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SMITH John Andrew Stanley MB BS FFARCS

FANZCA DA

1940-

John Andrew Stanley Smith, always known as Andrew, was born in Clare South Australia on 26th March 1940, the eldest of two sons of John Gordon Stanley Smith and Nancy Edith, nee Read. The family doctor overseeing the delivery was Dr Geoffrey Wien-Smith, who had served overseas in WW1. Smith grew up on a mixed farm some l5km north-west of Clare and, with fuel rationing during the war years, lived an isolated existence with only his mother for company. His brother, Michael, who was born on 2lst June 1944, continues to farm at Yackandandah. His father’s two brothers and sister had enlisted in WW2 and he was the only able bodied man left to run three farms, so the hours were long and there was minimal interaction between Smith and his father. There was a monthly trip to Clare for provisions and an annual week at Glenelg for a beach holiday. His education started with correspondence school, from Adelaide, for 3 years, with his mother helping where possible. A governess was engaged, in 1947, on a Monday-Friday live-in basis.  Overall, this provided a solid foundation for future schooling. He started grade 3 at the Brinkworth Area School in 1948. He rode a horse 5 miles to Hart, a siding on the Balaklava-Gladstone railway, left the horse in an adjacent yard and caught the Blyth to Brinkworth School bus. The reverse followed after school and, if he hurried, he was home by 6pm. There was no electricity until a 32 volt system came in 1949 (the mains came in 1960) and the nearest phone was one kilometre away at Yackandandah, the main homestead of the Smiths. They had been in the area from 1864.  Wireless was powered by a 6 volt battery and only allowed for brief news bulletins. He was usually top of his class at school, and, in 1952, won the John Walker Junior Scholarship giving him three years of free tuition at Scotch College, Adelaide, delighting both family and teachers at Brinkworth. He was despatched to the boarding house at Scotch in 1953; Smith reflects that he was homesick, socially awkward, facing puberty, and not a happy lad.  As at Brinkworth, he struggled in sport and pursued academia and music as major interests. He was awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship to study at the University. Coming from the land, Veterinary Science was an attractive choice but that meant moving either to Perth or Armidale which were too far from home. So he opted for medicine. Scotch College pointed him to the residential college of St Marks but there was no answer to the bell when he got there. He wandered up the hill to Lincoln College where the Rev Frank Hambly opened the door, resulting in a life-long association with Lincoln College. This also included, from 1970, a 15 year stint on the College Council including a term as Chairman. The Smith family, later, established an annual scholarship for a student in second or subsequent year who had contributed in both academia and the college club with distinction. He graduated MB BS in 1964 and undertook his resident year at the RAH. His intended travel the following year was delayed by his contracting mumps encephalitis and a further 3 weeks more resident training was required before full registration. This led to cancellation of his booking on the Orcades and the dilemma of what to do with the forthcoming year. He applied for Neuro-surgery and Anaesthesia and was accepted for both and made the decision to do Anaesthesia. However, his travel ambitions remained. Smith left the RAH and moved to Whyalla, early in 1966, to join a general practice group, and to earn the air fare to the UK. This gave him a fascinating insight to general practice although much of his time was spent giving anaesthetics. He was offered a "free" trip as ship's doctor on the Port Lincoln which sailed from Melbourne in May 1966. Five weeks later, after two engine fires, an entire crew laid low with dysentery courtesy of Suez water, and several days delay in getting into Liverpool because of the seaman's strike, he was in England. He commenced a Registrar position in anaesthesia at Dudley Rd Hospital, Birmingham. Smith recalls that the attraction of London's West End resulted

in regular trips to the theatre, a midnight movie in Leicester Square and driving back just in time to start work. Hence, after 6 months, a move to the Edgeware General Hospital for 6 months as an obstetric houseman. At this time, he envisaged a future life as a country general practitioner with proficiency in anaesthesia and obstetrics and gynaecology. He achieved his Diploma in Anaesthetics in 1967. After a four month tour of Europe with an Adelaide medical friend he returned to Edgware as an anaesthetic registrar. Around this time a letter arrived from Canberra foreshadowing specialist qualifications being necessary for Australian medicine. This led to his decision to seek the primary fellowship in London. He achieved his full fellowship in August 1968. Back in Australia he resumed at the RAH; in January 1969, as a Senior Registrar in anaesthesia. Later that year, Dr John Stace, an Army Reserve Major with Navy experience, approached him asking for a 3 month tour in Vietnam. At the time Intensive Care was in its infancy and lay within the remit anaesthesia. Major advances were being made by US personnel at the Walter Reid Institute and in Vietnam. He had a strong interest in this field and enlisted into the army.

Smith had joined the Adelaide University Squadron as a second year medical student and graduated as a Pilot Officer two years later. This was followed by five years on the inactive reserve. He served, at the rank of major in the RAAMC, in Vietnam for 3 months at I Aust FdHosp, Vung Tau from February 1970. This hospital looked after Australian, US and where time allowed, local casualties in the Phuoc Tuy province. Some days were frenetic, others quiet but much was achieved. He acquired skills at resuscitation by sub-clavian catheterisation by practising in the mortuary and recalls heroic and successful resuscitation of those in severe haemorrhagic shock. Smith kept a daily, private, diary while away. Smith was issued with the Australian Active Service Medal (1945-1975), the Vietnam Medal,  the Vietnamese Campaign Medal and the Australian Defence Medal.

After Vietnam, Andrew returned to the RAH rather than private practice largely because major neurosurgery was conducted there. His earlier interest progressed to neuro-anaesthesia, a bias that continued for 30 years until retirement in 2000. He married Dr Jane Sumner Willoughby and had two children, Robyn in 1976, an Occupational Therapist in Melbourne now with three children of her own, and Robert, in 1977, whose career was cut short by a severe head injury in 1997. He lives independently but near his parents. Jane has had a very similar career with an English FFARCS (1971) and the FANZCA (1977). She was a staff specialist anaesthetist at the RAH and later a visiting medical officer until retirement in 2000. Jane shared the neuro-anaesthesia passion and it remained her major interest. In retirement Andrew and Jane live in North Adelaide in their home of forty years with interests in travel, especially Italy, gardening, dogs, music, theatre and opera.  Both are members of the Naval, Military and Air Force Club in Adelaide. Jane is also a member of the Queen Adelaide Club.

Source

Blood, Sweat and Fears II: Medical Practitioners of South Australia on Active Service After World War 2 to Vietnam 1945-1975.

Summers, Swain, Jelly, Verco. Open Book Howden, Adelaide 2016

Uploaded by Annette Summers AO RFD