of home postal addresses and e-mails was printed with a tear off reply slip. These, with an addressed (but not stamped) envelope to return to me, were included with the New Year paper newsletter. 200 were printed. Known inappropriate names on the old database were deleted. 193 copies were posted out. Results: a) returns - 85 slips returned, 6 of which were from medical" couples". b) postage - 1 completely unstamped 1 first class. 40 second class - 43 various: 42 surgery or hospital franks 1 spouse's business frank . c) courtesy -2 responders provided the information requested but declared themselves content with electronic communication only. d) legibility - a challenge to transfer handwritten responses onto computer - only 4 e-mails bounced back as "undeliverable"! A note was put in the Easter newsletter to those affected, requesting clarification - only one person bothered to reply. e) omissions - lack of response from some prominent past members was so striking that (despite my warning that no paper editions would be sent to unverified addresses) Barrie & Angela added extra names. These 15 (including 2 couples) were recontacted: 2 provided home snail & e-mail addresses 4 only provided e-mails, and opted for electronic communication alone 6 did not reply at all. 1 person clearly did not understand that "home" and "snail mail" contact was requested & bounced back a sarcastic e-mail. Conclusion 1) Partial success but worth the considerable effort involved posting copies involves folding A4 sheets, putting in AS envelopes, printing labels, applying labels & stamps. Halving the number of paper copies to be distributed clearly saves time and money. 2) Undetermined. The number of newsletters known to be reaching members (& spouses) seems likely to be higher than before. Assuming non-responders are probably insufficiently interested in the Medical Society to support events anyway, then the proportionate successful delivery rate scores even more. The acid test will be in Paul Williams report to the AGM in autumn! Hilary Boyle
Obituary - Sam Wadsworth
Sam Wadsworth, a GP in Kidderminster from 1946 to 1980, died on June 13th. He qualified in Birmingham in 1938 and the first notable thing he did was to drive his open MG sports car into the canal at Tipton, trying to go too fast round a corner. He and a friend emerged unhurt but in spite of assurances to the Judge that he’d had only half a pint for lunch at Shifnal, he was fined £15, with costs, and lost his licence for a month. He joined the army in 1939 and married Lilian, a nurse, in 1940. In the early years of the war he served mostly in posts in the south of England but after D-Day he went to Europe with Montgomery’s army, meeting the Russians in northern Germany in 1945. He was mentioned in dispatches. The army in the war was a big influence on him; the attitude of just having to get on with things often in adverse circumstances. He left the army with a sympathy with what he called the 'poor bloody infantry', the people at the bottom of the heap who did all the hard work. The camaraderie of the war-time services was also something he carried with him into civilian life. After being demobbed he worked at the Women’s Hospital in Birmingham for six months but then he had an offer of a half share in a practice in Kidderminster from Ken Beatty who he had worked with in a field ambulance somewhere in Germany. In the days when ‘an assistant with a view’ was the usual thing, this was an offer to good to miss and so he bought himself in. Beatty and Wadsworth was then one of five practices in Church Street in Kidderminster. It was mostly working and middle class, patients on the ‘panel’, but there were some private patients who had their own better-appointed waiting room. Sam was not much interested in the private patients who mostly drifted away, and, unlike the great majority of doctors at that time, he supported the introduction of the NHS in 1948.	John Russell Ken Beatty Sam Wadsworth
The practice expanded steadily over the next 30 years until it was over twice the size it was when he started. Ken Beatty had to retire due to ill health in the fifties, but new partners were steadily acquired by the partnership until, by the time of Sam’s retirement in 1980 there were 6 others; John Russell, Geoff Campion, Peter Dutton, Sylvia Dunn (part-time), John Wilner and Tim Wadsworth. General Practice in the post war years was, of course very different to what it is now. There were very few effective remedies and what GPs did mostly was to visit. There was negligible administration and the government’s only interest was that a GP was available; it did not dream of suggesting how the job should be done or dare to attempt standardisation. In the Asian Flu epidemic of 1957 Sam recorded an October Monday when he saw 101 patients: 47 in morning surgery, 36 in evening surgery, a little less than ½ of them with ‘flu’; and did 18 visits. In spite of these numbers, he managed to get over ½ hour for lunch at home and an hour in the Land Oak pub before his last 2 visits, arriving home at 9.30. Sam used to tell a story, before the NHS, I think, of an Irish single-handed GP in the town who was fond of the drink, as his patients were of him. When he was required to spend a few months at His Majesty’s pleasure for something drink-related, he stuck a notice on his surgery door saying: “Go and see Dr Wadsworth – he’ll look after you”. Sam did; and when this chap was released he gave Sam a crate of whisky for his trouble. Most of his patients went back to him. Obstetrics and Midwifery, sometimes involving difficult home deliveries, was a major part of General Practice and, in addition, Sam ran the antenatal clinics at the Croft Maternity Home from 1948 to 1976. There are many women in Kidderminster, now in their seventies, who remember the care he gave them 50 years ago when they had their babies. He was a founder member of the RCGP, attended a Balint group at one time, I think, went on refresher courses, and was keen on postgraduate learning, a large part of which was then done locally through The Medical Society. His close professional and social relationships with contemporary consultants, such as visiting physician John Malins, surgeon Bob Gibbins, orthopaedic surgeon John James, obstetrician William Kenny (at Bromsgrove) and others, were of great benefit to his practice and, indeed to General Practice in the town, fostering as it did excellent relations between the hospital and GPs. When he first came to Kidderminster he lived in Church Street next door to the surgery. In 1953 he built a house in Trimpley with an acre of land and became, with Lil, his wife, a plantsman and gardener, creating, over 30 years, a magnificent garden. It was a house known also for its hospitality and stimulating talk. From 1969 to 1985 he served on the Bench as a JP, which was something he enjoyed. He would often take the liberal view, sometimes in contrast to his colleagues and this was in keeping with his general belief that people were basically good even if they got into a bit of trouble now and again. He was sometimes disappointed, of course, but not often. “There is some soul of goodness in things evil, Would men observingly distil it out.” (Shakespeare, Henry Vth). He was an ardent Shakespearean, and I think that this quote is very apt and one of which he would approve. As a young man before the war he was an accomplished rock, ice and Alpine climber. His climbing companion was killed by a rock fall in 1947 and he didn’t do much serious climbing subsequently, but he did continue to be a great walker with a love of the mountains until well after his retirement. He liked to take his family over Snowdon on Boxing Day or New Year’s Day, sometimes in the snow. At other times of the year, believe it or not, if conditions were right and there was a full moon, we would go at night. In his retirement he bought a lathe and took up metalworking, one of his projects being to make a telescope to observe an eclipse of the sun, which he did. In 1991 Lilian died and a few years later he moved to North Wales to live with the widow of an old climbing friend. Unfortunately he had a stroke a few years ago while driving back up to North Wales and had to return to a nursing home in Kidderminster where he died in June this year at the age of 93. He wanted to be remembered by a good party, with champagne, which we duly had.
Thanks For The Memories .......... There cannot be any readers left who do not know that I am retiring at the end of the month, and ceasing to be Med Soc newsletter editor. Sadly, no-one has been able to step forward as a replacement editor for me, so this will be the last edition. This editorial is therefore the last chance for me to send thanks to everyone, especially the social secretaries David Malcolmson & Paul Williams, for all the fun & friendship over the years. Thanks are particularly due to all those who have responded to my pleas for newsletter articles – especially Mike Ward, for whom it was something of a busman’s holiday to regularly rescue me from copy famine! I also wish to pay special tribute to Barrie Davies and John Wilner. With Graeme Wilcox, Barrie has been a driving force behind the newsletter from its inception. He guided & supported me when I took over from Graeme, and patiently explained the basics of computing! Barrie has since become webmaster, and maintains this role despite abandoning Kidderminster for the sunnier climes of Cyprus. He lays out the paper newsletter, a printed version from the website articles - without Barrie, we would have neither. My first attendance at a medical society function would have been my last had it not been for John. I had been a paediatric SHO at KGH (indeed, started the Christmas Shows in 1974) and worked GP locums in the town, so knew many of the faces and names at the first event as a member. However, I was the only Community Health doctor, and clearly outside the very close cliques which appeared to prevail at the time. John’s warm welcome and inclusion of both myself and Geoff was singular and has never been forgotten. Once accepted, society meetings were extremely friendly – no-one of course would fail to welcome newcomers now, would they? Again, thanks to everyone & my good wishes to you all for the future Hilary Boyle And Memories Linger on ! Editorial January 1992 The Society has for many years, changed very little. As we approach the centenary, perhaps we should have a good look at what we are doing and maybe involve ourselves in an updating exercise. As you probably know, at the last annual general meeting it was agreed to set up a centenary sub-committee which subsequently first met in November 1991.: One of the suggestions at that meeting was that, communication within the society could be greatly improved and with the centenary not far away, this would be a good time to act on this deficiency It was therefore decided to start an occasional newsletter and this is the result and I hope you find it interesting and informative. Graeme Wilcox Graeme and I had a great sense of satisfaction in getting the newsletter off the ground in 1992 and the camaraderie and innovative atmosphere that developed between us stretched further into the conception and formation of one of the first and most successful GP out-of-hours co-operatives in the country. Things have changed a lot since then; the unexpected and untimely death of Graeme in 2001, the millennium, the advance into the electronic age with the society website, changes in GP and consultant contracts with their financial and workload implications. Personally I am very proud of what has happened and to have been a part of it, but very happy to be away from it all and enjoying my retirement here in Cyprus very much indeed. But what I have enjoyed as much is the relationship that Hilary Boyle and I have had over the past 7 years. We can almost read each other’s thoughts to the extent that the newsletter and website have gone from strength to strength. It therefore saddens me immensely that, despite Hilary’s pleas, no-one has come forward to replace her as content editor of the newsletter and website on her retirement. I can do much - even at 2,100 miles - but what I cannot do is to cajole, encourage and persuade society members to put pens to paper and produce articles for the newsletter and website. This needs someone at the heart of the matter in the Wyre Forest and if no-one is prepared to offer just a small amount of time then it saddens me to see this as the last edition of the newsletter and the slow demise of what has been a very successful and widely acclaimed website. Barrie Davies