Medical marvel

GOODBYE and good luck . . . Sujit Kumar (centre) is presented with a retirement gift by Stephen Derbyshire (A & E consultant) as colleagues look on

ONE of the first doctors in the country to pioneer a lifesaving technique for heart-attack patients has hung up his stethoscope after 23 years in Oldham.

After decades at the top of his profession, consultant in emergency medicine Sujit Kumar (64) is destined for a more sedate pace of life, following his retirement on Friday.

Mr Kumar worked as a registrar at hospitals in Kent and the Derbyshire Royal Infirmary before coming to Oldham in 1976.

He then trained in emergency medicine at Hope Hospital and later returned Oldham in 1985 to work at the infirmary in the centre of town, which was later pulled down.

In 1989, he became the first surgeon in emergency medicine at the newly-built accident and emergency department at the Royal Oldham Hospital and has saved the lives of thousands of Oldhamers over the years.

He said: “Even after all these years, it still gives me a real thrill to save someone’s life or make their life better. That’s what people go into medicine for.

“I will really miss people. People in Oldham are very friendly.”

Ever the trailblazer, Mr Kumar, who was also the associate medical director to the Pennine Acute Hospital Trust, was one of the first doctors in the country to pioneer the use of clot-busting drugs for acute heart attacks back in the late 1980s — a full 10 years before it was recommended by the Government.

He also launched the CT scanner appeal, which quickly raised £500,000, a sum later matched by the Government so that the Royal Oldham Hospital could take possession of a brand new scanner in the early 1990s.

He also introduced specialist hand surgery into the department, meaning that Oldhamers no longer had to travel all the way to the then Withington Hospital for specialised operations.

Mr Kumar, of Tandle Hill Road, Royton, said: “My approach is that if you have the resources and you can do something, just do it, there’s no point in sending someone elsewhere.

“I couldn’t have done it without the team though.

“It doesn’t matter how enthusiastic you are, unless you’ve got a really strong team with you, you’re not going to get very far.”