As a medical student I was taught by Donald Hunter who wrote the “bible” on Occupational Health, “Diseases of Occupations”. He was an entertainer,teacher and with a gift for writing elegant prose.

As a postgraduate I worked under Professor Richard Schilling at the London School of Hygiene. He investigated the problem of Byssinosis in cotton workers and influenced the field of occupational Medicine seminally.

The Medical Officer of Health (MoH.) who in Britain worked for local government advised the service on the health of its workforce. A typical Local Authority would have a workforce of some3-4,000 people with a range of occupations- Managers, Clerks, Caretakers, Teachers, Health Visitors, Social workers, Sewer workers, Tradesmen etc.

Considerable expertise in and around the areas of recruitment, sickness absence and rehabilitation was gained. I was appointed just after the MoH was renamed and became a Consultant Physician within the National Health service. The service to the Local Authority was still maintained and inevitably I became involved in problems around employment and within the Health Service the health care of nurses and medical students.