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Birmingham Accident Hospital

Hi,Yes think you right about the nurse.Tommy Nolan took me on driving course from Bristol road. The station officer when I first started there was Mr Moxon.He was a little man full of his own self importance.I then went on the Reds stationed at Harborne,After that up to Chelmsley Wood.There was some real good people at Bristol road,had good time there,Always wanted to go on Red 45,they never worked a night shift, the ordinary crews took over at 10pm. I was at Bristol road when they were actually building the Fire Station at the back. The Ambulance control then was at A1 central Fire station, Dated few of the control girls.
 
I was sent to the Accy from Nuneaton Manor Hospital were I had a RTA on the 20th October 1968 my surgeons name was Mr Porter who saved my left leg. I have fond memories of ward 12a and all the kind staff who looked after me and being woken up by the workers next door at Davenports. Doctor Porters son (I think also became a surgeon). I also remember the lift boy who used to try and cheer me up as I went to the operating theatre I was only 18 smashing lad who was very disabled himself.
 
Yes there was very good staff at the Accy, When R.T.A in city would normally take casuality to nearest hospital accident department,but if thought injuries warrented would go direct to Accident hospital, There major injuries unit was top class.
 
s. Doctor Porters son (I think also became a surgeon).

Hi Smithy,

There was a surgeon, Keith Porter, at the Accident Hospital and he operated on my wife replacing her right shoulder after she had broken it in a fall. He moved to Selly Oak Hospital when the Accy closed and worked in The Centre for Defence Medicine (I think that is what it is called) looking after all the wounded from Iraq and Afghanistan. It has now moved to the new Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham and Keith Porter is still there. He was knighted in this years Birthday Honours and is now Sir Keith Porter. It is an honour well deserved.

He could well be the son of the surgeon who operated on yourself.

Old Boy
 
Old Boy, I think that you are right. I came into contact with Keith in many cases. He was a true gentleman, calm & steady under pressure, and put great faith and trust in even the newest of A&E Ambulance Crews. He knew that they were "out there" daily, making life or death decisions in ciurcumstances far removed from the Clean, Clinical, well staffed and serviced conditions of the Casualty Dept. He was not so impressed, however, with the bombastic,beaurocratic Accountants who took over the running of the WMAS when it became the privatised 'Trust'. He backed me on many Disciplinery hearings that I attended as a NUPE Steward.
Yes, he is involved in the Military Unit at Selly Oak. S.O. H. was his main base for years. He is a legend amongst those who know.....!
 
HOW NICE TO READ ABOUT THE OLD "accy"...i was in and out of there as a kid ...and worked in hospitals when i left school and yes the matron ruled ....
 
Old Boy, Keith Porter definitely deserves his honour, as well as being an outstanding surgeon,he is a genuinely nice person - even to very junior nurses in his A&E dept, as I know from experience!! And Sandra, the Matron very definitely ruled, pity it's not the same now, there wouldn't be half of the problems in hospitals!
Sue
 
Hi Sue,

Everyone I know who has experience of hospitals as we once knew them says that they should never have got rid of the Matrons. Why cannot those in power realise this and reinstate them?

Old Boy
 

My wife was a junior Doctor working for Mr London, back inthe days when junior Doctors worked a one hundred hour week.

She says he was a very inspiring person, completely dedicatedto his job.

He developed pioneering treatments and procedures for accidentvictims, which became bench mark treatments for other hospitals.

He never lost a day from work, and was always available anytime of day or night, a true mentor and lead by example.
 
Mr London was pioneer in the vision that the care of accident victim started at the scene of accident.He took time to give lectures to Ambulance staff. in the days that the training was very basic. His support was for the future vision of Ambulance service was vital in the early days. The comments about Matron are correct,But the ward sisters and staff nurses were also so dedicated to there work,
 
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I remember a visit from Roy Hattersley in 1989, and his kind words. He wished every success to those of us fighting to keep the Service in the NHS, free at the point of use, in the Spirit of The Attlee Govt. The Senior Surgeons in B'ham like Keith Porter, knew of the neccesity of having a quick response Ambulance Service, whose Staff had that keen sense of intuition that would give the best to the Public, and not a slavish adherance to Management Protocols. In this vein, many Surgeons & Doctors have given their free time to help Ambulance Training.
 
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Birmingham Accident Hospital, originally Queens Hospital was founded in 1840 by William Sands Cox. It opened on Bath Row in 1841 with Queen Victoria and the Dowager Queen Adelaide agreeing to be patrons.
During WW1 a soldiers ward was was established and many troops were treated there. In 1934 The Queens was amalgamated with the General Hospital and in 1941 it was re-named The Accident Hospital , known to brummies as The Acci.

Edit. Please see this thread for Queens Hospital discussion.https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/index.php?threads/queens-hospital.7149/#post-594271
 
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bgr.jpegThe Rockin' Berries presenting a cheque for the Accident Hospital in 1981.
 
Hi Sue, I was at Chelmsley Wood Ambulance Station at that time, I remember many names from Bristol road, It all went under reorganisation in late 70s, But names you mention do not unfortunatly recall, Tommy Nolan was one of my leaders when at Bristol road, There is great book called Blue lights and Long Nights ,Written by Birmingham Ambulance driver from 1970s, HE was friend of mine, Barry

Hi Barry,
Book you mention was written by Les Pringle. I worked with him at Henrietta street station for years, different shifts but I knew him well. Tommy Moran ... I laugh now, but he made my life hell in '74 when I joined. Him and another LAM Archie Aston, two of the most miserable individuals ever put on this earth haha. Yes I remember Tommy Nolan also, pretty much founded the driving school for the service. Guy on my shift called Tony Mollineux (I think that's how it was spelt) became a driving instructor under Tommy, learned a lot about the "Driving System" from that fella...... I became his project for his teaching skills haha. Stan.
 
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