Our Family Doctor Murdered my Grandad, and I want to thank him.
A simple life, clear boundaries, easy choices. If only it was that easy.
When people talk about a Doctor murdering people, for me one name comes to mind Dr Shipman. Dr Shipman killed a large number of people, living only three miles away the press were a regular feature on the streets where I lived, looking for and interviewing the families of his victims.
His greed and inhumanity have become synonyms with his name.
But this was not Dr Shipman, it was our trusted GP, who I had known all my life.
Can I prove he did it? No, but the evidence speaks for itself.
Before I start the trial of public opinion, I want to tell you about my Grandad.
He was like my dad, he was bright, inquisitive, kind, loving and an inverted snob, left wing and working class to the core.
In so many ways my role model. He worked thirty years as a scaffolder for the electric company.
He took me on walks and holidays to Rhyl in Wales every year.
Then he got cancer, the proud man was eaten away.
But not his brave face, he kept that until the end.
I was working as a residential social worker at the time,
Work was really important to him, on the day he died, I offered to stay at home. He would have none of it.
We should have known it was near the end, he asked my Nana to wake me through the night to help her move him.
He told her I knew what I was doing. So not true, how do you move a man in so much pain. Each touch would result in him shouting, “If I was a dog they would put me down”.
I went to work when my Aunty came around to help Nana.
I got a call later that day from my brother telling me Grandad had died.
When I got home my Nana told me that the doctor had been out and gave Grandad an injection. He then took my Nana to one side and told her Grandad would be dead within the hour. He was.
Some may say an intentional overdose is murder I saw it as mercy.
I think everybody in the family knew what happened, but nobody discussed it openly. The suffering was over.
Maybe Dr Shipman killed more than people, maybe he killed Doctors ability to end suffering without fear of jail.
Life is not designed to be black and white, and nobody gets out alive, and yet we never die.
Thank you for reading this. If you want to support me please buy me a coffee, thanks again.
