Wyatt, Arthur Powell (1932 - 2009)
by
 
Christopher Russell

Asset Name
E001053 - Wyatt, Arthur Powell (1932 - 2009)

Title
Wyatt, Arthur Powell (1932 - 2009)

Author
Christopher Russell

Identifier
RCS: E001053

Publisher
London : Royal College of Surgeons of England

Publication Date
2010-10-14
 
2012-03-08

Subject
Medical Obituaries

Description
Obituary for Wyatt, Arthur Powell (1932 - 2009), Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England.

Language
English

Source
Plarr's Lives of the Fellows

Full Name
Wyatt, Arthur Powell

Date of Birth
14 October 1932

Place of Birth
Hornsey, Middlesex, UK

Date of Death
11 October 2009

Occupation
General surgeon

Titles/Qualifications
FRCS 1960
 
MB BS London 1955

Details
Arthur Powell Wyatt was a consultant surgeon in the Greenwich health district. He was born in Hornsey, Middlesex, on 14 October 1932. His father, Henry George Wyatt, a medical missionary in China, died as a neutral during the Sino-Japanese War in 1938. His mother, Edith Maud née Holden, also a missionary, was a teacher. Arthur spent his early childhood in China, before returning to England in 1940 to attend Eltham College, then the school for the sons of missionaries. During the war it was evacuated to Taunton School and afterwards returned to Eltham. Wyatt entered St Bartholomew's Hospital, qualifying in 1955 with the Walsham prize in surgical pathology. After junior posts, he passed the FRCS in 1960 and became a lecturer in surgery at St Bartholomew's for two years. He then became a senior registrar at King's College Hospital, from which he was seconded to the post of postgraduate research surgeon at Moffat Hospital, University of California, San Francisco (from 1965 to 1966). In 1967, he joined Austin Wheatley at the Brook General Hospital to establish a vascular service, his experience at St Bartholomew's under Taylor, in San Francisco and at King's making him almost uniquely qualified for such a position. Austin Wheatley died prematurely in 1969 and was replaced by Arthur Wyatt, Mervyn Rosenburg and Ellis Field in 1970. They soon established the Brook as one of the places in London in the 1970s for young surgeons to establish their credentials in surgery. The hospital provided a wide range of experience with a heavy emergency workload. Arthur proved a master at difficult and complex operations, having wide experience in pneumatosis coli, oxygen therapy, transhiatal oesophagectomy for carcinoma, thoracic sympathectomy for axillary hyperhidrosis and introducing new methods of fixation for rectal prolapse. He took a full and active part in hospital management, as well as being a regional adviser in general surgery for the South East Thames Region. He was an active member, secretary and president of the surgical and proctological sections of the Royal Society of Medicine. He was a member of the Court of Examiners of our College. He was well recognised locally and became president of the West Kent Medico-Chirurgical Society. Like his parents, Arthur was a committed Christian, and was active in the Christian Medical Fellowship. After retirement, he retraced his Chinese experience to re-establish links with that country. He developed his long term interest in gardening. It was while establishing his new garden that he became aware of the tumour which eventually proved fatal. He accepted the diagnosis with calm bolstered by his Christian faith. He died on 11 October 2009 and was survived by his wife, Margaret Helen née Cox, whom he married in 1955, and their three sons, John, Robert and Andrew. A son, David, predeceased him.

Sources
Ernest Alexander Payne, *Harry Wyatt of Shanis, 1895-1938* (London, Carey Press, 1939)
 
*BMJ* 2009 339 5165

Rights
Copyright (c) The Royal College of Surgeons of England
 
Image Copyright (c) Images provided for use with kind permission of the family

Collection
Plarr's Lives of the Fellows

Format
Obituary

Format
Asset

Asset Path
Root/Lives of the Fellows/E001000-E001999/E001000-E001099

URL for File
373236

Media Type
JPEG Image

File Size
76.79 KB