Doctor Peter Gilbert, a retired local GP and a former senior officer in the Army Reserve, gave a fascinating talk to the Academic Scholars in the latest Zetountes Lecture. Drawing on his experiences in both arenas and his service in managing the British Army’s Medical Unit in Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, Dr Gilbert’s presentation highlighted how the miseries of war can inspire progress in medical understanding and practice which benefits civilians and the NHS. Thus the Combat Applied Tourniquet, pioneered in Afghanistan, is now a standard piece of kit in UK ambulances.
Dr Gilbert, who is now a Deputy Lieutenant for Kent, showed how the trenches of World War One and injuries to fighter pilots in World War Two prompted significant advances in orthopaedic surgery, insights into emerging concepts of psychological trauma, accelerated antibiotic care and facial reconstruction.
This set the landscape for further learning in the conflicts first in Iraq and then in Helmand Province where the standard mortality rate fell below 1.0. War is where politics has failed, but it is a cauldron where extraordinary medical progress was forged.
The Scholars greatly enjoyed these insights and one of our Sixth Form Scholars, who is appropriately applying to read medicine, offered a fulsome vote of thanks in appreciation of Dr Gilbert’s talk.
Related Posts
Harry Bedi hosted this week’s careers lunch, which focused on the investment banking sector. It was fascinating to hear about Harry’s career journey and the varied opportunities available within the industry. Harry’s advice on how to best prepare for a career in finance resonated strongly with our ethos of nurturing all-rounders. He suggested that pupils [...]
Members of the 1st XI Cricket team joined the Academic Scholars for this week's Zetountes Lecture on the "History of Cricket at King's School" delivered by Mr Chaloner, OR, one of the School's Governors. Drawing on his MA thesis intriguingly entitled “The transformation of English Cricket from 1787 to 1857: From aristocratic gambling to Victorian [...]
KSR rowing team recently competed in the prestigious Schools Head of the River Race for the very first time, a remarkable achievement in itself.Considering that this was also our first experience with sweep rowing, the team rose impressively to the challenge. With just three training sessions in an eight and two sessions in a coxed [...]
