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Doctors

  • Thread starter Thread starter Rod
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I belong and have done for many years, to a group practice which has two medical centres: one in my town and the other a couple of miles away which has good parking facilities.

Before the practice expansion there were just two or three doctors. When my second son was born, around 7pm. in 1968, our preferred doctor - with whom we used first names - came to my parents house, quite close to the local cottage hospital, to let me know I had another son. Not a common occurrence as far as I knew.
 
The good old days when you went to see your Doctor, look in your eyes and a look at your nails and your general appearance all helped with their diagnosis. Today unfortunately a lot of patients have to have telephone conversations. Sometimes you have to talk to the receptionist to discuss your problems before a decision can be made. After we left Hockley and Dr Target our next Drs were Ostrowski etc on Plough and Harrow Road and then Drs Phillips and Clarke on Weoley Castle Square. All of these were efficient if sometimes a little brusque but you had great faith in them. I am lucky as my Drs are now in Bewdley and I not yet failed to get an appointment on the same day even if it means waiting a little while in the surgery.
 
for the last 8months I have been treated by my doctor for various illness's, but only over the phone, if ill I phone the surgery, he phones within 30 mins, he issues prescriptions which are faxed through to my local chemists they deliver free within 24hrs, works very well, for me I go to the nurse for blood pressure checks and blood tests, really no problems as yet.Paul
 
Austin K2 what a great doctor to have done that. Glad everything turned out OK. Carolina our receptionists are not allowed to make decisions but just answer the phone and give out information. Paul our surgery is the same. You get to speak with a doctor the same day and they make an appointment to go down if necessary the day. I too have to follow up that conversation with blood tests at the surgery. This system has been in operation for about three years.
 
Glad to hear that Carolina. I was a medical secretary at Bewdley for many years before my retirement (almost 5 years ago now) and they were a brilliant team to work with.

Thanks for the memory.
 
Re Dr Aberdeen
Only just joined so a bit slow on this thread. We were patients of Dr Aberdeen in the 40,s and 50,s and my Mum also cleaned for him. I remember the small dark waiting room and the very long consulting room overlooking the garden. He would struggle to get up the stairs to see my Granny. He diagnosed her with appendicitis, she went to hospital where they told my Mum it was inoperable cancer, she lived about another 10 years in good health - he was always right!
 
He was indeed a remarkable doctor, and to think he was an engineer before becoming a doctor. We were lucky to have such a good doctor
 
angie said:
Anyone remember Dr Mcpartlin at Nechells in the early 70s,he was Irish and a lovely doc. :angel:
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I do remember Dr McPartlin, (Great Lister Street, I think) - although we lived in Stechford, my mother (who was also Irish) insisted we use him, being the nearest Irish doctor).
 
I didn't come to Birmingham until '63 and I think my first official GP was Dr Mason but since it was a surgery with several doctors I could wind up with Dr Maher (I'm sure that's how it was spelt) or Dr Wand. I'm still with the same surgery but I rarely use it. I'm told it takes two weeks to get an appointment.
 
I remember as a little girl going to a doctors in Ashted Row although we lived in Washwood Heath/Saltley. I was born in that area and many family members still lived there. The doctor that we saw in the "go and wait your turn" system,which worked, was Dr Hazel Topping and her dispenser that mixed "potions" was a woman called Ivy. I was fascinated by all the large coloured jars that she took measured liquid from to make up the appropriate medicine. Dr. Topping was my doctor for years but sadly I was told that she did commit suicide. What a great loss she was.
 
Those were the days when many doctors and pharmacies made their own medicinal products - not so much pre-packaged stuff then.
My last job, before moving to Devon in 1954, was with a large pharmaceutical company in Birmingham. I was 'learning the trade' so as to speak and was given some quite responsible tasks despite my age. I prepared and packaged items ordered by doctors and pharmacies. I found the work highly interesting and rewarding and was very sad to have to leave when we moved away. There were no similar opportunities in Devon so I had to seek work in other spheres. However those were the days of National Service so I opted for a short career with the RAF.
 
Dancing Queen, we had a Doctor Topping, but male in the 1950's his surgery was in Park Road Aston, he was near retirement then, unusual name, makes me suspect they where related. He lived in Wylde Green c/o Chester Rd/Birmingham Rd Eric
 
This thread opens up lots of possibilities. Our GP when I was young was Dr Ezzat. His practice was a fairly large but poorly adapted house on the corner of Court Oak Road and Tennal Lane. There were no appointments and you would simply take the next available chair and wait your turn. Good job we were trained to queue from birth! The waiting room must have once been a sitting room or perhaps dining room. The chairs were a random mix of wooden dining chairs, but none of them was particularly comfortable. As the buzzer went (I think it was a buzzer) for the next patient, we would all move along one chair. I can picture the room very clearly even now. There was nothing warm or inviting or interesting about it. When you were called through, you would walk along a short corridor and knock on the door of the consulting room, already slightly high on the whiff of antiseptic. Dr Ezzat was a large, fairly genial Egyptian who knew all of my family and was prone to give advice on a range of things, whether you wanted it or not. My clearest recollection of him is when he treated me for a severe gash to my knee caused by newly pruned and dagger-like privet hedge at my Grand-dads house. I still have the scar, but I did not develop an infection.
 
Yes, it was great not to have to make an appointment and possibly wait a week or more, just sit down and wait your turn, our Doctor (Freshwater and Morgan, forget who was first) had a large white Georgian house next door to Aston Church, king sized waiting room, comfy chairs and the usual magazines, sadly no longer there. This was in the 50's seemed much less pressure on the NHS in those days, probably because a smaller population. eric
 
Where we are now in North Devon we are very lucky with our choice of Doctor. However one post in this series brought back memories. Our doctor was Doctor Silk who had a sugery in his house on the corner of Chester Road and Antrobus Road. Once in his smoke filled consulting room it was Hello George to my father, Good Morning Mrs Davis, How are we all today? Then out came a packet of Senior Service, cigarette George? They lit up there were a few more pleasantries and then...who's got a problem today and diagnosis and cure, usually that horrible orange medicine and a bottle of the rose pink sweet tonic and come back in a week if it is not cured. Now it is via the receptionist and a nurse. Had my annual blood test and hypertension check yesterday. She called me perky and was surprised that I still worked and was heading to the gym afterwards. She was also surprised that I was using no aids or taking no pain killers for my leg broken last year, any problems she said. Yes I replied I was able to do a mile in fifteen minutes on the treadmill before the accident now the best I can manage is .62 in the same time. What can I do to speed it up? Just found out the guy who knocked me down and admitted liability...sorry mate I did not see you, let me help you up....was not insured, he thought his partner had dealt with the insurance.....tonight I did .83 in fifteen minutes if he asks for money for the fingerprints on his bonnet I might make a mile plus in 10 minutes

Bob
 
The horrible orange medicine was possibly Gees Linctus which was for coughs. The rose pin tonic again most likely Parishs Chemical Food. Both tasted awful but had to be taken - or else!
Some childhood things were great - Virol/Cod Liver Oil & Malt (which I still take), Scotts Emulsion (for eyes and brain). I was too old when the Ministry of Food concentrated orange juice was available, I believe it was for under fives.
 
Aston Hall Rd & Witton Lane.jpg Aston Hall Rd & Witton Lane (2).jpg hi eric is this your old doctors house..hard to believe that such a splendid building was demolished..
 
Hello Lyn, Yes that was my Doctors house of the 50's, lovely old Georgian building, why demolish such a picturesque building !!!. The 2nd pic shows the old Vicarage wall on the right another old building needlessly demolished, spent many happy visits there to various church and non-church functions. Happy days. downloaded pic 2, can see a painting there !! Eric
 
Dave89 said:
Hi,

When I lived in the Stechford area in the 1950's/early 60's,
our doctor was Dr. Segall in Victoria Road. He used to prescribe
Disprin for just about everything! I also remember
Dr Ozimek in Station Road, and Dr Artingstall in Wash Lane.

Kind regards

Dave
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13.jpg

I remember Disprin but have not heard of them for years now.
 
Does anyone remember Dr Sankaraya, my apologies if the spelling is incorrect. His surgery was on Great Barr Street, between Montague Street and Derby Street. You went straight into reception from off the footpath with his consulting room immediately behind it. The surgery was so small that you could literally hear everything that was being said by both Dr and patient. Not sure that this would work nowadays with so much emphasis on Dr/patient confidentiality, but back in the 50s nobody seemed to bother. I think his children (boys) went to a posh school on the Bristol Road junction with Priory Road.
 
Reddi said:
Does anyone remember Dr Sankaraya, my apologies if the spelling is incorrect. His surgery was on Great Barr Street, between Montague Street and Derby Street. You went straight into reception from off the footpath with his consulting room immediately behind it. The surgery was so small that you could literally hear everything that was being said by both Dr and patient. Not sure that this would work nowadays with so much emphasis on Dr/patient confidentiality, but back in the 50s nobody seemed to bother. I think his children (boys) went to a posh school on the Bristol Road junction with Priory Road.
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My Aunt Win's Doctor was Dr Sankaraya, but she lived in Bordesley Green. Surely there wasn't two Doctors with a name like that!
 
May not be the right person but in 1959 there is a Dr Hebbalalu Sankarayya listed at 156 Orphanage Road. Also listed at 724 Coventry Road.
 
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