Nottingham GP couple celebrate 'wonderful' combined…

Nottingham GP couple celebrate 'wonderful' combined 100 years of treating patients

A married Nottingham GP couple are celebrating a combined 100 years of caring for generations of patients. Dr Om Prakash Sharma, 76, and wife Dr Kalpana Sharma, 74, partners at Greenfields Medical Centre in Hyson Green, have been working in general practice since the early 1970s.

On December 20, Mr Sharma marked 50 years as a doctor, most of which he has spent in Hyson Green. "I feel wonderful. I certainly can say I've enjoyed every bit of it and in particular working in a very deprived area," he told Nottinghamshire Live.

"It has its own challenges but it gives us satisfaction. People are really grateful and I'm grateful for my patients and the wonderful NHS. After five years we were well established and could've got a job in any part of the country, but we felt so settled in this area. Although it has it's challenges people are really thankful for your services."

Mrs Sharma, who is approaching 50 years herself, worked in a practice in Strelley until 2016, when she moved to her husband's practice. She said: "Once you're a doctor that's it, it's your life. To be part of the NHS is great, I'm so glad to be part of it, I've enjoyed being a GP all my life."

The pair, who live in Wollaton, planned to move back to India in the early 70s but their plans changed when they had their son, who has Down's syndrome. They decided to remain in the UK where they were told he would receive better support.

"When we started, finding a job in general practice was very, very difficult," Mr Sharma recalled. "Nowadays there are hundreds of vacancies, there is a shortage of GPs."

Dr Sharma says he has no plans to retire (Joseph Raynor/ Nottingham Post)

He said one of the best parts of his job was caring for generations of patients. "It's the beauty of general practice, it's not like hospital where you just see the patient once and forget about it," he said. "In general practice you see patients and their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren."

Mrs Sharma added: "It's an excellent way to see generations and you can see a generation gap as well. We see the children growing up differently and their service has changed completely, the demand has changed. There's so many advances we have seen and we've had to adapt, you can't stand still."

Explaining the biggest changes throughout the years, Mr Sharma said: "In the early years we used to send everybody to hospital, now all the chronic conditions, we manage in GP practices. We are managing all the long-term conditions in primary care."

He said, despite reaching 50 years, he had no plans to retire. "I don't really want to retire. If I do what will I do? I'll just watch the tele and the day passes by. Here, it gives me an incentive to come. It keeps my brain ticking, every day there's a new thing." Mrs Sharma added: "It stops you getting Alzheimer's."