Foreword
The University of Exeter’s Postgraduate Medical
Institute started 50 years ago in 1963. This was obviously important to
Exeter but it had much wider significance because of its impact on
postgraduate medical education throughout England both at the time and
subsequently.
My interest was whetted some years ago, when
store-rooms in the former Exeter Postgraduate Centre were being cleared
of files of old correspondence which were about to be destroyed. On
looking through them it was clear these were letters written in the lead
up to foundation of the Institute. They made fascinating reading about
the problems the founding fathers faced – and how they overcame them.
What became readily apparent was the effect the proposal to set it up
had on the thinking of Nuffield Provincial Hospitals Trust, as it was in
those days, resulting in postgraduate medical centres being set up
eventually in every major hospital centre in England.
Originally it was hoped by me and Professor Sir
Denis Pereira Gray that one or more publications might arise from this
material outlining an important phase locally and nationally in
postgraduate medical education that set the scene for development later
of an undergraduate medical school namely the Peninsula Medical School
as a joint venture of the Universities of Exeter and Plymouth, later
becoming the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry and, more
recently, their severance into two separate institutions. Some of those
who were involved in the early days have died but many others are still
alive and gave freely of their memories to supplement our own, the
correspondence referred to above and limited other written material
concerning the Institute. We had many cordial meetings together and
individually wrote a considerable amount by way of drafts of various
sections. Sadly, due to a combination of circumstances, it was not
possible to bring this jointly to a uniform conclusion.
In order to archive this material in a publically
accessible form for future historians and interested parties, I have put
together those things I wrote about. These will be progressively added
to the website over the next year. Plainly I have been much influenced,
and greatly helped in what I have written, by the detailed discussions
with Denis Pereira Gray. I fully acknowledge their importance but I take
full and personal responsibility for what is written. In due course, as
the website develops, there will be opportunity for others to add their
own memories, to record their views and to make any necessary
corrections. All of these will be welcomed.
Brian Kirby
November 2013