My book has been privately published in South Africa. The print run has been somewhat limited as I have paid for everything. One of the problems that exist is that the postal services are non-existent in South Africa. My publisher is exploring the option of Amazon, who seem to have a delivery service, or doing an additional run of books for South Africa, available in Cape Town
I was wondering whether any members of the Class would like a copy during the reunion. If the class members could be canvassed, I could have an idea of numbers. I would additionally need an address for delivery.
The book is 600 pages long (I had to shorten it!). Walter Leventhal has a copy and could give an unbiased opinion if you contact him. Cost will be what I paid for it - $16.00. Shipping to the USA with DHL cost more than printing and processing.
John's email address for those who want to contact him directly is:
[email protected]
By John Odell
SOME BOOK CHAPTERS
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Feedback is welcomed and encouraged.
PLEASE EMAIL YOUR COMMENTS AND THEY WILL BE ADDED TO THIS SECTION
Hi John,
Only on chapter 3 and very much enjoying your story. You write very well, and am very impressed at the detail with which you can remember the first two years at medical school. I recall hearing stories about initiation at College House and was very relieved when I got into Driekoppen (Belsen) which had a reputation for being a bit tamer than College House.
Something has stuck in my head ré anatomy in second year and Oom Daan - on Main Road there was a huge Old Aged Home as it was then called. Behind the Old Aged Home was a big cemetery, and just above the cemetery was the medical school and the anatomy block. I shared a flat for a few years in a block across the road from the cemetery with, at various times, Malcolm Cunard, Ian Cunard, Ian Field and John Fletcher. Oom Daan used to go to the Old Aged Home to recruit donors for dissection. He once said to us - a natural progression from the home - cemetery - dissecting table!!
Looking forward to reading the rest.
Best
Garth Alperstein
Hi John
Enjoying your book immensely.
Long archived memories have been jogged…..the advice from our student colleagues a year ahead of us was to speak nicely to Oom Daan at the beginning of the anatomy course and request a “thin one”
Softly spoken and kindly anatomy lecturer, Paula Wilson (who drove a huge pink Polara gas guzzler)
emigrated to become a senior lecturer at Tasmania’s medical school in Hobart
We always commented on what fantastic legs she had.
Also, I thought Pharmacology was only in the curriculum in 3rd year not 2nd
As a result of Norman Sapeika having stated to his class , many years before us, that the Pharmacology exam was a “formal exam” the custom from then on was to turn up to the Pharm. exam in Jammie, men in black tie, and the women in ball gowns or long dresses.
I still have a photo of that somewhere.
Regards
Martin Jaffe
Thank you Trevor and John -fascinating reading with a “plot” that I can easily identify with. Look forward to the rest!
Best wishes
Indiran Naiker
Hi John,
Like Garth, I really enjoy your eloquent description of times past. Here’s a picture of Oom Daan from “Cathartic” published in 1973.
Best wishes
Peter Schutte
Hi John,
Only on chapter 3 and very much enjoying your story. You write very well, and am very impressed at the detail with which you can remember the first two years at medical school. I recall hearing stories about initiation at College House and was very relieved when I got into Driekoppen (Belsen) which had a reputation for being a bit tamer than College House.
Something has stuck in my head ré anatomy in second year and Oom Daan - on Main Road there was a huge Old Aged Home as it was then called. Behind the Old Aged Home was a big cemetery, and just above the cemetery was the medical school and the anatomy block. I shared a flat for a few years in a block across the road from the cemetery with, at various times, Malcolm Cunard, Ian Cunard, Ian Field and John Fletcher. Oom Daan used to go to the Old Aged Home to recruit donors for dissection. He once said to us - a natural progression from the home - cemetery - dissecting table!!
Looking forward to reading the rest.
Best
Garth Alperstein
Hi John
Enjoying your book immensely.
Long archived memories have been jogged…..the advice from our student colleagues a year ahead of us was to speak nicely to Oom Daan at the beginning of the anatomy course and request a “thin one”
Softly spoken and kindly anatomy lecturer, Paula Wilson (who drove a huge pink Polara gas guzzler)
emigrated to become a senior lecturer at Tasmania’s medical school in Hobart
We always commented on what fantastic legs she had.
Also, I thought Pharmacology was only in the curriculum in 3rd year not 2nd
As a result of Norman Sapeika having stated to his class , many years before us, that the Pharmacology exam was a “formal exam” the custom from then on was to turn up to the Pharm. exam in Jammie, men in black tie, and the women in ball gowns or long dresses.
I still have a photo of that somewhere.
Regards
Martin Jaffe
Thank you Trevor and John -fascinating reading with a “plot” that I can easily identify with. Look forward to the rest!
Best wishes
Indiran Naiker
Hi John,
Like Garth, I really enjoy your eloquent description of times past. Here’s a picture of Oom Daan from “Cathartic” published in 1973.
Best wishes
Peter Schutte
Thanks for reminding us of Med School John - enjoyed reading it so far...
I remember Oom Daan walking over to me as I worked on our cadaver. He must have seen how I was struggling with the mass of information needed to be assimilated in in order to know the anatomy of the body. I confessed to him that I feared I may not pass, whereupon he immediately retorted the he hoped I wouldn't let our acquaintance blossom into friendship. Fortunately it didn't, I passed.
Charles Swanepoel
Hi John
I’m enjoying your chapters as you transport us down long forgotten memory lanes.
We just missed out on being taught by the legendary Frankie Forman , although his wife Golda Selzer was one of our pathology lecturers.
Stories of his amazing clinical acumen abound (in an age when one had to rely on one’s hands, eyes and ears….with none of the ultra modern technological accoutrement available today)
2 stories stand out in my memory
These are supposed to be genuine but may be apochryphal….in any event they bear recounting.
The one was when Frankie was auscultating a patient’s chest and claimed to have heard a mid-diastolic “twang”
No-one else heard it, but Frankie was adamant. (no echo’s, MRI’s etc available then)
As the story goes, the patient eventually passed away and at autopsy a fibrous band was found across his mitral valve!
The other story was when Frankie (apparently) made a diagnosis of acromegaly from purely observing from the foot of a male patient’s bed.
The patient had none of the obvious facial or other clinical signs of this condition.
Frankie noticed that the chap was wearing his wedding band on his little finger.
The inference was that the ring finger had grown too large to accommodate said wedding band so the patient had relocated it to his pinkie.
Does anyone have any other stories of Frankie Forman’s legendary diagnostic skills?
Regards
Martin Jaffe
One of the pearls that I remember from Prof Gillis is the following:-
“ If a black person tells you that they hear the voices of departed relatives, this is within cultural norms.
However if the the head of General Motors tells you the same thing, than he (or she) is obviously psychotic.”
Regards for Victoria B.C
Jeff Wollach
I cannot believe what you recall John.
I have NO memories of any of this.
Keep reminding us
It is fascinating and illuminating.
Margie Stanford
Another awesome chapter of our training.
Again my memories are pretty poor - but do remember the drip room and Dr Leary's Lectures.
I know we had to follow up a child and family we had seen in the hospital, back home in the township - to learn how home circumstances effected health.
I have the vague memory that 'my' child had been in hospital/clinic with an ear infection.
It was either that home visit or visiting at Shawco, that I was infected with the measles virus.
Actually it must have been SHAWCO, as I was still in Baxter Hall. And I was only there in 1st Year, as left with Jenny 'Hurley'/Fraser now, in our 2nd year.
Boy, I was really ill, and Mrs van den Ende (Joan's mother and Baxter's Warden) very kindly took me into her personal flat, in res, and nursed me there for days.
Memories
Margie Stanford
I remember being in the Emergency room at Red Cross asking a registrar if I could help put up a drip on a dehydrated baby and being most put out when he refused. A few years later as I struggled to find a veins on little brown scalps I understood why! Wonderful reminiscences John, just one small pedantic correction. The lights in the neonatal units were blue ( the frequency that isomerised the unconjugated bilirubin) not ultraviolet as it is often mistaken for...small point!
Just returned from the annual UCT paediatric refresher course held at the Vineyard Hotel in Clairemont. Always an excellent meeting with top class international and local contributors. Surprisingly, still bump into old class mates and even teachers. This year Prof Cyril Karabus, previously Prof Wiklinkhuisen (spelling?) who was a regular attender.
Enjoying reading all your contributions.
Best wishes to all
John Sanders