John Inkster

Abstract

John InksterJohn Inkster died on September 10th 2011. He started life early, weighing only 2 pounds (0.9 kg). The outlook for him and his twin sister was poor so his mother, who was a nurse trained at the Childrens Hospital, Great Ormond Street, took them home to look after them herself. This showed that very small premature babies could survive with special care that did not include all the modern techniques.He was educated at Epsom College and graduated as a doctor from Aberdeen University in 1945. His first job was at Hampstead where they did their ward work in the morning and took over the anesthetics in the afternoon from the anesthetists – a frightening situation as they had no training. He was in the army for 3½ years, still giving anesthetics with little training. In 1950, he went to Newcastle where he undertook 3 years training. He worked with Professor E.A. Pask, as his first assistant, and Philip Ayre who had a particular interest in cleft lips and palates.