Wartime surgery 1939-45 : as I saw it

Abstract

The first St Luke's Day Lecture was held in 1956. It is the most important yearly activity of the ultra-centenarian Malta Branch of the British Medical Association. It is usually given by a non-medical personality on a topic related to Medicine. On a few occasions, the lecture has been given by a member of the medical profession. The 1992 St Luke's Day Lecture was entrusted to Professor V. G. Griffiths, Emeritus Professor of Surgery, who spoke on his wartime experiences in the field of Surgery both as a student and as a young doctor. The local BMA Branch could not have chosen a more eminent or suitable lecturer. Professor Griffiths' association with the BMA and with the University of Malta has been long and highly rewarding. His contributions to Surgery and to the Medical School have been formidable. His membership of the BMA spans a period of fifty years, during which time he has served as President of the local Branch for something like a score of occasions. His contribution to the medical profession in Malta and to the BMA was recognised by the parent body in London when he was made Fellow of the British Medical Association in 1969. This year' s lecture had such a historical import that I felt that the Medical School should publish it, so that present and future generations of doctors would admire the deeds of those doctors who had to practise under difficult conditions and with limited resources. Professor Griffiths' account brings to life an era of Surgery that laid the solid foundations for the success of Surgery today.