Their names liveth forever-more
By Dr Nihal D Amerasekera
There are many from my era in medical school who feel deeply
grateful for the fine
education they have received. Gratitude is one of the finest
of human qualities. It is a divine
gift respected in the Eastern cultures. Appreciation of ones’ teachers is a tradition
as old as
teaching itself. I must reiterate we were students in the
golden age of medical education in
Colombo with a plethora of some of the finest lecturers and
clinicians we have ever seen in
our island. While I can’t pretend to have matched the
dizzying heights of their success,
those long five years of interactions with our teachers made
a significant lifelong impact on
many of us. They were inspirational. It is my greatest
pleasure and privilege to remember a
few of them on this Blog.
Dr Don Jinadasa Attygalle
He was born in 1916 in the southern city of Galle. After his
education at Royal College
Colombo he entered the Colombo Medical College. He qualified
LMS in 1941. DJA married
Dr. Daphne Kanakaratne in 1951. She later became the
Professor of Pathology. He worked
in the Health Service in various parts of the country and sailed
to England in 1951 where he
remained until 1954. There he obtained the MRCP and returned
to Ceylon to complete the
MD examination.He was tall, well groomed, impeccably dressed and ever
courteous. From what I recall hewas a dignified man of few words. Whenever he spoke to the
patients, doctors or students
he was calm and spoke respectfully. DJA was of a quiet and
reserved disposition, never
flustered, never upset. He had the ability to show and teach
genuine compassion.
He took great care to teach us well. He corrected our
mistakes but never lost his cool. DJA
was a fine teacher of the best traditions of our era and
taught us the basics well. He was a
quiet retiring person who never looked for publicity. A few
could claim to know him well.
DJA had a fine private practice where he saw patients at
home and also at the many private
hospitals. He never came across as a money grabbing doctor.
He retired in 1972 but
continued to see patients privately.
Mrs Attygalle passed away in 1989 and Dr DJ Attygalle in
1997. They had no children.
He was a devout Buddhist all his life and donated his house
at 50, Castle Street to the YMBA.
I feel immensely proud to have been taught by such a great
man whom I admire
enormously. Despite all his achievements, those of us who
were privileged to train under his
guidance remember him mostly for his humanity.
Dr Ernest Victor Pieris
He was born in Badulla in 1926. His father was a doctor.
After his education at Royal College
Colombo he entered the Ceylon Medical College. There he
qualified as a doctor with 1 st Class
Honours and distinctions in Medicine, Obstetrics and
Gynaecology. He proceeded to the UK
and obtained his MRCP
degree. On his return he obtained his MD.
EVP was appointed
Consultant Physician to the GHC in 1960.
EVP was a dedicated and meticulous physician. He was a kind,
skillful and compassionate
doctor and took great care of his patients. EVP was a
popular physician in the private sector
but he never neglected his duties to his poorer patients at the GHC and his
numerous
teaching commitments.Although soft spoken he was no pushover. He had a tremendous sense of humour. He waswell known for his acerbic and often amusing comments while
on his teaching rounds andward classes.
I did a 2 month appointment with him when I learnt much of
my medicine. He had the skills
to teach and also to make the students learn. EVP never
suffered fools gladly. At his ward
classes and appointments he saw to it that medical students
learnt the bedside manners
and the clinical methods. When he felt someone didn’t work
hard enough he made sure
they moved to the front and took an active part. I learnt
much from him and feel immensely
grateful. He gave some brilliant tutorials when we were in
the final year. EVP maintained a
healthy distance between himself and the students and made
certain everyone knew
his/her place all through his years of teaching. He was hard
to please but appreciated good
work.
He retired in 1972 and continued to see patients privately.
EVP was a good sportsman and he played Cricket and Rugby for
Royal College. He captained
the University Rugby Team.
He was married to a chest physician and had four daughters.
EVP was a staunch Christian.
Dr EV Pieris passed away in December 1991.
Dr. M. Oliver Robert Medonza
He was born in 1913 and had his education at St Benedict’s
College Kotahena. He entered
the Ceylon Medical College in 1934. Dr Medonza completed his medical degree with
First
Class honours and distinctions in Medicine, Surgery,
Obstetrics and Gynaecology. In 1952 he
obtained his MRCP and also the MD. Soon after he was
appointed Consultant Physician to
the GHC. In 1972 he was appointed President of the Sri Lanka
Medical Association. Dr
Medonza retired in 1973.
He had a strong personality. I did a 2 month appointment
with him as a medical student. My
abiding memory of him is his wonderful bedside manner and
his innate ability to speak to
the patients in colloquial Sinhala and get to the bottom of
the problem. MOR was a fine
teacher and instilled in us the fine art of history taking
and examination. He taught us to
observe the patient and to elicit physical signs and
interpret them accurately. He made it all
look simple just like commonsense. He was always available
to teach and to encourage, and
never seemed harried or abrupt. It wasn’t often he was
irritated by the students’ sheer
ignorance but then it was all over very soon and he was back
to his normal placid self. At the
end of the 2 months he gave us a fine dinner at his house
with plenty of good food and
drinks. On that eventful evening he was one of us and
enjoyed like the rest of us.
MOR was a popular doctor and was a household name being in
great demand in the private
sector. He never neglected his duties to his patients at the
GHC and his commitment to
teaching.
In his student days he was a fine cricketer and a tennis
player. Later on in life he played
billiards and contract bridge in the company of a wide
circle of friends which he clearly
enjoyed.
He became a devout Buddhist and learnt Pali to translate the
Dhammapada.
Dr Medonza passed away in June 1991.
Dr P.R.Anthonis
When I think of the surgeons that taught me the name that
comes across in flashing neon
lights, above everyone else, is Dr. PR Anthonis. He was not
only a fine surgeon, excellent
tutor, a fine raconteur, he was a phenomenon. PRA was a
mentor to many. His ward classes
were pure theatre and he knew the art of getting a message
across to the students.
Although calm and
placid he never tolerated nonsense. He
was firm when it was necessary.
PRA was always courteous to his patients, his students and
the nursing staff. His natural
curiosity led him to make fine observations. He tried his
best to pass on this superb skill to
his students.
The myriad of anecdotes which he related in his own
inimitable style, still ring in my ears. He
often had good, sound and practical advice about everything
with a short personal story to
go with it. Although he enjoyed a lucrative private practice
even the poor patients
worshipped him for his kind and generous ways. He elicited
tremendous admiration and
affection in the people he met.
He was born in 1911. After a brilliant school career at St
Peter’s College Bambalapitiya he
entered the Medical College in 1930. There he won the Gold
Medal in Surgery amongst
many other awards and scholarships. He passed the FRCS
examination in 1945. On his
return to Ceylon in 1947 was appointed Consultant Surgeon to
the GHC where he rose far
and fast.After an illustrious career in the Health Service Dr
Anthonis retired in 1971. He worked in
the private sector well into his 80’s.
He was a devout Buddhist and passed away at the age of 99.
His kindness, generosity and
good humour are fond memories for us all. Many will remember
him for being such an
eloquent speaker and fluent writer. He was such a presence
during our years his voice must
swirl in the ether in the wards and corridors of the General
Hospital Colombo.
