Interview
“I got so bored at home
that I came in just to
do some admin work
– but then I ended up
developing pneumonia,
which really set me back
again”
Peter and his wife en-route to the ballet in St Petersburg on their Baltic cruise in 2014
as heart disease and diabetes, and while
that is good in many ways for the patient,
it does increase pressure on the service.
“It certainly means you can forget that
old stereotype of the GP who treats a few
coughs and colds in the morning and
then spends the afternoon on the golf
course!” he jokes.
Even when patients have to be referred
to hospital, it’s only after some good
GP detective work and then diagnosis,
to ensure that they get to the correct
specialist for the job.
And if the GP’s job has got more
complex, it has also become more
demanding in terms of hours, and patient
expectations.
“A 10-hour day for me would be a good
day” he says. “12 hours is a not-so-good
day.”
He stopped doing out of hours calls
some years ago, after suffering a serious
thigh muscle rupture in a fall, which put
him out of action for months.
“When I came back it was to the day
job, and I made the decision at that point
to stop doing out-of-hours” he says.
“It certainly made family life easier to
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manage.”
At that stage, his wife Rebecca – who
had previously been a full-time GP partner
in Newark – was a part-time partner at the
Ventnor practice, and their children Emma
and Edward were in their teens. Emma,
now 26, has followed in her parents’
footsteps and is a junior doctor in London,
while Edward, 24 is a trainee solicitor in
the Capital.
Doctor as patient
In fact, both Dr Coleman and his wife
have experienced the health service
from the other side of the consulting
desk. Rebecca was ultimately forced to
retire early because of a recurring spinal
problem, while Peter ended up in full leg
plaster for three months after his fall.
He recalls his experience as a patient as
frustrating, and his recovery took longer
than anticipated: “I got so bored at home
that I came in just to do some admin
work – but then I ended up developing
pneumonia, which really set me back
again”.
He added: “I was trying to do as I was
told, but I found it very difficult being a
patient!
A medical training doesn’t make you feel
any less powerless...”
Meanwhile Rebecca has undergone two
episodes of back surgery and lives with
chronic pain.
She retired from the practice after
“making an enormous contribution to
its development” says Dr Coleman, but
continues to put in many volunteer hours
as Chair of the Friends of Quarr Abbey,
as well as being a member of the St John
Ambulance County Priory Group, and
area president for the Ryde unit of St John
Ambulance.
She also has a diploma in interior
design, which she’s used to the full
in tastefully restoring their character
Victorian home and 4.5-acre gardens in
Ryde – described as a “Forth Road Bridge
task” by her husband.
Dr Coleman says he especially loves
the gardens as a place of retreat and
relaxation – and, in particular, the pond
that is home to his collection of Koi carp.
He inherited the fish from a late friend,