Dr Finlay meets Mr Herriot

Dr Paul Watkins MA, PhD, MRCVS

Dr. Paul Watkins was the first speaker of the 2017-8 term which was held for the first time at The Imperial Hotel, Torquay, on 19th October 2017.
This was also a combined meeting with members of the Western Counties Veterinary Association, with a table taken by our veterinary guests.

Collaboration Across Professions

Dr. Watkins posed a few instances where the role of vets and doctors occupied a penumbra of expertise which advantaged human medical care.......
How did a doctor from London become responsible for the formation of the Army Veterinary Services, and why was a surgeon from Ormskirk responsible for the establishment of the horse supply for the East India Company, and himself one of the first players in ‘The Great Game’.
Why did Queen Victoria seek the opinion of a veterinary surgeon when she developed cataracts?
How did a doctor lay the seeds for the research institute which would clone a mammal, and give the world ‘Dolly.’

Dr Paul Watkins

All images on page Copyright © Paul Watkins

From Nobel Prize to Olympic Sports Medicine...

Why the world has become reliant on flexible film isolators for the management of patients with infectious diseases such as Ebola, and how the veterinary profession was instrumental in their development.
How a young doctor working at the Glasgow Veterinary College undertook seminal research in the company of a number of surgeons, which would lead to two ground-breaking drugs, and a Nobel Prize!
And how his veterinary assistant would become a pioneer in the field of Olympic sports medicine.

"The Veterinarian and the Doctor"

Albert Calmette, the doctor, and Camille Guerin, the vet, who co-developed the BCG vaccine.

... and Weybridge to Tannochbrae

Why a study of biological weapons in World War 2 led to the development of the Coombs test and how studies of cats suffering from leukaemia not only resulted in effective vaccines, but contributed to the identification and isolation of viruses responsible for human leukaemia and HIV.
And, how Dr Finlay and Mr Herriot were totally reliant on a veterinary invention to allow them to travel the roads around Tannochbrae and Darrowby, to carry out their domiciliary visits.

A Tour de Force...

Dr. Watkins answered all these questions, and a lot more, in his comprehensive presentation.
It was a tour de force and a very impressive opening to a new era in the history of our society. As a society we are exploring combined meetings of professions allied to medicine and inviting their practitioners to become associate members of our society.

Review by Ian Fraser, President T&DMS 2016-18