A. Stewart Mm‘Dtmuld DEC, M.D. C..M.

Section 9 ASSISTANT - Q.E.H.

I retired from the Department of Veterans Affairs at the age of 70 years. At that time, the age of retirement was 65 years, but I was kept on year after year until the age of 70. The question arose, “What was I going to do?” It is difficult for an active person to lie down, awaiting the Grim Reaper, but I had assisted in surgery for the past 27 years and was working in the Emergency Department.

I was Chief of Staff at the Prince Edward Island Hospital at the time, so I followed the staff out to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital a month after I retired, and worked in the Emergency Department, as time was given to each General Practitioner. There was no limit to age, and each Doctor not only took his or her turn, which was a 12 hour stretch and we were not paid for sleeping in bed on duty, but paid for each case seen. The doctors not only did their turn, but they did not want anyone getting more than their required hours.

Although I have an office in the house and I still saw a few patients there, a great amount oftime was on my hands. The fact was, that I not only did my own turn, but filled in for any Doctor who wished to get me to fill in for them, which was quite often, especially for Dr. Beck and Dr. Saunders, and any one else who wished to have some time off.

When I was free I assisted in the Operating Room. This meant that l was making much more money than I ever got at the Department of Veterans Affairs. 1 saw a great number of patients and only one patient I knew ofthat made a complaint, although no one refused my service.

Some ofthe doctors were complaining that l was

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